The Principal Platinum Standard

“Nationally, I’m known as E. Don.”

When I heard that comment twelve years ago that was when I realized that that my friend and mentor in my little world, also operated on a much grander scale.

Don Brown is an anomaly. Has was principal in an era when rubric for the exceptional principal was fairly cut and dried, all one had to do was, in order, keep:

• The teachers happy.
• The Superintendent happy.
• The parents happy.
• The building clean.
• The students occupied and behaved.

That wasn’t enough for Don. So he did more. He is:

• One of the Godfathers of the Trimester Schedule.
• One of the Godfathers of the PLC process.
• One of the Godfathers of the All Students Continue Their Education After High School movement.
• The architect of Breaking Ranks. 

That wasn’t enough for Don. So he did more. He was:

• The President of the Texas Association of Secondary School Principals
• The President of the National Association of Secondary School Principals
• A Board Member of the International Confederation of Principals

Then Don retired, but didn’t quit. He became one of the:

• Godfathers of the Online Professional Development movement.
• Godfathers of the EFFECTIVE (not political) School Turnaround Process.
• Godfathers of the Principal Coaching movement.
• Founders of Lead Your School.

As the Lead Your School Principal Emeritus, Don continues to coach principals and train teachers across the country, every week. In his 70’s, he has more energy and passion for schools than a man ½ his age.  We at Lead Your School are not the only ones who recognize and appreciate his continued contributions to the profession. Just last week, at a complete surprise to him, E. Don Brown was named....

The Principal Emeritus of the National Association of Secondary School Principals.

Don Brown, he’s kind of a big deal...

Congratulations!!!

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); PowerWalks CLC (Networked Formative Observation Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: Texas Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Conference (Multiple Presentations); LYS / TASSP Advanced Leadership Academy (Keynote) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Top LYS Posts From the Week of September 20, 2015

If you are not following @LYSNation on Twitter, then you missed the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of September 20, 2015 when they were first posted.  And if you are on Twitter, you might want to check out the Tweeters who made this week’s list.

1. Public education is our single greatest wealth-generating, wealth-distributing, social justice provision. (By @pastors4txkids)

2. You can't treat everyone the same and be fair. Each student needs what helps him or her, and every student is different. Fair is not equal. (By @PrincipalFHS)

3. Why do we think we can teach children to read by talking to them and not requiring them to actually read? (By @tra_hall)

4. Trying to improve grading practices is similar to convincing someone to disconnect from the Matrix. (By @TroyMooney)

5. When school leaders are in classrooms... PowerWalking...they are in their Power Zone!!!   Lead from the Zone! (By @amyjeanblan)

6. Lean into the discomfort. (By @blitzkrieg607)

7. Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishments. (By @CoachKWisdom)

8. Hope is not a research-based intervention. (By @vhsaldana)

9. Excited to share that I will present multiple times at the NASSP Conference in March!! (By @LYSNation)

10. 75,000! That's how many copies of The Fundamental 5 (Cain & Laird) that have now been officially sold!! Thank you, LYS Nation!!! (By @LYSNation)

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); PowerWalks CLC (Networked Formative Observation Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association Fall AP Conference, The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Multiple Presentations); American Association of School Administrators Conference; National Association of Secondary School Principals Conference (Multiple Presentations) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Top LYS Tweets From the Week of February 15, 2015

A number of you in the LYS Nation are now Twitter users.  If you haven’t done so yet, we want you to join us.  To let you see what you are missing, here are the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of February 15, 2015.

1. Congratulations to LYSer, Dr. Chris Granger! He is the new principal at Vernon High School!! Who will be next?  (By @LYSNation)

2. Congratulations to LYSer, Jayne Ellspermann! She is the new President Elect of NASSP! (By @LYSNation)

3. When it comes to vouchers, "there are plenty of reasons to question the numbers and argue about the actual savings" (By @RYHTexas)

4. When politicians praise "school choice," ask specifically if they mean sending public monies to private schools. Pin them down. (By @johnkuhntx)

5. The Fundamental 5 (Cain & Laird) has vertically aligned our district's instructional practices.  Love seeing it all in action in every class! (By @amyjeanblan)

6. Leadership focuses on doing the right thing. Management is focused on doing things right. (By @vhsaldana)

7. Leadership malpractice: Holding teachers accountable to assessments that are not aligned to the scope and sequence. (By @LYSNation)

8. Ditch the long and huge assessments; use the minimum number of questions you need to get the information you need... no more. (By @justintarte)

9. An important reminder to all instructional leaders and teachers: Technology will not solve your performance issues. Better instruction will. (By @LYSNation)

10. Great news! The Fundamental 5 (Cain & Laird) has now sold more than 71,000 copies!!! Thank you, LYS Nation!!!! (By @LYSNation)

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); PowerWalks CLC (Networked Formative Observation Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: TMSA Winter Conference; ASCD Annual Conference; TASSP Summer Conference (Multiple Presentations); TEPSA Summer Conference (Multiple Presentations); NAESP National Conference 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

LYS Principal, Jayne Ellspermann, is the 2015 NASSP National Principal of the Year!

NASSP Announces 2015 National Principal of the Year

Jayne Ellspermann, principal of West Port High School in Ocala, FL, was named the 2015 NASSP National Principal of the Year during a surprise assembly at her school on Tuesday, October 7. The announcement came as part of NASSP’s celebration of National Principals Month.

During her 10 years as principal at West Port— an “A” school that boasts the highest test scores in its district—Ellspermann has developed a college-going culture personalized for students. At West Port, lunchtime is often “PowerHour,” a student-empowerment initiative Ellspermann launched giving students autonomy over an hour of their school day for academic enrichment, open labs, clubs, and other creative opportunities. Students can also graduate with an associate’s degree before graduating from high school thanks to an on-campus college program Ellspermann spearheaded. Visit http://bit.ly/NPOY15 for more about the announcement.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation); ASCD Annual Conference; TEPSA Summer Conference 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

A Reader Asks... High School Attendance

A reader asks the following:

SC,

Do you have any great ideas on how to raise attendance at the High School level?

SC Response

Actually I do.  As a Principal, I was an attendance fanatic, my mantra being:

1. Get them in school.

2. Get them in class.

3. Get them in college.

And everyone on my campus, from student to teacher to parent knew that Number 3 would never happen if Number 1 didn’t happen first. 

Now I was a young Principal, so I had next to no finess. But I made up for that deficit with singular focus.  Here is what we did.

We built short-term rewards for attendance. Mostly extra privelegdes and preferences. After all, if you come to work, you get paid.  So if you came to school, you got perks.

We (campus leadership) called parents during first period is the student wasn’t in school.  No robo-calls.  We wanted to talk to a live person, and short of the student pukeing blood, we wanted them in school.

We (teachers) called our students if they missed two days in a row, to check up on the student and let them know that they were missed. This meant that there were multiple calls to the student that day.

If neccessary, we would go out and pick students up.

We let local law enforcement know that if they caught any students on the street during school hours, if they were ours, bring them to us.

We (campus leadership) sent a certifed letter to parents after the first unexcused absence and the third excused absence.  We didn’t wait, we documented and prepared to take further action, immediately.

We (campus leadership) filed truancy charges at the earliest allowable time.  And we (campus leadership) attended truancy court.

I met all of the judges that had jurisdiction over the truancy cases from my campus, in their chambers, to introduce myself and explain our intent to have students attend school and to see if the judge had any issues with the way we supported and enforced attendance.

I played in all of my truancy judges' fund raising golf tournaments.

I donated to my truancy judges' re-election campaigns.

I made it clear to students and parents that I wanted my students in my school and that if they tried to circumvent that, they would not be successful.

With this labor intensive, top-down model, my attendance rate was always above 92%.

And I was (and still am) proud of the number.

But I wasn’t the best.

Judith Solis (now the Superintendent of La Villa ISD) had better numbers than I did, in an even tougher setting (don’t tell her I actually admitted this).  One of her strategies was to get on the intercom during 1^st period and tell her students, “Look around. Is one of your friends not here right now? Take out your cell phone right now and call them.  We have learning going on and they are missing it.”

Impressive!

And the best I have ever seen was Jeb Stuart High School when Mel Riddel was the principal (now he is on the Executive Staff at NASSP). At his inner-city high school he kept his attendance in the 96% range. His secret strategy, every morning, everyone of his student received a school generated wake-up call. “Good morning, this is Jeb Stuart High School.  The high today will be 42 degrees. Don’t forget your coat.” 

Pure Genius!!

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!

Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary SchoolLeadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com! 

Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Timer (Fundamental 5 Delivery Tool); Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool)

Upcoming Presentations: The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation)

Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Top LYS Tweets From the Week of January 26, 2014

A number of you in the LYS Nation are now Twitter users.  If you haven’t done so yet, we want you to join us.  To let you see what you are missing, here are the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of January 26, 2014.

1. A child's educational future should not be determined because of geography. (By @DrJerryRBurkett)

2. Taking notes on a laptop encourages "mindless transcription." Taking notes with a pen leads to better learning. (By @anniemurphypaul)

3. When teachers say that asking kids to write more will require them to grade more, I tell them not to grade it. Just provide feedback. (By @gunnellAP)

4. Being viewed as a great leader instead of a great manager is the daily goal. If a conversation about you starts with “He’s a nice guy,” time to adjust. (By @blitzkrieg607)

5. Just found out that Tarleton State University is using The Fundamental 5 (Cain & Laird). The list of universities keeps growing. (By @LYSNation)

6. If the Superintendent visiting campuses is a "surprising" practice in your district, then that is a symptom of deeper problems. (By @LYSNation)

7. Timely advice: Change before you have to.  Don't wait until things are falling apart. (By @CarrieRossTx)

8. School attorney Mike Leasor's advice to teachers posting inappropriate things on social media: "Remember where you work." (By @TerryAbbott)

9. Texas ranks 48th in state per student spending; 20th in prison funding. Ouch. (By @S_Snell)

10. Just found out that due to popular demand, I'm presenting a second session at the NASSP National Conference in Dallas, February 6-8, 2014. (By @LYSNation)

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: NASSP National Conference (Multiple Presentations); TASSP Summer Conference (Multiple Presentations); NEASP National Conference; The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

LYS Webinar Feedback and Follow-up

This past Wednesday (12/11/2013), over 170 educators from across the country registered to hear my webinar, “Improving Instruction Through Fundamental Change.” I want to thank NASSP for making that possible and I want to thank everyone who took time out of his or her busy day to listen to my monologue on the power of fundamental practice in the classroom.  Here is a sample of the comments that came in after the presentation.

“Great Job!  Anyone who missed this needs to go look for it at NASSP.  Tomorrow, I’m going to listen to it again with my Department Chairs.”

“I watched the webinar today! Great stuff! Is there an archived version for the parts I need to hear a 2^nd time?”

“Bravo! Well worth the time!”

“Awesome! This definitely helped me see the forest from the trees.”

“The most relevant discussion on instruction I have ever heard.”

And then we got a lot of messages like these:

My entire staff was planning to sit in on your NASSP webinar today at 3:30… guess what?  That was Eastern Standard Time! Do you have a recording? 

Your webinar for Dec. 11, 2013 was posted for 3:30, but I incorrectly assumed it was Central Time, so I missed it. What can I do?

We missed it! Will there be a recording?

I logged in late. What I heard at the end, made me want to hear the beginning.  Is that possible?

We have answers to those questions.

1. Contact LYS and I can come speak to your school / district directly.  I would love the opportunity to meet and work with your team.

2. If you are a PC user, go to www.NASSP.org/webinarvideos

3. If you are a Mac user, click on the link below:

http://www.nasspblogs.org/Improving_Instruction_Fundamental_x264.mp4

With options 2 and 3, you can listen to the webinar in its entirety. If you have any downloading difficulties, just let us know. Again, thanks to everyone who listened or is going listen.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: NASSP National Conference; The 21^st Century High School Conference  
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

NASSP / LYS Webinar on Wednesday, December 11, 2013

OPEN TO ALL EDUCATORS, PK-12

Open to all! Either click on the link below or copy and paste it in your browser to register.

www1.gotomeeting.com/register/274089360

Think. Work. Achieve.

Save the Date: NASSP Webinar with Sean Cain

OPEN TO ALL EDUCATORS, PK-12

Open to all! Either click on the link below or copy and paste it in your browser to register.

www1.gotomeeting.com/register/274089360

Think. Work. Achieve.

Top LYS Tweets From the Week of November 24, 2013

A number of you in the LYS Nation are now Twitter users.  If you haven’t done so yet, we want you to join us.  To let you see what you are missing, here are the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of November 24, 2013.

1. One of the greatest signs of leadership maturity is NOT accusing others of your faults. (By @LYSNation)

2. Ignorance is an assault on your thinking, formed through assumptions. Intelligence comes from the level of the questions you ask. (By @BishopJakes)

3. Don't let your circumstances define your attitude today! Seize the moment and continue to be amazing! (By @TechNinjaTodd)

4. Excellence is achievable at any school. You just have to know what it is and be committed to do what it takes to get there. (By @Snowmanlearning)

5. There is plenty of room at the top – but no place to sit down. (By @CoachKWisdom)

6. All leaders make mistakes.  The key is to learn, get back up with generosity of spirit and humility, and lead on! (By @tgrierhisd)

7. Today's Quote: “When students begin to believe, they begin to achieve.” (By @DrRichAllen)

8. It's always too early to quit. (By @CoachKWisdom)

9. I don't want perfection, I want effort. –Unknown (By @Sports_HQ)

10. Hold the date! NASSP webinar on 12/11/13. Sean Cain on Improving Instruction Through Fundamental Change. Open to all PK thru 12 educators! (By @LYSNation)

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: NASSP National Conference; The 21^st Century High School Conference  
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

NASSP Conference Ratings - The Fundamental 5

Last week, NASSP sent me the audience feedback from our standing room only presentation of “The Fundamental 5”. This was unexpected since most conferences don’t do this. After our presentations, the participants always warmly receive us, but we are educators presenting to educators, which means that the audience would be polite even if we didn’t deserver it. So getting to see what the audience really thought is a rare and valuable report card. Here is what an audience of over 140 principals and assistant principals reported:

Overall

• 96% of the audience ratings of the components of the presentation and the quality of the presenters were “Excellent”
• 4% of the audience ratings of the components of the presentation and the quality of the presenters were “Good”

There were no negative ratings or negative comments.

Positive comments included:

• I plan to use and share this information.
• I wasn’t sure that I would get much from this session. I was wrong! The presenters were phenomenal and the information was very useful!
• Very energetic and positive!
• Excellent!
• Will take this back to my district.
• Very good info.
• Awesome!!! Thanks!!!
• Excellent presentation. Great content and modeled it in the lesson. So inspired. Loved it!
• Excellent!
• I’m going to begin training my staff on using the Fundamental 5.
• Great... The LYS Blog is very interesting and useful
• Excellent topic, this session should be conducted again next year.

For all of you who attended our presentation at NASSP, thank you for your time and enthusiasm. And if you missed us, our next big conference presentations are at the National Association of School Boards Conference (later this month) and the Texas Association of Secondary School Principals Summer Conference. Come see us!

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com! http://tinyurl.com/4ydqd4t
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool)
• Confirmed 2012 Presentations: NASB Conference; TASSP Conference (multiple sessions); Region 10 ESC Fall Leadership Conference (Keynote)

A Reader Asks... How About a Video

A LYS Principal asks:

SC,

Any chance of seeing your presentations on video? In Seattle, we're mighty far away!

SC Response

Not yet. But mostly due to the fact that we have been so busy we haven't had time to work out the logistics of the endeavor.

You can try to catch us at one of the national conferences. In the Spring of 2012, I'll be presenting at the NASSP Conference and the NASB Conference. Also, in early Spring I’ll be the keynote speaker at the Region 16 (Texas) Principals’ Leadership Academy and Conference. Unfortunately, none of these speaking engagements will be on the West Coast, which makes it a little tough for you and your team. But, there is always the book study route...

We also train in states all across the country. We would love to get out to Seattle and work with you and your team, just give us a call and tell us when.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com! http://tinyurl.com/4ydqd4t
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation
• Get the Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan App at the App Store – Fun 5 Plans
• Confirmed 2012 Presentations: Region 16 ESC Leadership Academy (Keynote Address); NASSP Conference; NASB Conference