my version of transparent, collaborative leadership...with a Teamann twist

Advice to the Assistant Admin

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I had the privilege of presenting to the new administrators from the great state of Illinois last week. Jessica Johnson and I discussed ways that administrators could use different forms of technology to make their day/professional learning more streamlined and “digital”.

I had several admin there ask me about my “role” as an assistant principal and how I balanced my responsibilities. Different campuses, districts, states, have different ways of handling leadership roles, obviously, but I think there are some parallels.

One thing to keep in mind, at least something that was helpful for me, was to always remember that the trade off of not having the full weight and responsibility of a campus hanging over my head is that my opinion isn’t the “final” one. I try really hard to offer when I am asked and to always, always, always defer to my boss on campus level decisions, 🙂
Having a comfortable, trusting relationship will go a long in establishing the climate that will allow you to disagree and discuss decisions that are made. My principal last year and I had completely different philosophies when it came to education, so I had to be very careful to answer any questions that I was asked in the way that SHE would want them answered vs what I instinctively could answer. It was an excellent experience that helped me develop and articulate my thoughts on my stance. It isn’t enough to just “make” decisions, you should be able to define and articulate why you believe what you believe.
Ask up front and know in advance what their expectations are for you and for your role. I always run my decisions and thoughts by my boss before I move forward, just to make sure that we are on the same page. You will find that if you do this a LOT in the beginning, you will slowly but surely start to feel more confident in what they’d want you to do, and you won’t have to confer with them that as often.
I think finding and learning your administrators strengths (and weaknesses!) will help you to also “see” what your role may be. It takes a team and your job to be the yin to their yang! Make sure your administrator knows YOUR  strengths and weaknesses as well. Part of their role is to help mold you into the kind of leader that is ready for your own building. There are a variety of personality tests that are available…I’m a big fan of the gallup strength finder. It helps me amongst a crowd know how to balance teams as well.
Know that every opportunity, positive or negative, is developing you into the kind of leader that you will be.  Even if in your role you are relegated to being test coordinators, discipline divas, and wear a textbook tiara, those are important facets if what makes a building run. You’ll want to know every nuance of those pieces for when you’re in charge of the whole puzzle!

 

hAPpily yours,

Amber

#IPANewAdmin14: Be a digital leader!

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I’m excited to join forces again with Jessica Johnson on July 25 as we spend a day with the new administrators in Illinois for #IPANewAdmin14.  Amber and I will be presenting:

Principal 2.0.png

Within this full day workshop we will share the power of social media for school communication, social media for personal learning and web 2.0 tools to keep up with all the work!

You can find our slides HERE and all of other links of resources HERE.

And please help us welcome these administrators to the Twitter PLN as we get them connected while we use the #IPANewAdmin14 hashtag!

admin loveN,

Amber

the PLN and the principal

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I can not imagine doing what I do without my PLN. I know I’ve discussed the power of a PLN here and here, but in continuing my summer series blogging with some of my favorite people on the planet, I agreed to add my assistant principal perspective to it.

This job doesn’t come with a manual. Your tasks are as varied as the weather. Your task list will also depend on your campus and the strengths of your campus administrator. Leadership of a campus takes a balance between the principal an and assistant principal. If there is a symbiotic relationship, your campus will run all the better for it, which I’ve also talked about before.

How then do principals around the country make an impact on what I do? My superintendent today sent out a district leadership diagram that details what our district feels are the necessary components of a strong leadership team. I completely agree with these roles needed to balance a team. You don’t have to have one of each of these, but between the campus leaders, all of these roles should be played.

Global Vision A team member who sees
the “big picture” and is adept in matters related to scheduling, college readiness,professional development needs and innovation
Consistency A team member who demonstrates consistency in all matters, such as discipline,policies and procedures, etc.
Administrative Tasks A team member whose
strength lies in the managerial tasks, such as textbooks, facilities, lockers, custodians, etc
Instructional Leadership A team member whose strength is in curriculum,
instruction and assessment with support of
Special Populations
Relationships A team member whose strength is in building
relationships with students, parents, staff and
community

My PLN guarantees that no matter what situation I find myself in, I am going to have support. If I need inspiration? They are there. If I have a question? I know who to turn too. If they aren’t able to answer, they recommend someone else who can. When planning  a digital leadership session recently, I asked via Twitter and Facebook what essential tools an admin needed to know to be considered “digitally fluent”, I had over 150 responses. There is POWER in these relationships.

It’s almost impossible to explain to someone that there are people that I talk to everysingleday that I’ve never met. Or that I’m rooming with, literally, a “virtual” stranger. Or that I need my passport to attend the wedding of a dear, dear friend that I met via Twitter. Or that I’ve spent all summer flying around, speaking about things I am passionate about, based on the recommendations of people who have never met me, in real life.

I can’t convince you to do it, I can only show you example after example of how my PLN has changed my life. Pick a medium. Pick a community, synchronous or asynchronous. Jump in.

pln 1

 

For more posts on this topic, you can also read posts from:

Tony Sinanis

 

(will update as posted!)

 

completely sold,

Amber

 

 

 

I’m a font snob…or why the details matter!

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imagesOne of the hardest things about doing any presentation for me is choosing how I will deliver the message to the audience. I typically present on content that supports what I believe and have been doing, so it is easy to “say”. What isn’t easy is choosing the accompanying visuals. I spend a ridiculous amount of time choosing just the right pictures, layout, and yes, font. Why? Details matter.

At Luna, one of the first projects we undertook was transforming the front office and entryway. We were an elementary campus, and when you walked in that door, we wanted you go know what we were all about. Students and student learning. We wanted a bright and welcoming environment. There shouldn’t be any confusion as to whether you were at a school or a doctors office. A bright rug, a colorful kid friendly couch, and a display of what our Lions had created received more compliments from our families than one could have predicted. Why? Details matter.

Flyers that went home were approved by the office, who knew what our expectations were. Engaging, fun, and yes, fun fonts, became the norm. Teachers started paying more attention to the the details. Parent letters that had been going home for years were freshened up, looked at with a new eye. Being intentional to our audience Instead of it being “what we’d always done”, meant events were given new life. Something as simple as asking for a “fun font” meant that bulletin boards and hands outs took on the personalities of our incredible teams. Why? Details matter.

When looking at an iconic product, or person, you typically see the whole package. How market pervasive would Apple be if they didn’t spend just as much time on their logo and marketing as they did on their product? Movie sets are meticulous in their staging & arranging. Musicians know that lyrics matter as much as the musical arrangement. Authors spend days on finding the right words to describe a crucial scene, to help recreate their story in your mind. Why? Details matter.

Yes, I am a font snob. I want the nuances of my personality to be pervasive in my product. I want you to get “me” so that you understand what I am passionate about. In the same way I wouldn’t dress in a suit and wear tennis shoes…I won’t allow “details” to derail my intent. I have been called superficial in my attention to the smallest details in appearances, but I believe our school will take on the feel of what it looks like, ala the broken glass theory.

This also explains why you won’t ever see me without lipstick, 🙂

Why? Details matter.

Unapologetically,

Amber

Patience, the possible Principal eater…

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Patience is one of those skills that no one tells you is a critical component when you’re preparing for an administration position. It’s under valued and over expected. It’s a skill that has to be developed, nurtured, and  like SO many other things…it has to be intentional.

Patience…

…when you think everyone understood what you said, but find out some didn’t.

…when you figure out people can’t read your intentions, just your actions.

…when that student is sent to you again.

…when you wish so & so would have handled that differently.

…when you wish YOU had handled that differently.

…when you see things moving slower than you think they should be going.

…when you realize that you can’t MAKE people change, but only inspire them to want too.

Patience is a virtue, but it can also be the difference between being respected and being ignored. Impatient leaders lose the ability to bring people on board. Patience makes you pause, makes you reflect, makes you not so quick to jump. Change requires patience. Communication requires patience. Collaboration requires patience. Patience allows others to share, others to feel heard, and you to think.

Practice more patience. I know it is a skill that is evolving in me as a mom, as a wife, and most definitely as an assistant principal. Can one ever be too patient? Let me practice more this year and I’ll let you know!

 

Zen-ly,

Amber

 

The topic for this post was inspired by a group of fellow PLN principals that I connect with daily.  You can find each of their posts on Patience below:
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