wearemcusd

Do we really want self-advocacy?

I had a meeting with a teacher and a union representative earlier this week over a scheduling issue. The issue was relatively complex in that by the letter of the contract we had probably not done anything wrong, but we had in my opinion we had unwittingly violated the spirit of the agreement. This was not intentional or malicious – but it was an issue or at minimum an oversight. And it was the fault of administration. I explained this… Read More »Do we really want self-advocacy?

My Advice for New Superintendents

About three months ago a few aspiring superintendents asked me what pieces of advice I would give a first year superintendent. I am sure it was an assignment for grad school – I am not that cool to be randomly approached. I rattled off a few things – that I deeply believe in – but I did not give it a ton of thought at the time. As I approach the end of my fourth year as a superintendent I… Read More »My Advice for New Superintendents

PSA for dads: Play Fortnite

This is written as a PSA for dads as I am one, but I assume everything said here would work for moms as well. My oldest son was five on the hardest day of my career. As a high school principal we had a student suddenly pass. I remember leading the building through a very difficult week and while I was emotional, I had not cracked. On Friday, the superintendent, my assistant principal, and I did the heart-wrenching work of… Read More »PSA for dads: Play Fortnite

This is getting serious . . .

I Love Public Education I love public education . . . and I am having a hard time sleeping at night. Here is why . . . About a week ago I was doing my due diligence as a school superintendent and engaging in a conversation with a state-level legislator. As my colleagues and I were discussing the growing teacher shortage in our area I felt as though the elected official was putting the impetus back on districts to do… Read More »This is getting serious . . .

#IAedchat Podcast

I was incredibly fortunate to hang out with the #IAedchat crew (1.28.18) and have a very REAL conversation about the state of teacher evaluation in our schools and what we can do to improve it. Check it out. https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/iaedchat/episodes/2018-01-28T19_34_10-08_00

It’s Time We Had a Talk

It’s Time We Had a Talk This year, the past year of your professional life, was the easiest year you will have the rest of your life. Yes, last year. Yes, the year when a new initiative was created by someone above you that you only half-heartedly agreed with. Yes, the year when the ‘tough’ class came through your classroom or building. That year. That year was easiest year of the rest of your career. Think that is impossible. Look… Read More »It’s Time We Had a Talk

Learning from Failure

The beginning of the year is wonderful. The world is very much defined by renewed enthusiasm and conviction to lead a better life in the new calendar year than the one led in the past. Twitter is a great place to see these proclamations of new focus and energy. The one word movement started by Jon Gordon has reached an enormous number of people and is profoundly important and revered in the educational community – where I spend the lion’s… Read More »Learning from Failure

Industry Leaders Comment on Making Evaluation Meaningful

Making Evaluation Meaningful   Re-evaluate your perspective on teacher evaluation to truly transform school performance! The tools, strategies, and reflections in this book provide realistic solutions to the problem faced by many schools: meaningless evaluation. A considerable amount of time, energy, and money is spent on the teacher evaluation process, yet the question remains whether it is truly transforming the learning of teachers and, therefore, students. This practical guide shows how evaluation can become the tie that binds all school… Read More »Industry Leaders Comment on Making Evaluation Meaningful

Interview with Larry Ferlazzo about Making Evaluation Meaningful

PJ Caposey agreed to answer a few questions about his new book, Making Evaluation Meaningful: Transforming the Conversation to Transform Schools. Dr. PJ Caposey is an award-winning principal and superintendent who is an expert in teacher evaluation, school culture, personalized learning, and student voice. Find him on Twitter and Instagram @MCUSDSupe. LF: You talk about the importance of giving teachers feedback using a “why, how, what” formula. This seems to me to be a good strategy for teachers’ giving student feedback, too. … Read More »Interview with Larry Ferlazzo about Making Evaluation Meaningful