Learning with our Colleagues in Northeastern North Carolina

On Thursday, July 14, 2011, I had the honor of giving the keynote address for the Northeastern North Carolina School Leadership Program, hosted by Elizabeth City State University (ECSU). I had been asked to share strategies and best practices I use as a principal with the audience of Principals, Assistant Principals, University Professors, aspiring administrators, and university students. The session seemed to go very well and seemed well-received.

I was so blessed though by the content of the rest of the day as schools and districts presented the remarkable things they have been doing. Through ECSU, they had access to a federal grant. An evaluator from the US Department of Education was on-hand to hear from them on their progress. All of the other school and district representatives were there supporting their colleagues and learning from them. Throughout the day, I tweeted some of the smart things I heard from them using the hashtag, #nncslp.

Each school or district had access to the competitive grant process to tackle a Problem-Based Learning Initiative. The project had to be grounded in the school’s School Improvement Plan and support the principal’s personal/professional growth as measured by the NC Standards for School Executives.

Project #1 “Ace Time” John A. Holmes High School, Edenton, NC

Students needed a continuum of Academic Interventions. The project was developed to increase the number of students receiving credit, decrease the number of students needing credit recovery, decrease 9^th grade retention rate, increase 4-year cohort retention rate, and increase student’s sense of belonging. To meet these needs, the school created a 20 minute focused intervention time between 1^st and 2^nd periods. The target group was ALL students with less than a 77 in any class. Progress Reports are sent home every two weeks

Project #2 – “The Power of Formative Assessments”, Edgecombe County Schools

The Middle Schools in Edgecombe County identified a need for high-quality formative assessments called Common Formative Assessments (CFAs). They give the assessments every 10 days. The Principal collects the tests and does the data analysis. They talk of “constantly climbing the ladder” The Middle School Principals found themselves talking almost daily in their efforts to help each other.

CFAs are given more often than benchmarks. In rural areas, the students often do not have resources allowing them transportation to afterschool tutoring, etc. CFAs are used to inform and drive instruction and tutoring during the school day.

Project #3 – Northeastern High School, Elizabeth City – Pasquotank Public Schools

The school developed a project called, “Leaders Developing Leaders.” It was designed to improve teacher leadership in the school. The presenter described the School Improvement Plan (SIP) development process as a “beast.” Their goal was to create the School Improvement Plan and make it a living, breathing document, instead of something gathering dust on a shelf. Their project gave teachers a stipend to write the SIP during the summer and stipends for the School Design Team to work on the presentation of the plan to the school and community.

Project #4 – Northampton County Public Schools; “Controlling Classroom Management”

The district Needs Assessment identified a Teacher turnover rate at 22% and found that 26.8% of their new teachers were struggling with classroom management. Their objective was to create and enforce school-wide behavior plans. Each challenged teacher filled out a checklist on classroom management while their administrators reviewed their discipline data. They created a program involving 6 Principals; 11 challenged teachers; and 10 accomplished teachers. They used Harry Wong’s “The First Days of School;” Marcia Tate’s “Worksheets Don’t Grow Dendrites,” and “Shouting Won’t Grow Dendrites;” formal surveys; and model classroom management skills demonstrations.

Project #5 Perquimans County High School - Perquimans County Public Schools

Perquimans County High School used the project to create a multiple day freshmen transition program. The Vision and Mission of the school was the foundation of the program. The principal found that, “some 9^th grade parents needed this more than the 9^th graders.” She said that she observed that the 9^th graders felt like they “fit” on the first day of school and saw more freshmen in clubs.

Project #6 Warren County Public Schools

Warren County Public Schools used the project to create a PLC for the county’s 8 principals using the theme, “Teamwork makes the Dream Work!” They brought in a variety of guest speakers and engaged in great dialog with each other. At one point, 5 of their 8 principals had two years or less experience as a principal. They appreciated the Opportunity for networking; the Opportunity to learn information and ways to become more effective leaders (curriculum matrix, teacher/principal evaluation process); the Opportunity for “at home” professional development; and the Opportunity to learn and grow successful leaders.

Project #7 Weldon Elementary School, Weldon City Public Schools

The principal from Weldon Elementary presented their project, “Educational Leadership at It’s Best; Success for All Students.” They were looking at Reading Scores in 3^rd and 4^th grade because their scores in reading were way below their scores in Math. The school’s goal is to become a 90/90/90 school. “The term “90/90/90” was originally coined by Douglas Reeves in 1995 based on observations in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where schools had been identified with the following characteristics:  90% or more of the students were eligible for free and reduced lunch, 90% of more of the students were members of ethnic minority groups, and 90% or more of the students met the district or state academic standards in reading or another area” (Reeves, 2000). The school’s project goals came from their SIP and were based on data. After a year of intense data disaggregation and work with teachers in this area, the school saw scores rise. They have more work to do, but feel good about their progress.

I know that I have done a poor job of capturing the remarkable work of these schools and districts. I would encourage you to reach out to them if you are interested in learning more about their work.

I am very grateful to the Northeastern North Carolina School Leadership Project for inviting me to spend the day with them and wish to especially thank Mrs. Yvonne Walton, the NNCSLP Coordinator, and Dr. Claudie Mackey, the NNCSLP Director for being such gracious and welcoming hosts. I learned much, much more than I shared during the day and leave having reaffirmed that the strength of public school education in North Carolina resides in our shared belief in learning from each other.