A Reader Submits... Hiring Decisions

An up and coming LYS Assistant Principal submits.

“Yet again, the LYS administrator was denied a job because the tempo, enthusiasm, and drive to make teachers step up their game and come out of their comfort zones threatened the status quo. I am beginning to see how lost 50% of superintendents are. They are afraid to rock the boat for improved performance. They only want peace, harmony and business as usual.

The sad thing is that this district’s community and student populations are changing rapidly and the district does not have an answer for their diminishing test scores. I gave them a solution to their problem in the form of a fired up, front-line leader. As a finalist for the job, they had a clear cut choice between a young go-getter or a safe, status quo loving, “yes” man. End of the story.

I will not compromise my values and my commitment to students and our LYS practices just to sit in the big chair. Students first and LYS till the day I die.”

SC Response
First of all, we have to remember that we don’t get every job we apply for (thank the Lord). Dr. Richard Hooker taught me that the formula for getting a principalship in a different district than where you currently work is 100 applications for 10 interviews for 1 job. And that is if you interview well. The other significant variable is experience in the position vs. no experience in the position. Right now you have none, so all ties go to the experienced candidate. It might not be fair, but it is less risky for the employer.

I think without realizing it, you hit on a valid point. Campuses look for different types of leaders, sometimes rightly, sometimes wrongly. Some campuses need maintainers, some need change agents, some need healers, some need firebrands, and some just don’t know what they need. That’s what the interview is for. On paper, most of us look more alike than different. If you aren’t what they are looking for (in your case, a firebrand change agent), be glad they didn’t hire you.

Also, look at the bright side. You now know of another job opening before anyone else does. Call that superintendent and tell her that it is her lucky day. She gets to trade up. Being the first with a solution to a problem is a sure fire way to advance your career, and a principal opening is a mighty big problem.

I’ll close with a personal story. Back in the mid 1990’s, I was a very young and raw AP in a large urban district. I was trying desparately to get an assistant principal job in a district with a great reputation and a great superintendent. At least three times, I was the runner-up candidate. As I was preparing for yet another AP interview in the district, I got a call back from the long shot principal interview that I sat for. Brezina hired me as a principal and the rest is history. If I had been offered any of those other AP positions, I wouldn’t have applied for the job in Brezina’s district and my career would have taken a much different trajectory at a guaranteed slower pace. Sometimes, rejection is the best thing that can happen to you.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

Readers Write... (It's Not Over)

In response to the post, “It’s Not Over, Until We Say Its Over,” Brezina writes,

“Sounds like a standard trip for you.”

SC Response
Completely true story: Around 1999, I’m taking my first vacation in over three years of working for Brezina. He calls on Sunday afternoon and says, “Meeting with the County Representatives and Superintendents tomorrow at 9:00am.”

I say, “You know I’m ten hours away, on vacation?”

He says, “That’s why I calling you now and not waiting for tomorrow.”

So yes, I’ve had practice.

And another LYS reader writes:

“OMG! Brother, that is the funniest thing I have read in a year. I also appreciate the fact that you edited out the professional level profanity that I know you were spewing. After all, this is a family blog.

Seriously, that post captured the essence of why you hire Cain and what he brings to the table. No one in the country can spin something out of nothing better than he can. Your campus will improve no matter what obstacles fate, systems, or blatant stupidity throw into your path.”

SC Response
Actually I went thru the profanity stage pretty quickly, by the time I hit the traffic jam it was just funny. Here’s what I think is interesting. When I got to the meeting and I was telling the story, the first thing people said was, “What a horrible morning.”

I said, in all honesty, “Really? I think it was an awesome morning. I conquered personal error, state accountability, bureaucracy, space and time in just two hours. Everything else today ought to be a piece of cake.”

Adversity is just a chance to measure yourself.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

A Reader Writes... (First, Fix the Obvious)

In response to the post, “First, Fix the Obvious,” a reader writes.

"I have seen the following at the host of highly dysfunctional secondary schools that I have turned around:

1. One fourth of the school missing class to help with Special Olympics, in the days preceding TAKS. This was tough to address because I am a big proponent of Special Olympics.

2. Benchmark tests that attempt (without success) to simulate TAKS.

3. Continuous pull outs of teachers to give them professional development with NO monitoring to verify they implement the training.

4. Bad weather surplus days and local holidays scheduled immediately preceding TAKS.

In all too many schools there is NO sense of urgency. As Cain says, the people yawn and play their fiddles as Rome burns."

SC Response
First, I would love to give credit to whomever I stole this idea from, but at this point I no longer remember. I visited a campus in the late 1990’s that awarded varsity jackets to their high school Special Olympians. As soon as I got back to my district, we began doing the same thing. That act may be in the top three things that I have ever done for my student body. Whatever the cost, make it happen. That being said, if you aren’t cutting it academically, you don’t need to be pulled out of the classroom for any reason (the volunteer, not the athlete).

Second, in general, benchmarks are a waste of time. The frequent, short-term common assessment that is aligned to a valid scope and sequence is the tool that teachers need to make informed adjustments to their delivery. Hit your short-term targets and the big picture takes care of itself.

Third, as you allude to, training isn’t the issue. Ineffective training delivery and non-existent implementation is the problem. And teachers can’t fix this. Training delivery is the responsibility of the trainers and implementation is the responsibility of leadership. When we blame teachers after we train them ineffectively and withhold timely support, how are we any different than the teacher who blames his students for not learning after he has presented the content?

Fourth, again, we build schedules based on adult convenience and tradition instead of effective practice. I visited a campus this year that held open house during the same week as TAKS. Not because it was postponed from an earlier date, but because that was the way they had always done it. When I suggested that they stop, they looked at me like I suggested that they quit breathing. And again, not a teacher issue, a leadership issue.

Finally, I believe that the lack of urgency is because too many of us don’t believe that we can make a difference. If you can’t make a difference, why try? Anyone of us in the system can make a difference greater than our position. If I didn’t believe that with all of my heart, I wouldn’t get out of bed in the morning.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

A Reader Writes... (Teacher Stress - Part 19)

In response to the post, “Teacher Stress – Part 15,” a reader writes.

“Our current central administration we are definitely not the on the same page with Brezina, et. al. Not only are the assistant superintendents clueless about what is happening on our campuses, they don’t have a clue what is happening with the next layer below them. I haven’t seen anyone from central office on my campus in at least three semesters. Our building sparkles and the staff and students are busting their tails, but they don’t know. Any recommendations we make for improvement are dismissed after minimal consideration, if not immediately.

Our ship has lost its way.”

SC Response
I have little to offer accept what I stated in a previous post, a good principal can overcome a bad system, up until the point that she gets tired or quits. I have a friend who is a homicide detective in a big city. On a regular basis he puts on a bullet proof vest and busts downs doors. I heard him ask a principal that is fighting the good fight everyday with exceptional results, “Why are you killing yourself, when your school board and central office obviously doesn’t care about what is good for you and your particular kids.”

I think the answer is we do it because it is the right thing to do. We get to “pay it forward” and change lives for the better, everyday. We also do it because those above us were once teachers and at some point they will remember who they are and step up their game again.

No bureaucratic system is perfect. Even the best districts have glitches. At the campus level, we have determine if the battle is winnable or futile. If there is a glimmer of hope, stick it out. If the system is so rotten at the core that it can’t be fixed, go to a district where you aren’t beating your head against the wall. At the district level either step up to the example someone else is setting, or better yet, become the example. Anything less and your value to the system is, at best, marginalized.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

A Reader Submits... Dress Code and More

An Old School LYS Principal submits:

“SC, when you told me that faculty modeling was the alpha and omega of getting students into dress code, I had my doubts. I hate to admit that, but it is true. I was sure there had to be a way to change kids that did not involve changing faculty. After a year in the most dysfunctional school, in what may be the most dysfunctional district in the State of Texas, I have now obtained both the experience and knowledge needed to comment on this topic.

The verdict? You were more right than you know, or at least you were more right than you emphasized at the time. And the issue goes well beyond dress code. Show me an undisciplined student body and I will show you an undisciplined faculty. Show me rude, insubordinate students and I will show you rude, insubordinate faculty members.

How does this happen? As you constantly remind us, it is leadership that allows it to occur. I now know from experience there is almost no hope of getting kids under control without first getting the faculty under control. This includes the issue of dress code, too.”

SC Response
Just today I was training the staff of a struggling campus on effective discipline management practices (specifically, the LYS STAR system, which you are familiar with). The first thing I started with was, “All student performance – Academic, Behavior, Social – is driven by adult practice. We are the critical variable.” I closed with, “If we are not willing to model every one of our student expectations, then get rid of the expectation.”

Excellence in behavior and performance is more of a function of habit than a function of choice. Habits are built though routines, coaching and mimicry. When you have a staff that doesn’t following routines and aren’t good role models, their ability to coach is severely compromised. Students respond best when adults hit their marks consistently. That is why you can have two peer campuses and one consistently outperforms the other. And that is why the performance of your students (in terms of value added) is a direct reflection of your professional performance and capabilities. If you don’t like that, change something.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

A Reader Writes... (Teacher Stress - Part 18)

In response to the post, “Teacher Stress – Part 15,” a reader writes:

“I’m an old school LYS change principal, so I’m not talking about my first rodeo.

At my previous high school, I had the complete support and trust of my superintendent. In that position, I let the assistant superintendents and central office directors know I was in charge of my campus, not them. Under their supervision, the campus drove full speed into the ditch, costing the former principal his job. Additionally, no one in central office, other than the superintendent, had ever been a high school principal.

This arrangement worked great until the superintendent resigned for health reasons. Then the central office knives were unsheathed. Talk about disconnect, improved student performance wasn’t even a blip on their radar.

Now I’m in a district where none of the assistant superintendents, deputy superintendents, and even the superintendent has ever been a high school principal. Talk about disconnect.

I’m starting to see a pattern.”

SC Response
Great, there you go finding more patterns that nobody wants to address. Let’s dissect the pattern of a common “doom loop” district:

1. Central office is made up of a mix of former successful principals from by-gone accountability eras, former principals who are milking the last couple years of salary for retirement purposes, former unsuccessful principals who were demoted up and non-principals.

2. How does each of these groups have the potential to accelerate the doom loop? The former successful principal from the by-gone era often doesn’t understand the tempo required to maintain adequate performance and the sensitivity of current accountability standards. Operating from this outdated experience base, support is often slow to arrive and/or out of touch with current realities.

The former successful principal who is milking the last couple of years for retirement purposes often refuses to engage in meaningful initiatives that require significant work, loath “problems” that require their attention and avoid conflict when at all possible.

The unsuccessful principal who was demoted up generally bring nothing to the table accept the misguided notion that they were actually “promoted” in spite of objective evidence to the contrary.

The non-principal often brings a lot of technical expertise to the table. Unfortunately many have convinced themselves that they are true “leaders” because their small departments run effectively and principals are generally polite to them. What they miss is that there is a big difference between leadership in small, protected settings (departments) and leadership at scale in unpredictable situations (the principalship and superintendency).

3. How does this group kick-start the doom loom? This group of generally well-meaning central office personnel exacerbates the problem by rarely (and sometimes never) spending significant time on campuses for the purpose of examining and improving instruction. When they make unilateral decisions without input from key campus leaders, when they pull staff from campuses to come to them, instead of the other way around, and when they attach their ego to their idea, at the expense of effective campus tools and practices, they are no longer part of the solution. These actions transform them into a problem to be worked around.

4. What is the outside variable that puts this doom loop into play? The dual pressures of increasing accountability standards and declining wealth of the student population. This change to the macro environment in which the school operates renders business as usual into an exercise in futility.

Throw all of this together and the system drives straight towards the ditch. This is where you (the writer) come in. You are great at getting the school out of the ditch, but by doing so you illuminate all of the leadership failures that led to the disaster in the first place. But instead of existing leadership learning from their mistakes and changing their practices, they harbor significant resentment and lie in wait for the first chance to tear down the source of their pain and embarrassment (see: ama crab theory).

This brings us back to why we regularly point out that the Superintendent and Principal occupy the two most important positions in the system. The Superintendent can change the system and the Principal can overcome the system (until she gets tired or quits).

Now here is the warning, if your results are still acceptable but you recognize the pattern of the doom loop emerging, do something about it before it is too late. It’s never too late to put aside empire building and refocus on campus needs. But know that your hubris can be the ruin of your district.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

A Reader Asks... PowerWalks

A regular LYS reader asks,

“I'm very interested in PowerWalks. Our district utilizes the 3 minute walk through, which takes longer than 3 minutes, that's for sure. Not sure that I'm 100% committed to this way of doing walk throughs. I'm looking for something that will benefit my teachers and students better."

SC Response
Some quick background information. There are six basic categories of classroom observations. However, as you will see, each specific protocol will overlap into multiple categories. Briefly the categories are as follows:

Extended time observations
Longer than 15 minutes. These observations are usually scheduled and provide the teacher the opprotunity to demonstrate all that they know (the dog and pony show). But the dog and pony show is important. It allows to observer to gauge the current ceiling of teacher performance.

Short time observations
Less than 6 minutes. These observations are usually unannounced and give the observer an opportunity to gauge a teacher’s typical practice.

Subjective observations
Requires the observer to make judgment calls on quality and/or teacher intent.

Objective observations
Requires the observer to monitor only specific and observable practices and activities.

Formative observations
Collected data and observations are for the purpose of coaching teachers and improving performance

Summative observations
Collected data and observations are for the purpose of evaluating or ranking teachers.

All of these observations are useful, but as you can see the categories serve different purposes. Where administrators get in trouble is when they use the wrong tool for the task. Or they try to make the “Swiss Army knife" observation protocol. And like the Swiss Army knife, though it may look neat, it darn sure isn’t useful.

So now we get to practice. You need two tools. One is an extended time observation tool, primarily used in the summative evaluation process. The other is a short time observation tool, used only for formative assessment. Anyone who tries to convince you that one tool can do both is either trying to sell you something, is lazy, ignorant, and/or dangerous (I’m begging, someone try to debate me on this). Also, stay away from subjective tools. What you think is much less valid than what you actually see. You will never build sustainable system-wide capacity through subjective means. You may be able to develop individual talent, but if you are relying on individual talent to sustain your organization then you are already dying a slow death.

So where does PowerWalks come into play. It is a short time, objective, formative classroom observation tool. Nothing unusual there. But it has the most powerful disaggregation tool available attached to it. It constantly evolves and it is inexpensive. Nothing comes closer to giving you and your staff “game film” of instructional craft. Anything more would be a sales pitch, which I won’t bore you with. But if anyone in the LYS Nation is interested in trying the tool, you can use it risk free for a semester. And if you are attending the TASSP Summer Conference, every attendee gets PowerWalks for their campus for a semester for free. Plus, TASSP will train you how to use it, at the conference.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

Latest School Rankings

The Children at Risk / Houston Chronicle 2010 Texas School Rankings were just released. First, if you are happy with your ranking, a hearty “Congratulations!”

Second, much like the Newsweek formula and the Drop-out Factory formula, the Children at Risk formula is fundamentally flawed. Remember the old saying, “Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics”? You can revise that to include “Lies, Damn Lies, Statistics and Agendas.”

Third, in spite of a flawed, agenda driven rubric (and what ranking system isn’t: See BCS). I am a proponent for regular measurement to gauge growth and improvement. So don’t get hung up on where you rank right now. Because I can argue that your rating is completely justified and completely arbitrary and win both arguments. Just look at where you were last year, where you are this year, and aim for significantly better next year.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

Readers Write... Congratulations Quick Hitters

In response to the announcement about the LYS campus Hairgrove Elementary and its old school LYS principal, three readers submit:

Well deserved! If my staff has heard it once they have heard it a thousand times, “Catch Hairgrove!”

AND,

KUDOS ~ And thanks for setting the bar high and exemplifying that it “can be done!!!”

AND,

When I grow up I want to be Lesa. The most invigorating (and depressing) day of my career was the day I visited her campus. No school does what Hairgrove does.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...