Describe your Capstone Challenge and how you identified it.

Employees feel “thrown to the wolves” here. That’s a direct quote from a survey in our needs assessment. Employees are not sure where to go for answers. Though people also have the sentiment that it’s a great place work and there are some pretty amazing perks that don’t occur anywhere else due to private donors, people still feel undervalued, overworked, and also that their co-workers don’t always appreciate the role that they play in making the whole district work. That even includes our guest teachers. I think that starts with everyone being heard and also being involved in finding solutions to those issues.

Identify the part(s) of your plan you were able to implement (given the nature of leadership work, your project may actually continue beyond submission of your Capstone Portfolio).

1. We have secured support of the administration for a new hire orientation during the week of August 23-27.

2. We have an agreed upon list of topics to cover as suggested by both survey participants and administration. (Artifact 11)

3. We have secured a pledge of financial support from the administration to support a more formal mentorship program. (Artifact 9, Design page)

4. We have put together an action plan for moving ahead on the mentorship program including how to train new mentors and revising the mentor contract from 2017-2018. This project is more long term and we plan to run a small pilot program in the 2021-2022 year. (Artifacts 12 and 13)

5. We have an August meeting scheduled with administration to go over the finer details for both the orientation schedule and mentorship programs.

6. We have both classified and certified staff willing to lead training sessions. (Artifact 8, Design Page)

How successful was your action plan at addressing the challenge?

Thus far, we have felt successful in the support from the entire staff. We are working in a proactive manner to address long standing needs within the district. We will monitor the success of both items through surveys and informal interviews with participants.

Which stakeholders and association practice or program were impacted?

We are helping the administration meet its state obligations to host mentorship. We will be helping new hires feel more welcome and prepared for their jobs in the district. We also will be helping current staff by providing more opportunities for leadership and to earn a little extra financially. We also got some positive feedback from rather negative association members, who are impressed we were able to get as much traction and support as we have from administration. I also believe as the association president, I have demonstrated that I want to be a team player and am committed to supporting the district in its mission to exist “At the Peak of Excellence in All that We Do!” I also have encouraged the association members to become mentors and help lead sessions in the orientation, to build a more positive image of the local association chapter. Both MFPE members and non-members alike showed a willingness to serve in this role (Artifact 13).

How do you know (evidence)?

Positive comments on the survey and in person. The written commitment from the administrative leadership to support moving forward with both components of the project (Artifact 9, Design page). The financial offer to support mentors was also an unanticipated result, as we had just proposed a volunteer, pilot program to demonstrate our commitment to doing a quality job.

Name each competency and the level at which you started and now place yourself. How were your four chosen competencies used in the implementation of your project?

Overarching Competency #1: Reflective Practice

In the context of the capstone project, I analyzed data from the district on turnover patterns and shared it with administration (Artifact 8, 10 Design page and Artifact 13). I helped to convince them of our need for a mentorship program that is more formal and involved a lot of reflective practice. I also had to show that current staff are willing to serve as mentors (Artifact 14).

Overarching Competency #2: Communication

I have had to communicate to the association and administration through different presentations about the needs assessment and the proposed solutions to the needs (Artifacts 8, 10, Design page and Artifact 13 and 14, data from presentation). I also have had to communicate to the administration a vision for what a mentorship program would look like and how it would be different from what has been done in the past.

Foundational Competency: Diversity, Equity, and Cultural Competence

I have had to explain to the administration why some issues emerged as needs whereas others seemed to be strengths within the district. One administrative secretary expressed to me that our “staff meetings” should be called “teacher meetings” because most staff are unable to attend those meetings, even though they want to attend, because they have ongoing contractual duties. Those experiences helped to identify certified staff as the more privileged individuals within the district.

Specific Leadership Pathway Competency selection: Association-Organizational Effectiveness: Leading with Vision

In regards to my current capstone project, I am proposing changes to the existing mentorship contract so that there is more accountability for mentors and mentees (Artifact 12).

What obstacles, if any, did you encounter? How did you address them?

The biggest challenge was presenting the needs assessment results to administration during the spring. The original meeting we had scheduled was cancelled and thus our presentation was delayed. To solve the end of year time crunch, we shared the presentation with our administrators and also recorded the presentation for them to watch.

Given the outcomes, describe any changes you might make to the Capstone Project’s action plan.

At this point, I only wished we had been able to get results sooner and meet with the administration in a more timely manner to have been able to interact more face to face, rather than over emails. Overall, I’ve been happy with our progress in this shortened time frame (January-July 2021).

What was the most valuable part of the TLI process for you?

For me, the most valuable part of the experience was growing my connections with other teacher leaders across the state. It encouraged me to be more involved in the association and take on more of a leadership role both locally and regionally. This experience helped me to push myself beyond my comfort zone in regards to leadership as an association member and outside of the classroom.

What are your next steps to continue your growth as a teacher leader?

I attended my first CSPAC meeting on July 14, in the state capital in Helenda and as well as my first Board of Public Education meeting, where I represented teachers in grades 9-12 from across the entire state of Montana. At that meeting, an unusual number of members of the public showed up to speak in opposition to proposed changes in the language in the MT Teachers Code of Ethics, being proposed by CSPAC. Some of the speakers included members of the Board of Public education, as well as the Deputy Superintendent Sharyl Allen and the Superintendent Elsie Arntzen of the MT Office of Public Instruction. I had to listen respectfully to individuals speak about why they felt proposed change in the code was not in the best interest of the public schools. The proposed edits from the three member CSPAC sub-committee were in section III, section B. The ethical educator "Understands and respects diversity" to "Demonstrates a commitment to equity and inclusion and respects human diversity." (Artifact 15)

Essentially people were arguing that the use of the words "inclusion" and "equity" were code language that would force educators to teach the controversial topic of Critical Race Theory. These words have taken up new meaning in the current political landscape and mean something totally different to the general public as compared to long time educators. Further, it was clear from the comments that essentially the stakeholders want a fair and welcoming classroom for their children and educators who can facilitate those settings. After that testimony, I volunteered to serve on the code of ethics sub-committee to fill the shoes of the previous 9-12 representative whose vacancy I was filling and to be sure MFPE kept a presence in the sub-committee. Members of CSPAC voted unanimously for the sub-committee to revisit the proposed language change that caused a lot of ire from both the public and the state leadership in public education and discuss a draft in October at our next meeting.