STANDARD FIVE Managerial Leadership
School executives will craft and oversee productive processes for budgeting, staffing, problem solving, communication, and scheduling that augments instruction to advance academic growth.
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Standard 5A: To apply knowledge of budgetary funds and their proper use, ELP 554 gave us the opportunity to review a school budget from a Johnston County school and realign any needed elements to best support the SIT goals. This expanded my knowledge of fund sources, purpose, object, and program elements in budget codes as well as reinforced the need to utilize available funding to maximize the serving of students. Although budget creation is the primary duty of a school principal, collaboration from an assistant principal supports a comprehensive view of school needs and interventions that best meet them. In addition to the WCPSS Secondary Budget Manager course, the knowledge gained from this course will allow us to effectively contribute to the creation of a school budget in the near future. |
Standard 5A: To communicate the changes in the budget project above to parents, this infographic outlines specific actions aligned to the school's SIP goals. It is comprehensive, yet written in parent-friendly language to be accessible for all stakeholders. It is thorough, yet not wordy to be consumable and understandable for those not familiar with school budgets, which is likely most of a school community. Transparency on financial decisions bolsters trust and although it may spur spirited discourse, allows for stakeholders to see the true mission and vision of their child's school. As stakeholders are also the taxpayers who provide the revenue for schools, sharing this information also respects their irreplaceable financial contributions. |
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Standard 5B: After being agreed upon by the teacher leadership team the previous year, the lunch duty coverage schedule at Combs was revamped for the 2019-20 school year to allow one full hour of uninterrupted PLT time for each grade level each week. To balance coverage duties across the staff, though, teachers were then required to provide lunch supervision for their own classes four days a week. As the reality of this commitment became clear, though, staff expressed disapproval through their grade level representatives with conflicting interests bubbling to the surface. In response, and to find a third alternative, I assisted in the creation of a new model of coverage with specialists, IAs, office staff, and all support staff assisting on a rotating basis. This was decided upon after gaining a great deal of input and approval from the teacher leadership team and the new plan was also approved by this group. The resolution was palatable for staff as they believed that their input was respected in the final decision. It was a wonderful learning experience to be involved in this resolution process and I will undoubtedly need such a protocol as a building leader. |
Standard 5B: Interpersonal conflicts, while inevitable, must be diffused to foster full participation in the advancing of school identity, culture, and especially student performance. Crucial Conversations is an effective framework to facilitate such conflicts. This reflection for the formal Crucial Conversations training with Dr. Fran Riddick shows my application of the process and a reflection on improving my application of the strategy for future use. Crucial Conversations helps remove emotion and preserve a focus on student achievement as the primary job of all schools. Due to the sensitive nature of the other person involved, the full writing is available here to NCSU Weebly reviewers only. |
Standard 5C: While Combs' AP was on leave for surgery, I coordinated the creation of the internal communication tool named "The Communigator." I created a Google document in a shared folder to allow all staff members to add information for general distribution and included important calendar events for the next two weeks. This tool is also used to highlight focus elements and celebrate successes through pictures that I contributed or collected from others. The Communigator is sent weekly to avoid excessive emails or texts and thus preserves time for instructional planning and student support. Messages that require immediate action due to safety or unexpected schedule changes are sent infrequently through a staff text distribution using the Remind 101 platform. |
Standard 5C: To formalize communication around the vertical alignment discussions that ensue each year, I created a Google Sheet for each PLT to enter academic and functional/behavioral skills needed for success in their grade. Rich discussions in each PLT produced a comprehensive list of skills for both areas and this can be used as a platform for discussions in future years, as well. |
Standard 5D: As evidenced on the 2019 TWC, staff at Combs perceive the need for greater input on the creation of discipline systems and student expectations. To gain insight on their needs and opinions, I created this discipline survey in advance of preparations for the 2020-21 school year. Effective discipline systems support instruction and allow staff attention to focus on the needs of all. This survey also provided an additional pathway for feedback, strengthening the communication pathways at Combs to an even greater degree. Notable results included staff desiring additional training on effective discipline strategies as well as the opportunity to observe peers who posses strengths in this area.
Standard 5D: With the advent of distance learning and meeting due to COVID-19 school closures, staff expectations were communicated regarding online meetings. As these meetings were relatively new to staff, the explicit addressing of best practice was important to ensure that meetings met intended goals and that professionalism was our cloak. Meetings such as class gatherings and IEP conferences that required customer-facing audiences necessitated professional attire and settings, while PLT and staff meetings allowed more casual wear for staff. As administrators, we not only modeled proper virtual meeting etiquette, but also addressed instances in which these norms were not adhered to. Through this challenging and stressful time, though, we also extended grace as staff adjusted to these unusual and unwanted interruptions to our lives and jobs. |