Context

My name is Carla Ljunggren and I am in my eighth year of teaching, all of which have been spent at Billings Public Schools.  The last five years I have had the great pleasure of teaching U.S. History to 8th graders.  Prior to that I taught English, Math, and all subjects in an alternative placement school for long term suspended teachers called Frameworks.  I currently teach 8th grade, U.S. History at Will James Middle School in Billings, MT.

I am currently a member of several professional teaching organizations.  I work with the George Washington Teacher Institute at Mount Vernon to help them design educational material for their website and museum. I am also a member of the website iCivics Educator Network helping them design online curriculum and resources for their website.

Within my district I volunteer as an Indian Education For All Teacher Leader helping to design curriculum focused on indigenous history and serving as a resource and guide for my fellow teachers to help them do the same.  I am also a member of the MIT Cadre or, Multi-Language, Indigenous, and Technology Integration Cadre.  We design curriculum and serve as guide for other educators designing best practices to serve our diverse population.

Will James is a suburban middle school serving grades 6-8.  Our school ranks as one of the more diverse schools within the district In term of both race and socio-economic status.  While it is predominately white, like Billings and Montana as a whole, we do have a significant and increasing number of minority students.  Our largest being LatinX and Native American with an increasing African American population as well.  Socio-economically, Will James runs the full gamut from upper-middle class to extremely low income.  Within my building, I am now a part of the Restorative Practices Team, the Safety Committee, the Medical Emergency Team.

I have been a building representative for my local Billings Education Association union and have been for the last 7 years.  In my time as a rep., I have served on the Political Action Committee, attended the state (Montana Federation of Public Employees) union conference, and had the opportunity to participate as a McGarvey Scholar where I was able to dig deeper into union leadership and the power of unions.  I hope to expand my role by one day attending the National Education Association Conference or stepping up in any manner my fellow members request of me. I was recently elected to the BEA Board as Director At Large #3. I also have the distinguished honor of being the daughter of a retired teacher who served as a BEA building representative for over 20 years.  As I age, I am discovering an increasing desire to turn my passion for causes into action.  Within my work, I participate in programs such as TLI but also programs that allow me to expand my knowledge on how to teach authentically and to an Increasingly diverse population.  Teachers are on the front lines and we are the ones most capable of advocating for the needs of students and ourselves.  Outside of work, I volunteer for a number of environmental, animal rights, and human rights causes. 

Awareness of my own biases, experiences of privilege, and personal values have informed my chosen Capstone Project significantly.  I view many of the problems we face as a society as a result of people's inability or lack of desire to alter their beliefs or way of thinking In the face of new evidence.  I strive to teach my students to be open to new ideas and evidence but I also recognize that requires the same of myself.  Personal growth does not come without open mind.  I have also been painfully self-aware of many of my own short comings.  In order to conquer these and become a more effective teacher/leader, I must confront any biases head on.  Within the context of my project specifically, I know I struggle with keeping up with information and goings on.  I chose my project specifically to help those like me who need written reminders in order to effectively make things happen. 

Overarching Competency #1: Interpersonal Effectiveness, Developing Stage 

I begin this process at the developing stage.  Evidence of this includes my ability as a teacher leader to support and lead colleagues, create a shared vision based on the students needs, and my ability (or lack thereof) to develop strong relationships with colleagues based on mutual trust and a a shared vision of student needs.  As I move through this process, I hope to develop my ability to communicate more effectively by developing a better system to communicate with members.  I also hope to improve in my ability to empower members to advocate for themselves. I have had the opportunity to lead discussions amongst staff as a member of the restorative practices team but I do believe I still have room for growth in this area.

Overarching Competency #2: Group Process, Developing Stage

I believe I am in the developing stage for this competency and unfortunately I haven't made as much growth in this area as I would have hoped.  I am still able to navigate difficult situations and examine each persons role within a group but I still have a lot to learn about the best way to manage those group dynamics, mediate conflict, and model respect.  I don't enjoy being a leader of adults which is exactly why I chose this competency to work on.  While I do believe I have shown growth, I do not believe it is enough to move me into the next stage.  I am not upset as all growth is positive growth and it gives me a goal to continue to work for.

Foundational Competency: Collaborate Purposefully and Explore and Challenge Inequity, Developing Stage

The foundational competency I have chosen is to collaborate purposefully.  I believe I am at the developing stage of this competency as I have the ability to create learning environments that value cultures beyond my own.  As a history teacher, it is my job to teach from a perspective that does not just represent those of colonizers, but of all the stakeholders in the event and its consequences.  For my project, my goal is to find a way to increase the ease of communication within our membership making collaboration easier.  It is often easy for teachers to form a bubble within their schools or subjects and not seek advice or collaboration outside of it.  This has far reaching consequences as it typically bleeds into issues that directly effect our students and other members.  So many  members lead busy lives and are therefore, intentionally or not, unaware or uninvolved with events, issues and policies. I find myself guilty of this as well.  I often know what I need to do and will get it done but I am working towards improving my ability to work with and accept the perspective of others. 

By making It easier for members to be more civically engaged in the districts events and policy making, we are directly confronting the barriers that keep systems of inequity in place. Voices that will typically go unheard will now be present because a Rapid Response Team takes the work out of the hands of members by doing the majority of the time heavy tasks for members.  When that time/effort barrier is removed, more members will engage, in particular those who often face more challenges. Those stakeholders are often also the people most impacted by certain policy changes.

Leadership Pathway Competency: Association Leadership-Organizing and Advocacy, Developing Stage

The leadership pathway I have chosen is association leadership. I believe I am at the developing stage.  So far I actively participate In committees within the BEA but I am working on improving my ability to organize others in pursuit of the BEAs goals.  I am also in need of improvement when it comes to managing activities.  The capstone project I have chosen specifically aims to work on those two skills.  Another goal is to improve coordination of activities to increase involvement and participation from members/stakeholders. I am an active participant but my efforts will hopefully lead to improved engagement.

Describe your work with diverse stakeholders, shared learning experiences, and how you anticipate your leadership pathway mindset might evolve during the TLI process. 

I have had the opportunity to work at 3 different middle schools with different needs and very different teacher populations.  I have also had the pleasure of serving as the building rep for those schools.  In addition, I serve on a number of committees and groups within our district to address the needs of students and staff.  This has given me a unique perspective on the some of the struggles our members face on a day to day basis and how they view potential solutions.  My goal with this leadership pathway isn't to unilaterally solve some problems, but rather to provide resources and tools to empower those members to actively participate in the problem solving process. I struggle to take leadership positions as I have always seen myself as a great worker but not necessarily the leader.  My goal is to use that worker mindset as an asset and develop it into an effective leadership skill and allow me to harness others with that same mindset.  I am hoping by the end of this process, I will see myself as more of a leader within the association, albeit, a different kind of leader.

Describe how your awareness of those from different cultures, experiences, and backgrounds inform your chosen project. 

My awareness of those from different cultures, experiences, and backgrounds has Informed my project because it is designed as a method to reach people of all walks of life. Recognizing that all those things influence a persons day to day life and can both help an hinder their ability or desire to participate in association activities.  Ideally, streamlined communication will overcome many of the barriers our members face and will provide greater access to information and events, allowing for greater participation, in particular by those who have previously been excluded or not felt empowered to do so.