#MASSPchat Archive
Chats will be moderated by MASSP staff, members of the MASSP Board of Directors and MASSP Members – we will also have special guest moderators on occasion.
Monday October 17, 2016
Eric Schuette here from EL 500 at OU. Looking forward to the chat.
Welcome to the chat! Supporting a new generation of leaders. Who is participating tonight?
Andrea Taylor from OU EL500 looking forward to learning from tonight's chat.
3rd grade teacher from South Lyon, excited for the chat tonight!
Michael Wint here from EL 500
Laura Colonius here from EL 500 at OU. Excited for the chat this evening
My name is Duaa Hijaz, Master degree in Educational Leadership student, looking forward to your advices
Paige Wyers 4th grade teacher in Mt. Morris here from EL 500 at OU.
Trent Drumheller here from OU's EL 500!
Jason Melynchek, Principal from Flushing High School
Danielle Jacobs, Director of Business Services at Chippewa Valley Schools, student at OU EL-500, thank you for chatting!
Hello! Steve Carlson, Principal of Sandusky Jr/Sr High School.
Good Evening. Jason Messenger - Middle School Principal - Lakeshore Public Schools in Stevensville.
Head Baseball Coach, Oakland University. Member of EL 500! Looking forward to tonight!
Hi Jennifer et al Kaarin Averill tweeting for Oakland School of Education and adjunct for EL 500 course of emerging leaders
High school leadership teacher here from Troy. Looking forward to tonight's conversation.
Question 1 coming in just a few minutes!
Bailee Braunreuther, from EL 500, excited for the chat tonight!
Patrick Griffin, Educational Leadership student at ... excited to learn from some experienced leaders tonight!
Good evening...Paul Hungerford, Fulton MS/HS.
Greetings! Cindy Carver from OU. Thanks for supporting our awesome leadership students!
Scott Pfeiffer, MS/HS Principal, Countryside Academy in Benton Harbor.
Hello ! Kelley HS ELA and leadership T from Rochester. Just got my admin cert over the summer and Hoco is over. Ready to learn!
Q1: Experienced principals, what is something you do on a daily basis that contributes to the success of your staff and Ss?
Michael joining in from Flint. OU student and Grants Coordinator
A1: Be available to listen to concerns, student and staff alike. Builds relationships and trust.
A1. Look for the good things that are happening and give kudos for these
Hello all! Aaron from . Educational leadership student. Ready and excited about this chat!
Good evening. My name is Shu. I am studying EL500 in OU. Looking forward to our chat.
good suggestion! in the same location every day or t/o the building?
A1 - Being out in the building - Approachable and developing relationships with Ts and Ss.
A1: not an experienced principal but my admin make sure to be very visible at some point in the day.
A1. Be visible and available
2 Things I always try to do is writing a positive note to a staff member and trying to post students successes on social media
A1: I am a HUGE believer in walking the halls. Talking to students and staff are crucial to a successful school!
Excellent Steve, good advice!
Throughout building. It's good to get out of the office!
greet 'em at door every morning to develop relationships & be in classrooms every day to support/feedback
Totally agree. Even though it can be a change at times. Getting out of the office is key! https://t.co/ycI8s6qfvf
Throughout building. It's good to get out of the office!
hallway duty is key to visibility!
Miss you at GBHS CB! You are an expert at visibility!
I like how you greet students as they enter school. Sign of a great leader. I never experienced a principle do that
No doubt! Being approachable is a must and building relationships is at the top of being a great leader!
Question 2 coming soon! Thanks to our experienced principals for participating
I bet even an old school sticky note with praise goes a long way
Students love seeing you support them on social media. Can be as simple as a congrats to a team or individual
You can't get them all due to multiple entrances, but it's a great way to start the morning
I am not an experienced principal, but I would love to see my principal greet the staff and the students warmly and show cares.
Q2: Experienced principals--give 3 pieces of advice for new leaders? What should they prioritize?
Right. Support them where they "live"
I think it does. I try to buy nice motivational tablets that say "Make A Difference" or something like that.
Get to know your staff, get to know your students, learn the culture of the building and the community.
A1. Listen, act on your values, don't be afraid
That's great advice to show presence and engagement with everyone
A1: I believe in making yourself visible and easy to reach. Staff and students need someone that's supportive and understanding
A2 be patient, listen, take the time to do your own research
1) positive relationships 2) have an open door-make time for staff and students 3) be an INSTRUCTIONAL leader-focus on academics
A2: Be intentional with your time. Learn to focus on the important, not just the immediate. Delegate to develop shared leadership
Good advice. What do you do to learn the culture?
A1 Ductus Exemplo -Lead by Example- to Inspire is for the moment- to EMPOWER is sustainability! https://t.co/kcMYeiDP7H
A1- at my school our director helps to open doors and let students out of the car in the morning
Agreed, especially on the delegate part. Learn to delegate! You can't do it all alone
A2- 1. Set your priorities - kids first for me! 2. schedule your day don't let the day schedule you. 3. Relationships.
yes, yes, and yes! when all else fails, these three principles stand tall.
A2: Relationships, listen and be compassionate. You'll never regret making time for S's and T's!
Leading by example, greeting, personalizing, enjoying what you do! Nice!
I imagine that helps build staff morale..when teachers and staff feel they can open up and share concerns with you
I love seeing our principal walking through the halls and greeting students!
This is great advice, the word intentional is so key, sometimes it is so easy to get lost in the day
To learn the culture, listen, listen and talk to all and keep an open mind
Miss being your "grass hopper." I hope your students know how lucky they are!
A2. 1.Listen with non judgement. 2.Be fair/consistent. 3.Inspect what u expect
It looks like a family home were the principal should always look after the houses members
You are right on tonight Jason! Thanks for sharing.
Never miss an opportunity to let them know you care. You can't always say yes, so listen as often as you can!
Absolutely! All great advice. Crucial to schedule your day and to not let the day schedule you!
Thanks for the reminder of our core mission as instructional leaders https://t.co/uqkWoJht7N
1) positive relationships 2) have an open door-make time for staff and students 3) be an INSTRUCTIONAL leader-focus on academics
And you don't even need to brown nose any more! I "heart" you CB.
Great advice. Kids always come first! Relationships are crucial
great advice! Being fair and consistent is so important
Q3: Experienced principals, how did you manage leading Ts that have more experience than you?
Cannot agree more with the importance of focusing on the academic achievement！
I appreciate fair and consistent as a teacher. I am sure your staff members do as well.
"let them know you care"-love it. Students and adults work harder when they know you're invested in them.
Is focusing on academics means their assessment tools and results? Or something else? For ex: non proficient materials
Q3: Respect their experience and knowledge
A3: Focus on the TEAM approach. It isn't your job to say how to teach, it's your job to work with teachers to b the best they can
Tammy Jackson Joining late! Just rolled in from the MASSP Office! Good evening all
A3- It is about collaboration and working as a team. Respecting what everyone brings to the table.
great! and listen to them when they have concerns
A3: Focus on data and impact on Ss learning, not teaching practice. Asking probing questions gets more results than "suggestions"
Q3 trust and communication...be open...respect!
A3: it takes a long time to develop that trust, but through communication/transparency of vision it comes together
I like giving them the acknowledgement...Ts often say they don't need/want the attention but it's important!
A3 If you respect everyone you work with and are a genuine leader those around you will respect you and recognize your leaderhisp
me too. Just left school. I hate Monday's!!!!
Inspiring tweets coming from tonight. Education is needed and important. Future educator.
Todd, you are right, it takes time...and experience...
A3. Also ask them 'hard' questions to increase your understanding of where they r coming from n also how it meshes w your vision
Q3: Use their expertise to your advantage
The team, the team, the team! Everyone has a different approach, great advice.
Yes Seek those who have more knowledge in an area than and listen, then make the decision based on the knowledge.
Glad to have you on the chat!
Yes, focusing on data/student growth should be everyone's focus! We as educators all want the same thing, growth!
Trust is quite important. You win the trust back when you give the trust first.
Glad you drove home safely and that you can join us!
and ask their advice, often!
everybody likes a little positive reinforcement once in a while... Ss and Ts alike!
excellent/ collaborative approach. I appreciate servant leadership in school principals
There is a reason they call Navy Seals "Team Guys." They contribute to something bigger than them!
Q4: Experienced principals, what do you wish you would have done differently in your 1st admin position?
Yes, what are some examples how you use their expertise? Committees? Special projects?
A3 By servant leadership and acknowledging the need for the experienced teachers input and collaboration.
A4. Wish I would have listened more and had more patience to 'go slow to go fast"
NOTHING. You don't get a do over so you can't spend time focusing on what you did wrong in the past. Always look forward!
you could have them mentor new Ts, take them around to visit classrooms
A4- There are so many things. Empowering my Ts would probably be #1. It was a great staff who I could have leaned on more.
Yes all those and utilizing them as a confidante where appropriate
A4: shown more flexibility and trust myself. We have to remember to b ourselves and trust how we got into admin in the 1st place
GRAND SLAM! And listening more, way more!
What was the result of not adapting that approach?
Yes,Going slow would help us catch the details weaknesses look for better approaches
Great point. I need to remember this! https://t.co/vWPvB2rJkf
NOTHING. You don't get a do over so you can't spend time focusing on what you did wrong in the past. Always look forward!
Love this! All mistakes are learning experiences, everything happens for a reason.
A4. Wish I would have delegated more and sooner
A4: I wish I would have had a better eye for minimally effective instruction and how to confront teachers on it.
A4: Agree with Jason . That would have been something I could have done differently.
A4 been ok with leaving desk a mess. I have never left a day saying "all done". It's ok to not finish. Must prioritize though.
#1 is so important. Have to remember not everything is urgent!
Lack of trust that could have come sooner
A confidant, perfect advice!
I always think of the forgiven but unforgotten mistakes as an opportunity
What a great discussion! Q5 coming up soon.
Q5: Principals, share some of your rituals, traditions, and events that support a positive school culture.
One of my favorite quotes - fits in great here!
Perfect! In the world of a principal it is perseverance with physical and emotional strength that wins the fight!
To all (new teachers to twitter) get a photo or avatar posted so u r not represented by the "egg"! Marks you as a newbie.
Thanks for this--I appreciate the honesty. It's okay to be a work in progress.
So true!! https://t.co/LBJPKJsqbk
To all (new teachers to twitter) get a photo or avatar posted so u r not represented by the "egg"! Marks you as a newbie.
Q5 I visit every teacher every morning, (well maybe not every) and say HI- they expect it now...helps set the tone everyday
Gets easier every day that u do. Believing in yourself is an absolute must in leadership and education!
Thanks for the tip! :) I don't need any additional help pointing out this is my first time tweeting!!! https://t.co/v8R3tez93k
To all (new teachers to twitter) get a photo or avatar posted so u r not represented by the "egg"! Marks you as a newbie.
That's why you are the BEST! Miss you at GenNet!
A5. Put teacher recognition on the agenda for meetings
A4: keeping my eyes on the prize
Believing in ourselves is the first step to start "cracking the egg";)
A5: I say good morning and hello to every (almost) student I pass. Before long, they r saying it to me first!
I meet monthly with student leaders, buy them lunch. They love it and so do I!
Just started doing this, it really mean a lot to your staff.
Definitely! We are ALL a work in progress
A5: Food is always a way to bring people together. Celebrating staff birthdays w/cake at monthly mtgs is fun.
A5: greeting at the door in the morning, in & out of classrooms during the day, listening
A5: Each month two teachers are awarded the Apple Award by another teacher to recognize what they do on an everyday basis.
Q6 coming soon...best one yet!
what a great way to get to know your students!
The principals may not believe that, but the teachers actually LOVE their principals to be with them in some events. ;-)@
A5: Recognition in a variety of ways is important...verbally, personal notes, in the staff bulletin etc.
I called it lunch with the Principal. Sometimes I actually made the meal.-felt special
Q6: What challenges can new principals expect in their first year? What advice would you give?
Yes, a real apple. I might have stolen the idea
You've never had my cooking!
A5 I would make a batch of cookies and but one in several lockers before school started with a note
Social media is a great new way to recognize awesome staff members too!
A6 You will be shaken to your core at times. Always remember..you're blessed to have the job!
Take it slow, take good notes and take time to listen and watch.
A6: You have to earn team st over time. Actions speak louder than words- walk your talk.
Now that I can do...local bakery makes great cookies! I'm on this!
The hardest and easiest thing is knowing everyone is watching. Be thoughtful in your decision making and b prepared for questions
A6. People who have hidden agendas will approach you. Listen but be careful.
A6: You have to earn trust over time. Actions speak louder than words- walk your talk.
I was thinking the same thing Aaron!
would give us the chance to understand our staff deeper @
Once we do that, confidence begins to build! Confidence is everything!
A6. You will be shocked and surprised at times. Have a mentor who can ground you and talk things through with
