Leaders I admire
Leaders I have admired…. (a personal touch)
The first people that I would consider leaders that popped into my head are actually at home. Without the fear of sounding too mushy, my first teachers have been my parents. But it wasn’t until my late teens that I began to realize all the amazing things my parents did. As many children do, I went through a phase where I thought my parents were the most intelligent, talented, strongest, and richest, almost perfect beings. I think I even went around telling my peers at school, “my dad has a big, big truck and has this many fishing poles,” showing them with my tiny fingers extended. Then I began to notice that they too had flaws, made mistakes, cried occasionally at night when they thought we were sleeping, and had many unanswered questions. Like many adolescents, I began to think that they were not the best parental unit, tolerable, but not as cool as Elisa’s parents (a friends from down the street). Flash forward, senior year we were filling out our FAFSA forms, and of course I had to enter my parents’ income, only then was it very clear that we had been living under the poverty line for almost our entire lives. All these confusing ideas ran through my head, we had birthday parties, nice Christmases, yummy dinners, almost every Sunday after church we would go out to lunch to a nice restaurant, and even a few trips to Disneyland, Marine World, Magic Mountain.
They worked so hard to not just make ends meet, but to give us happy childhood, they strived to teach us the value of education, the importance of family, the need for love and support, a strong work ethic, to not fear change or a challenge, and to always keep a positive attitude. I believe in regards to leadership, what I learned from these two leaders in particular is that despite how grim the situation may be or others may perceive it, there is always an opportunity to make someone happy, and perseverance is a must for success.
Leaders I have admired (a professional touch)
It all makes perfect sense, it is very obvious why Gema was selected to be our mentor teacher at the first school site where I would be completing phase one of my student teaching. She greeted the three of us with open arms, care, and respect. Her “open door policy,” the care and respect didn’t change as the semester went on, in other words it wasn’t a façade she put on in front of the university professors. It was her leadership style.
It was a tough year. I had the privilege of doing my student teaching at CK McClatchy high school in Sacramento. While I say that with honor and pride, I am no longer surprised at people’s reactions when they here McClatchy name resonate. That year had been a difficult one for the entire McClatchy community; we have faced numerous trying events, along with the critiques from the media and surrounding communities. We began the school year with memorials, and candle light vigils, and just when students were reestablishing their “teenage” routines, again we had to return to the vigils, funeral arrangements, and grief counseling. All while completing our first year teaching; it was emotionally and physically exhausting. She kept us grounded, in the sense of allowing us to vent, ask for help without feeling as if we would be reprimanded for not knowing, find resources, and help create support network for us.
If I could sum up her leadership qualities, I would have to start with her being a passionate and compassionate teacher leader. She teaches with such urgency, advocates for all students, and creates an environment, whether in the bilingual center, in her office, or in her classroom, where you know she will listen. I think what makes her so special is that she lives and breathes what she believes in. She practices what she preaches essentially.
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The leader I want to be
I began by thinking about the leaders I have observed and the qualities that they demonstrate, I thought it would make sense to create a list of what qualities I would like to practice to be the best leader I could be. In a brief explanation I will attempt to explain why they are important to me, and to a safe learning community.
Calm, Confident, fair, trustworthy, resourceful, brave, kind, caring, respectful, and diligent.
When I think of difficult situations or stressful situations that could possibly arise in any given school day, I can’t help to feel a bit anxious., then I think of how put together some leaders I’ve observed are despite the fact of dealing with a difficult situation. Stay calm, yes I realize that it is easier said than done.
I can only imagine the amount of decision making that takes place at any particular school site, regardless of how old a school may be, or of how many times protocols and procedures have been repeated, decisions still need to be made. I think the confidence that a leader exudes and demonstrates speaks volumes about him and her, and allows others to have faith in the common goal or idea.
Fair is not necessarily treating everyone the same, I want to keep and open mind, listening objectively to all parties, and promote an environment of equality. I know that I use my values and beliefs in particular situations in order to figure out what is going on or better said what are my next steps, but I know that in regards to a learning community I want to practice, live and breathe being a fair leader.
Resourceful, not to be afraid of asking questions, approaching a perfect stranger that might possibly have the answer to my question, network, and stay connected with allies that support the common cause. Not feel limited because I don’t have all the answers or better said the materials to make something happen, but instead see it as a challenge, and a chance to be creative and potentially create more relationships with supporters in the community at large.
Brave, having courage when I face an unfamiliar or difficult situation. Being cautious but having the courage to face the fear of the obstacles when I am outside my comfort zone. Knowing when it is ok to back away, and knowing when to pick and choose my battles, I guess it’s a combination of wisdom and bravery.
Kind and caring, in my humble opinion these two kind of go hand in hand, it’s hard to speak of one without maybe confusing it with the other, as well as it is hard to practice one and not the other. I think that is my favorite traits from the leaders I have worked with, not necessarily just being courteous, which too is important, but showing and demonstrating a genuine interest in how we treat people is so important.
Respectful, it is ok to disagree, or as many say to agree to disagree, and in any environment I believe that people in general will perform better where they feel respected, not just validated, but where they are completely confident that despite the fact that they might make big mistakes or disagree with those in leadership, that they will be respected regardless of where they come from, who they are related to, etc.
Last but by no means least, diligence. Yes, I feel that at times I am not a diligent worker. I start one this and then get a bit distracted and move on to something else, and then find myself half way done with 2 things or more, and then the stress arrives, and well that’s is just tough to deal with. I want to use my time wisely, stay focused and get it done, whatever the task may be.
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KIPP Adelante (Knowledge Is Power Program)
Work Hard. Be Nice. Dream Big. This was the first thing I saw (or read) as a young lady opened the door for us to enter this downtown building that had been converted to a college preparatory junior high. She shook our hands and introduced herself, as she guided us down the hallway and towards the main office, there we were greeted by a woman, she too shook our hands and proceeded to have us sign in and get a name tag. Then a young man came into the office, introduced himself, greeted us, and shook our hands as well. (As you might have noticed this was quite a habit) Everywhere we went we were greeted, welcomed, and someone shook our hands. As we entered each and every classroom, a student would quietly make his or her way to the door introduce him or herself and tell us brief what was going on.
Each and every classroom had the same board configuration. Teachers name, cell phone they can be reached at, date, learning objectives, a warm up or as they call it a Do Now activity, the agenda for the day, and then brain extensions or constant learning (aka homework). Pretty nice consistency. Students here, Shine, SLANT, and live and breathe the 5 pillars, do quiet coyote (almost like sign language), and are Ravenous Readers. Although I was familiar with a little bit of the KIPP culture, because the previous charter school where I taught had “borrowed” many ideas from this innovative institution. So, it wasn’t completely foreign to me, but there were still many great moments in the day. Let me tell you a little about what else I observed.
· SLANT (Sit up, Listen, Answer and Ask questions, Nod, Track Speaker) There was a visual reminder almost in every single room; this was another school wide practice that I observed.
· The following was an intriguing idea. They call this their 5 Pillars (High Expectations, Choice and Commitment, More Time, Power to Lead, Focus on Results). Although each has their own strength, the 3 that spoke the most to me were:
1. High Expectations: There are so many high expectations, but not just for the students, this includes the families and the teachers as well. Excellence is the constant goal.
2. Choice and Commitment: As the Director of Development made very clear, “this is a school of choice” but choosing KIPP there is a commitment to acculturate to the KIPP culture, and well follow the rules and guideline provided to the students and families as they become a part of the KIPP family.
3. More time: the school day is from 7:00-5:00 (roughly) Students are to show up by 7:25am, and this is in their commitment to excellence contract), and once a month Saturdays classes!
I have pages of notes, there was so much to take in, and I am a pretty well trained note taker, so I was I was curious what was done to teach the students all these gimmicks, so I asked. All new students begin the year prior to returning students; they have a full 2 weeks of workshops and trainings, and learning the culture of the school. One of the 5th grade teacher shared that it takes almost the entire first quarter to get the kids acculturated to KIPP. Well worth the time invested in my opinion
Once in the classrooms I observed a lot of test preparation going on, they were preparing for the CST’s which are coming up in a few days for many schools throughout California. In the information packet we were given at the beginning of the day, there were 4 sheets that made reference to their excellent test scores. They have met AYP and their API score 816.
Their strategy can be summed up in 4 focus areas:
1. More time on task
2. Exposure to opportunities
3. Team and Family
4. Rigorous Standards
Reflection:
I wish at times I would have had a video camera to take down footage of all the amazing things I saw. My favorite part was seeing a room full of students, predominantly on free and reduced lunch playing the violin. This enrichment opportunity is truly rare. Music lessons are costly, but how beautiful to have an orchestra class be a part of a student’s daily learning experience. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t exactly music to my ears, they were still pretty rough, but it was beautiful to see the potential they had, and how they were being challenged. Their leaders have carefully thought of many factors that impact student performance, and have created supportive learning environments where student can thrive.
There were many things that pushed my thinking, there was a major emphasis on reading, and following protocols, but also there was also this college going culture that could be felt. We ended the day speaking with a more seasoned teacher, and I loved that she was so honest about the struggles they continue to face despite all the accomplishments, such as student struggling with time management, organizational skills, and the discipline to complete homework. The issue that many of us face as learning institutions is that we see our students particularly in the Jr. high and high school level as what they are, teens. She went on to say how she wished she ‘had more time to build relationships with the kids.’ We ended talking about having kids reach the point of doing well for purposes of intrinsic motivation, as Ms. Morin said, be quiet because you want to learn.” It was reassuring to see that the struggles I live and breathe in the south bay are the same struggles that she sees in downtown San Diego.