It’s almost a new year! During my tenure as a Principal Coach, I looked forward to coming back to work after the winter break, knowing that January was a bus...
It's not the new building. It's not the slick hardware.It's not the powerful software.It's not the inspirational speeches.It's not the important new initiative.It's not the innovative p...
This morning I was touched by a story. Not by one I read but by one I had lived and written. It was the story of an incident I experienced p...
I’m not a schmoozer. It’s not in my nature to chit chat idly or drum up conversation where there is none. I have to work intentionally to connect with...
My husband and I took the kids to our community’s First Friday Arts Trail recently, a fun event held at multiple venues around Lubbock to see the work of loc...
Principal Coach. I've worn quite a few hats in school leadership over the years, but this one, the Principal Coach hat, is my favorite. For about nine years, I had the...
We all know people who major in the minors. They critique, dissect, cajole, nitpick anything and everything. We also know those people as persistent pains and energy drains. It's even worse when they're in charge.
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"On a scale of 1-10, what's your homework load tonight?", I asked Aubrey, my high school freshman. "It's a five", he said. "And here's why", he continued. Powerful questioning...
I admit it. As a campus leader, especially in the beginning, I thought I needed to be the Chief Problem Solver and Mediator. When our staff was considering the implementation of a process to use for&n...
I've read this article a few times since I first saw it a couple of years ago. I like to come back to it because hum...
Back in September, I wrote about the importance of school leaders reflecting upon their own core values and beliefs, as an important first step in leading a school. Why? Because we don't leave our experiences, our philosophie...
Through my years of being a principal, I have learned that no one person can be a master...
This past year I had accomplished some big goals and was ready for the next set of challenges in my continued quest for self-improvement. I'd like to tell you about my most recent goals but first let me ask:...
There has been something on my To Do list for seven months now. It kind of became a game to me-to see how long I could move this particular chore to the next, fresh list-and still have a good excuse for not accomplishing the task. Procra...
For those who choose the demanding but rewarding path of servant leadership, one of the most challenging tasks we face is to understand the concept of interconnectedness. The most effective and influential leaders have developed the abil...
From the AEL team: One of the goals of AEL is to connect educational leaders across the state and even the nation. Our blogs will occasionally feature educators who tell their story AND share their thoughts based on their ex...
It is September.September. How did that happen? In my house, it’s time for football & band season. Evenings and weekends seem to fade all too quickly into the crisper, cooler air. School is in full swing. We are looking ahea...
It’s that time of the year.
You are in the midst of hiring staff, finalizing the master schedule, and planning back-to-school professional development. Often, that professional development plan for your staff includes the creati...
As the Advancing Educational Leadership training evolved from an idea to a realized product, the importance of addressing what we are calling the “soft skills” of leadership steadily grew in the hearts and minds of those working...
As the saying goes,without a vision the people perish. I will take that a step further and say without continued reflection the leader will perish...