Who makes up the Leading for Learning Team?

Meet the Leading For Learning Team!  Through a focus on strategic plan priorities, our vision is to build the capacity of our campus leaders to ensure every student, every day, a success! We know that you are all in the front lines and have the biggest impact on student learning, so we want to ensure that you have the resources, support, and professional learning to be empowered and skillful in meeting the unique needs of our students.

Cara Kuhl (G&T), Kim Amick (Admin Assistant-Assess/Online resources), Renee Engle (Dir. of Sped), Amanda Levos (EL Coord.), Katie Ramsey (Science Coord), Barb Hardwick (Admin Assistant-Curriculum), Cindy Beaman (Math Coord), Kris Schneider (Dir. of Fed. Programs), Dr. Amy Mancini (Dir. of Assess/Accountability), Brittney Bills (ELA/SS Coord), Shanna Gannon (Dir. of Curriculum/Prof. Learning), Kate Crow (Title I Coord), Glenda Naughtin (L4L Admin Assistant), Dr. Toni Palmer (Chief Leadership & Learning)

As a team, representative of Special Education, Federal Programs (EL, Title I, Migrant, Immigrant), G&T, Core Content Coordinators, Assessment, Professional Learning, Curriculum and Campus Leadership, Administrative Assistants, we have developed specific goals that directly align with the district priorities, a plan for L4L teams to be visible in your buildings, and a process for monitoring progress along the way. It is our intention to be proactive and responsive in ways that support professional growth, improve implementation of professional learning communities, standards-based planning, and data-driven decisions. Please communicate with your campus principal how we can support you. Our desired effect is to "lead for learning".  It's ultimately about the impact on students, ensuring they will be able to "thrive" in an ever-changing world. 

It's evident already that as a district, we are building cohesiveness.  During Thursday Walks, and C4I days, we heard common language around our district priorities and witnessed teachers experimenting with success criteria.  This is how we grow as professionals, try it, take a risk, put the learning in the hands of our students and assess the learning impact.  The classroom transformation from teacher centered to student-centered is becoming visible. Keep the momentum going!

Please pay attention to our blogs this year!  We heard your feedback from last year and will focus on timely communication of professional learning opportunities, updates and resources from our Curriculum Department, and effective practices around instruction, assessment, and leadership. 

We have so much to be proud of, every consultant that visits our district notices the dedication, commitment, and desire to make a difference for all student!  That is a great compliment!  Thank you for your courage, collaboration, and continued efforts to "Be GRAND"! 

Welcome to the 2018-19 School Year!

It's finally here! The first day of school.  All the planning, professional learning, preparation, and working through all the organizational and operational processes and procedures are well worth it for the students that will walk through our doors tomorrow.  They may never realize all that goes into launching a new school year, but what they will know is how they feel when they walk through your campus doors tonight for the back to school night and tomorrow/Friday morning for the first day(s) of school.  Our parents and community are trusting us to care, model, and teach their children in a high expectation, warm and welcoming learning environment.  What an amazing, yet overwhelming responsibility. 

The past couple of weeks, I took the opportunity to visit all the campuses and talk with custodians, grounds crew, secretaries, teachers, administrators, nurses, and specialists.  Our conversations were inspirational.  They took pride in what was accomplished this summer and how their learning will impact students, they shared their optimism and excitement to build new relationships, and although I heard that it was a "busy" summer, it was also a "great" one.  So, for that overwhelming responsibility? I know we are ready!  Summer for us is pretty much over, but the opportunities to make an impact are just beginning.  I look forward to the celebrations to come!

Here are just a few pictures I shared on Twitter this week.  Please follow me to keep up on the happenings around our campuses throughout the year.  @tpalmertoni

Being GRAND requires us to continue learning!

 Preparing our students to "THRIVE" in an ever-changing world takes all of us-drop the titles and contribute based on your strengths and expertise.

The Leading for Learning (L4L) team is ready to support through professional learning for all educators, planning, problem-solving and ensuring that teachers have the curriculum, resources, and tools to meet the needs of all students. I'll share more about the team in an upcoming blog!

Reflection and deeper learning about our practice will have a direct impact on students.

Support each other in the process, be an accountability partner, set goals with the vision of what will be different once achieved! Plan to monitor progress on goals and adjust along the way!

Small learning communities where all students have an adult advocate/mentor.  Thanks for making that happen! 



The look and feel of our facilities impact the conditions for learning-thank you for the work that goes into creating a welcoming environment for our students!




In conclusion: For those of you that are interested: my one word for this year is-Explore.  It's personal and professional.  I want to explore my capacity to learn and lead in ways that inspire and impact others.  Personally, I plan to explore ways to bring balance to my life, make the most of my time now that my youngest is off to college. 


Have an amazing start to the school year!