Inspire Greatness Within
When I began my graduate school journey, I was a new school administrator. I had spent fifteen years in the classroom and had a unique opportunity to transition to a position that focused on curriculum, coaching faculty, and assisting in leading my school. I felt ready, but in many ways unprepared for the job. It was my goal to become the most effective school administrator possible.
Looking back, my professional goals were:
I am a committed learner in life, propelled by a desire to serve my school community and the larger community. I aspire to study, learn, listen, and grow so that when each day ends, I know I am better not only for the sake others, but also for myself.
My goals today are both similar and different to these original goals. In spending time with faculty over the last two years, I have come to believe that my primary goal is to tap into the greatness of each person that walks the halls of my school. How can I show teachers and students alike that they are valuable, talented, and capable? How can I inspire others to take risks and to ask for feedback? How can I create a culture of openness, trust, and service?
Building intentional relationships with others that are both supportive and challenging is my focus. What matters now: spending time in classrooms, with teachers, amongst students, asking questions, sharing encouragement, and taking the time to provide quality feedback. It is knowing when to push a little and remind educators of why they fell in love with teaching in the first place. It is finding the place of passion in every educator and challenging teachers to teach from that place more often.
I am committed to leading others through establishing quality relationships with those that I work with. It is easy to get wrapped up in the details of any job; classroom teachers often face anxiety about how much content they cover, or what they do each specific day. In the same way, as a school administrator, it is easy to become very busy. However, in the long run, students and teachers alike will likely not remember an individual lesson or a specific action. They will remember you for how you treated them and how you made them feel as a person. I hope that the faculty I work with feel that they can be fully human, stretched to grow and safe to make mistakes, and in that, model for students the beauty of learning in a community.
Looking back, my professional goals were:
- To influence school leaders and educators on my campus with a depth of knowledge, a professional approach, and trusted instinct.
- To learn to use data more effectively to make instructional decisions, as well as influence and drive quality instruction.
- To staff a school with a balanced and effective faculty that see the value in life-long learning.
I am a committed learner in life, propelled by a desire to serve my school community and the larger community. I aspire to study, learn, listen, and grow so that when each day ends, I know I am better not only for the sake others, but also for myself.
My goals today are both similar and different to these original goals. In spending time with faculty over the last two years, I have come to believe that my primary goal is to tap into the greatness of each person that walks the halls of my school. How can I show teachers and students alike that they are valuable, talented, and capable? How can I inspire others to take risks and to ask for feedback? How can I create a culture of openness, trust, and service?
Building intentional relationships with others that are both supportive and challenging is my focus. What matters now: spending time in classrooms, with teachers, amongst students, asking questions, sharing encouragement, and taking the time to provide quality feedback. It is knowing when to push a little and remind educators of why they fell in love with teaching in the first place. It is finding the place of passion in every educator and challenging teachers to teach from that place more often.
I am committed to leading others through establishing quality relationships with those that I work with. It is easy to get wrapped up in the details of any job; classroom teachers often face anxiety about how much content they cover, or what they do each specific day. In the same way, as a school administrator, it is easy to become very busy. However, in the long run, students and teachers alike will likely not remember an individual lesson or a specific action. They will remember you for how you treated them and how you made them feel as a person. I hope that the faculty I work with feel that they can be fully human, stretched to grow and safe to make mistakes, and in that, model for students the beauty of learning in a community.