STANDARD THREE - CULTURAL LEADERSHIP
School executives will understand and act on the understanding of the important role a school’s culture contributes to the exemplary performance of the school. School executives must support and value the traditions, artifacts, symbols and positive values and norms of the school and community that result in a sense of identity and pride upon which to build a positive future. A school executive must be able to “reculture” the school if needed to align with school’s goals of improving student and adult learning and to infuse the work of the adults and students with passion, meaning and purpose. Cultural leadership implies understanding the school as the people in it each day, how they came to their current state, and how to connect with their traditions in order to move them forward to support the school’s efforts to achieve individual and collective goals.
3A. Focus on Collaborative Work Environment
The school executive understands and acts on the understanding of the positive role that a collaborative environment can play in the school’s culture.
Ligon PLT Schedule
At the start of the transition to Ligon, we noticed that many PLTs struggled to find the time to fit in the 1 hour of true PLT time that was mandated by WCPSS policy. With the current schedule, it is difficult to find the time within the school day, but teachers had not been held responsible to consistently finding the time to collaborate and discuss common assessment data to inform next steps for individual students and classes as a whole. The admin team requested for each PLT to find time either before/after school or across two grade level planning periods to have dialogue around current data and trends within classrooms. During this time, PLT collaborate using a Google document (See Standard 1B) that includes areas for administrators and support staff to also be included in the conversation through comments and questions. |
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3B. School Culture & Identity
The school executive develops and uses shared vision, values and goals to define the identity and culture of the school.
University Connection Days at Centennial Campus Middle
During my time as Magnet Coordinator/University Liaison at Centennial Campus Middle (Year 1 of MSA program), I worked with the leadership team and contacts at NC State to create University Connection Days where the goal was to have 100% of our students participate in a relevant field trip during the year. By the end of the year we reached around 75% of our students, mostly due to weather and school closures during the spring. These field trips were designed to increase our student's exposure to NCSU campus and reemphasize our University Connections magnet theme in a concrete, consistent way. |
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3C. Acknowledges Failures; Celebrates Accomplishments & Rewards
The school executive acknowledges failures and celebrates accomplishments of the school in order to define the identity, culture and performance of the school.
Opportunities to Celebrate at Ligon
Throughout the year we have taken many opportunities to celebrate our staff. We have treated them to a snack cart prior to Winter Break to end our Holiday Spirit Week, a waffle breakfast on a teacher workday, and highlight good deeds and extra effort through the Boast Board. There are also Student of the Month celebrations and Honor Roll breakfasts to celebrate our students. We understand how hard our staff and students work each day and take time to thank them for what they contribute to our school community. |
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3D. Efficacy & Empowerment
The school executive develops a sense of efficacy and empowerment among staff which influences the school’s identity, culture and performance.
Ligon SIP Evaluation Timeline
Throughout the Spring semester, the entire Ligon staff participated in the opportunity to provide feedback for the revised SIP plan. This plan would better reflect what is being done or what is needed within our school based on data. We involved all staff to empower them by adding their input to what they felt was going well, challenges that are in the way of reaching our goals, and possible next steps. All staff are also part of a chosen SIP committee (see Standard 1D) where they can help choose action steps that guide our school identity and performance. |
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