In public education, good communication skills play a significant role in your ability as a leader to “get the message across” to help your staff understand just what you are trying to say. For many administrators, this skill has been developed to a fine art while other administrators are incomplete communicators. Do your comments in faculty meetings …
December 2014 archive
Dec 30
Tips for Difficult Conversations
School administrators face multiple tasks daily. Among these tasks is the need, at times, to have a pointed conversation with a colleague or staff member when the review of an action or comment needs to be discussed. Rather than put this opportunity off for a variety reasons, it is usually better to be up front with …
Dec 30
New Training for Principals?
In an article written for the December 27 Richmond Times-Dispatch, Anne Holton, Virginia Secretary of Education, expressed her thoughts on the continuing of the Common Core saga with the lack of enthusiasm and support for these standards. “There is very little appetite to change the system, Virginia’s standard are as rigorous (as the Common Core standards)…and …
Dec 10
Ho..Ho..Ho..It’s That Time of the Year Again!
It’s not just time for Santa to visit us in Virginia again, but rather some of his “elves” who are preparing legislation for the 2015 General Assembly of Virginia. While that thought may thrill some school administrators, others may consider some more like a lump of coal being delivered to your school inbox. Yes, as you …
Dec 02
Putting the Spotlight on the Central Role of Principals
In a recent article in Education Week, (December 1, 2014), the U.S. Department of Education has “trained its efforts on principals by rolling out a series of initiatives that build on the growing body of research underscoring the role they (translated You) play in school’s successes” according to Denisa R. Superville. Did someone out there …
Dec 02
Historic Venues for History SOL Hearings
What better way to promote interest and garner attention for the proposed revisions to the History and Social Sciences than to hold the presentations at five historic locations in the Commonwealth? Unique? Inspiring? Yes, as a matter of fact it is, and the Board of Education hopes to draw larger crowds using these special venues …