Happy Monday Moanin to all of you. My thoughts today are inspired by recent readings from We Are Teachers, John Maxwell, and observing outstanding leaders doing their work. Below are three things that have jumped out at me that are consistent behaviors and intentional strategies that are common among great leaders. They are:

• Great leaders lead with hope and with a positive purpose. During challenging times and difficult issues they do not lose their way.  They encourage and raise others up.
• Great leaders lead with respect. They do not put themselves above others and treat everyone in their organization with dignity.
• Great leaders build a trusting environment. As a result, staff can feel comfortable to do their best work with confidence and creativity.

Consider focusing on these three areas during the next few weeks. I believe it will only enhance your performance. Have a great week and keep finding the good stuff.

It is hard to believe that we are ten days away from Thanksgiving 2016. This Holiday arrives during a time of great division in our country after a challenging election.  As a result, it may be a perfect time to focus on things you can control.  Thanksgiving Day is the time that many people reflect on gratitude and being thankful for those gifts that are important in their lives. This year, lets join them and beginning today make a daily practice of reflecting on those things we are grateful for!   Read more

Happy Monday Moanin to all of you. As a new week begins my thoughts are with a specific segment of students that attend all of our schools. All of us working in schools need to be more aware of the large group of students that show up everyday and do what is expected of them. They are quality students and people who are not top scholars or in credit recovery. They are not attention seekers  and may not participate during class or activities.  In many respects, they are the backbone of our student body. These students deserve to be noticed and appreciated for what they bring on a daily  basis.   Read more

Happy Monday Moanin to all of you. Over the past several weeks I have met with many administrators and teachers discussing their effectiveness as a team and their individual challenges. My focus during this time is the idea of  practice and what does it mean and how do we do it?  When discussing instruction and assessment the term best practice is used often. But do we really practice  strategies in those areas or do we just discuss it and rarely take action? My understanding of practice is to work on something to improve a specific skill that needs improvement. To get better , we need to practice doing it. This week consider choosing one of these suggestions and try to practice it.

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