Shout out to School Counselors

National School Counseling Week, sponsored by ASCA, highlights the tremendous impact school counselors can have in helping students achieve school success and plan for a career.

Please take the time to intentionally thank our GIPS School Counselors for all they do every day, making a difference for so many! 


Check out this link for more information about the role of school counselors!  SEEING is Believing!

Congratulations Shanna Gannon!

Greetings GIPS Staff: 

It is with mixed emotions I am announcing the resignation of Mrs. Shanna Gannon, our Executive Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Professional Learning. As of July 1, 2020, Mrs. Gannon will be the New Superintendent of Shelton Public Schools.

It is always difficult to lose dedicated, committed, and high performing educators, however, there is comfort in knowing she will continue to lead and serve students through this step forward in her career.  

Mrs. Gannon has contributed to the success of our organization throughout her tenure and empowered all of us to be instructional leaders. Through Empower Hours, a district-wide focus for professional learning, Demonstration Schools for Rigor, task force work, instructional coaches, CIA meetings, C4I days, trend walks, and PLC implementation, Summer Institute, etc...we have been impacted by her leadership! Please join me in acknowledging her efforts as wells as thanking her for her unconditional commitment and dedication.  We definitely wish her the best of success in her new leadership position.  

Human Resources will begin the process to post and advertise to fill this vacancy soon, however, Mrs. Gannon will continue to provide leadership in GIPS through June 30th. 

Seeing is Believing!

I Love Public Schools

Happy "I Love Public Schools" Day!!







Why do I love public schools? There are so many reasons!

• Every Student Matters! 
• Our educators and support staff are committed, dedicated, and difference makers! 
• I have been in education going on 29 years and still look at every day as an opportunity!  
• Students I taught in Iowa who now have children of their own have connected with me through social media--some of them are teachers-they say because of me!  
• My heart swells when I see and hear the successes of students that I taught at Barr MS, and from my tenure when I was the principal at Shoemaker Elementary!
• We are in a profession that is ever-changing and we impact the future through our relationships, expectations, and relentless efforts to ensure all of our students succeed.

I'm so proud to be a public school educator and thankful to be serving Grand Island Public Schools alongside all of you!

 SEEING IS BELIEVING! We will prepare all students to THRIVE!

As we Learn Better, We will Do Better!

Monday represented more than a professional learning opportunity for our GIPS staff.  It was also a time to recognize Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday and what it means for us today!

As I reflect in awe of his courage and leadership for what is right, I started to think about all of you and the courage you bring to the classroom every day.  You are the difference maker for our students and you make decisions every day that impacts student outcomes.  I know you are not recognized enough for time, commitment, and emotional capital you expend to ensure Every Student, Every Day, A Success!

This week you all engaged in professional learning, an opportunity to grow in your practice and transform instruction to increase equitable opportunities for all students that will allow them to thrive in this ever-changing world.

It has been so inspiring to see professional learning in practice through pictures and videos posted on Twitter! I'm sure there are so many more that have yet to be shared! The response to this opportunity is what will determine the benefit to our students.  Give it a try, reflect, adjust, and try it again!  It will take practice and intentional planning to increase effectiveness. It' will be worth it, so don't give up.


I was also able to join in on some professional learning this week.  We had a conversation about homework and David Holden (AAIS Consultant working with our high school teams, asked the question: "is it about turning in the homework, or is it about the learning?  If it is about learning, is there another way to get assess what students know and can do? If it is about turning in homework, it is about behavior that we may or may not be able to control".

This caused me to pause and think about the importance and impact of verifying learning (to the grade-level standard) within the lesson.  We have to think differently about our ability to control the outcomes.

 Which leads me to another quote from Steven Covey that resonated with me:  "Every system is perfectly designed to get the results it gets--if you are ok with this-keep doing what you are doing, if not, make a change!"  This isn't just about teaching, this has implications at all levels and within our systems.

I recognize the ask that we have of you every day and the responsibility that falls on me and our L4L team to support you. We will continue to learn, grow and improve together and as we learn better, we will do better!

.

New Year's Promise

Not everyone believes in New Year's Resolutions, however, no matter what you believe, the end of a year (in this case a decade) does create a reason for us to pause and reflect on our accomplishments, events that have had an impact our lives, and an opportunity to set new goals ("new year, new me!" is a quote from several people that I interacted with this past week)! It is also a time for new beginnings and new hope for a year of good health, happiness, and ability to effectively navigate change that we know we may encounter.  

As I was reading quotes about the new year, I came across the one above and made me reflect upon my own 2020 vision.  I often think about how I can be a better person, wife, colleague, leader, but rarely think about what I need to let go of in order to truly make progress and achieve the change and vision for the life I want to experience.  

This is not a new epiphany! It seems to make sense that you should give something up or stop doing something to make room for change. Yet why is it so hard to do?  There are all kinds of research and examples of why people struggle with change and transitions, even though there is a preponderance of evidence to prove that life will be improved as a result.  

We do this in education all the time. We participate in professional development, read a book, watch a colleague- and get excited to try new strategies or an approach.  We try it initially and then a few weeks later-give up on it or go back to what we have always done. We become exhausted and worried about the unknown. Although we know there is a "preponderance of research and evidence" that proves a strategy will have a significant impact on student achievement--there is still hesitation, resistance, and even disbelief that this change will have the desired impact. 

I spent a lot of time thinking about the "why" we as educators want to hold on to past practices and beliefs?  

In Doug Reeves most recent book-"Achieving Equity & Excellence" he makes several great points that explain why.  He says, "change is hard because it represents loss-loss of previous practice and convictions and most of all, loss of previous identity". He suggests the approach of "try it, test it, improve it"!  Change the behavior, reflect, and improve!

I think this applies to both personal and professional goals for 2020!  Let go of past practice,  pay attention to the preponderance of evidence and research about what can help you achieve your desired results for 2020, and SEE a NEW YOU!  

We have gained great momentum this first semester-let's stay strong and focused on the  "why"!

Thank You for Giving Every day!!

I was reminded this week at our Teacher Leader Coalition meeting how the holiday break brings mixed emotions as we look forward to some much needed time with family but also worry about many of our students and what they might experience without the safety, routine, and care of school. 

Unfortunately we don't have direct control of the circumstances that our students endure, however, we do have a sphere of influence in the day to day interactions that occur during the school day.

Recently I came across this blog video from a teacher, Trevor Muir, with a message about the impact teachers have on their students and thanking them for what they do everyday-making a difference for students in ways they may never know.   If you have a moment, watch his video and know that no matter what position you hold,  your daily interactions with students can change a life, inspire hope, and be someone that they will look forward to seeing again soon.

So, as students leave your schools Friday, the best gift you can give them is letting them know they will be missed and that you look forward to seeing them after the break.  When you leave school Friday afternoon, focus on taking care of you.  Be present with your families, friends and do something that fills your bucket.  When students return on the 6th, they will need you to be your best.  You can only do this if you are mindful and responsive to your own social emotional health.

As we end the 2019 school year, take time to reflect, recognize your accomplishments, and define your vision for 2020.  Thank you and Many Blessings to you!

Thursday Walk Reflections

This is year three of conducting weekly visits to schools to observe the systemic implementation of our strategic plan priorities through observations, interactions with students, and staff and 1:1 time with principals.  Although I know not everyone shares my enthusiasm, I happen to LOVE Thursday walks! Because of our walks, I get to interact with students around their learning, observe the implementation of professional learning/transformation to student-centered instruction, and  I have gained insight as to how I can support each principal in their leadership. I truly value and appreciate this opportunity as well as the commitment and dedication of our teachers and support staff! 

Based on feedback from administrators last year, we changed things up a little and instead of sharing with principals what we want to see, we asked principals to share with us-what they want us to see!  We know that all our buildings have aligned continuous school improvement goals and actions to the district strategic plan goals and success measures, so this is a way to value the focus of each campus and provide feedback and support around growth and next leadership actions to keep the momentum going.

Our first semester is quickly coming to an end, so I thought I would share some of the data and pictures from our visits.

67 Classrooms (24 School visits)

In observed classrooms, between 80-90% of Look-Fors identified by the principal were observed. 

• The themes of the look-fors included: students using standards-based learning targets and success criteria, an aligned task to a standards-based learning target, teaming, positive relationships, positive interaction ratios, routines/procedures, and verification of learning.

What do we talk about in the debrief?

• In our debrief, we talk about highlights and progress towards continuous improvement goals and actions, student's response to the instruction based on observations, attendance data/efforts to address chronic students, leadership actions, and district supports.  We close with a summary of high leverage actions/strategies to continue progressing and to keep the momentum going.  

Although we are not in each building as much as last year, we are spending more time in classrooms and debriefing.  

We have begun our second series of campus visits and we are SEEING the evidence of transformation continuing. Students are doing more of the thinking and owning of the work, there are more tasks at the comprehension and analysis level observed, and students comment about the benefits of clarity of the learning targets and success criteria. In addition, more content alike classrooms have similar standards-based targets, success criteria, and verification of learning allowing equity and access to the curriculum.

This is hard work!  Work that requires everyone's investment, intentional planning, collaboration, and support.  And it's much more than just teaching academics.  I know you also build a culture where students feel safe, you let the trauma of their everyday lives rest on your shoulders, you keep granola bars in your desk drawers and give up your plan time to help resolve an issue.  You are much more than a teacher, you are a difference-maker!

 Because of you...I believe that we will achieve our mission: "Every Student, Every Day, A Success" but we must stay the course!  There will be challenges but if we focus on the positives and build on what is getting the desired results, we will accomplish outcomes that will ensure our students will "thrive in an ever-changing world".

During this holiday season, remember to take the time to breathe and care of yourself and identify daily blessings and celebrations! Reflect on your students' progress and where you want them to be at the end of the year.  Plan to try new strategies and/or deepen your expertise with a few. Let L4L know through Let's Talk or the Curriculum Guide Feedback forms what will help improve the resources and our support!

Thank you for all that you do every day for our students!

May the spirit of Christmas bring you and your family hope, happiness and love.