21 Competencies for School Administrators
A competency is a combination of knowledge (factual and experiential) and skills that one needs to effectively implement the practices. Factual knowledge is simply “knowing” content; experiential knowledge is the knowledge one gains from understanding – it is knowing the when and why. Skills bring structure to experiential knowledge. It is when one can put their accumulated knowledge into a series of steps that – if followed – will lead to practice. There are many competencies that are obviously inherent in the successful performance of all of the practices listed under each of the eight critical functions of leadership.
Communication – Effectively listens to others; clearly and effectively presents and understands information orally and in writing; acquires, organizes, analyzes, interprets, maintains information needed to achieve school or team 21st century objectives.
Change Management – Effectively engages staff and community in the change process in a manner that ensures their support of the change and its successful implementation.
Friday School Feedback-Google Survey
Since February, our school has restructured our weekly schedule to what we call "Friday School." Friday School is an initiative that was created to help mitigate frequent absences and low academic performance. The premise of Friday School is that if you complete your work on time and up to the standards the teachers have set forth abd attend school Monday- Thursday, students are not required to come to school on Friday. If they do not meet the requirements, students must come to school all five days. This survey was created as a way to get a pulse on how the teachers are perceiving the change and whether or not they believe it is beneficial to our students. We also wanted their input on how to strengthen Friday school for the future. |
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Conflict Management – Anticipates or seeks to resolve confrontations, disagreements, or complaints in a constructive manner.
Parkwood Elementary Restorative Justice Plan
During my residency at Parkwood Elementary, the first thing I began to analyze was student discipline data from the previous school year. I noticed that the suspension data was high particularly in 4th and 5th grade. To lower these numbers, I created a restorative justice plan. Within this plan was a way to empower teachers to build better relationships with their students. The following artifact is the plan and evidence of its implementation.
During my residency at Parkwood Elementary, the first thing I began to analyze was student discipline data from the previous school year. I noticed that the suspension data was high particularly in 4th and 5th grade. To lower these numbers, I created a restorative justice plan. Within this plan was a way to empower teachers to build better relationships with their students. The following artifact is the plan and evidence of its implementation.
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Creative thinking – Engages in and fosters an environment for others to engage in innovative thinking.
Parkwood Emergency AIG Teacher Schedule Change
After the third week of school at Parkwood Elementary, one of our 3rd grade teachers informed us that she will be moving and will no longer be teaching at our school. With this in mind, along with the state mandate of 22 students per class, the administrative team had to think creatively on how to fix this situation to best meet the needs of our students. We felt that putting in a long term sub would not be beneficial to the students. Instead, we came up with a plan to modify our AIG teachers schedule. We split up the leaving teachers class into the other three 3rd grade classrooms and took any student in 3rd grade that was a "3" or higher and created a fusion class for 3rd and 4th graders. The AIG teacher was responsible for teaching her 3rd and 4th grade students both Math and ELA. |
Customer focus – Understands the students as customers of the work of schooling and the servant nature of leadership and acts accordingly.
Motivation Monday
At DPLC, the first Monday of every month is dedicated to our students. We meet with them first thing in the morning and have presenters come and speak to us and the students. I have had the pleasure of presenting at a motivation Monday to encourage our students success. Not only do we utilize our staff to send powerful messages to our students during this time, but we also reach out to the Durham community to come and speak to our students. Our speakers have ranged from career mentors, to drug rehabilitation facilitators. We want to do best by our students, so we try and make this time meaningful for them and their lives.
At DPLC, the first Monday of every month is dedicated to our students. We meet with them first thing in the morning and have presenters come and speak to us and the students. I have had the pleasure of presenting at a motivation Monday to encourage our students success. Not only do we utilize our staff to send powerful messages to our students during this time, but we also reach out to the Durham community to come and speak to our students. Our speakers have ranged from career mentors, to drug rehabilitation facilitators. We want to do best by our students, so we try and make this time meaningful for them and their lives.
Delegation – Effectively assigns work tasks to others in ways that provide learning experiences for them and in ways that ensure the efficient operation of the school.
SIT Team Presentation of Goals and Data
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Dialogue & Inquiry – Is skilled in creating a risk-free environment for engaging people in conversations that explore issues, challenges or bad relationships that are hindering school performance.
Parkwood Elementary Kid Talk
As part of the MTSS process at Parkwood, "Kid Talk" was a way for teachers, administration, counselors, and social workers to come together to discuss the needs of our students. The way the administration team set up this process was to give each teacher a time slot once a month to discuss both their tier two and tier three students. As a team we discussed the needs of each child and ways to meet their needs through interventions and data.
As part of the MTSS process at Parkwood, "Kid Talk" was a way for teachers, administration, counselors, and social workers to come together to discuss the needs of our students. The way the administration team set up this process was to give each teacher a time slot once a month to discuss both their tier two and tier three students. As a team we discussed the needs of each child and ways to meet their needs through interventions and data.
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Emotional Intelligence – Is able to manage oneself through self awareness and self management and is able to manage relationships through empathy, social awareness and relationship management. This competency is critical to building strong, transparent, trusting relationships throughout the school community.
Circles of Identity Procedure
At the start of the school year, I implemented the Circles of Identity procedure that I learned from our "Leadership Gold" training, facilitated by Dr. Ruth Steidinger. This process was a powerful icebreaker for our teachers to begin understanding each other and what makes us who we are as individuals. As educators, a large part of the work we do is working in teams. Using this protocol was a way to begin creating foundational relationships with the staff.
At the start of the school year, I implemented the Circles of Identity procedure that I learned from our "Leadership Gold" training, facilitated by Dr. Ruth Steidinger. This process was a powerful icebreaker for our teachers to begin understanding each other and what makes us who we are as individuals. As educators, a large part of the work we do is working in teams. Using this protocol was a way to begin creating foundational relationships with the staff.
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Environmental Awareness – Becomes aware and remains informed of external and internal trends, interests and issues with potential impacts on school policies, practices, procedures and positions.
DPLC Lunch Duty Rotations
Our lunch duty rotations were created as a way to mitigate any potential issues during lunch. Knowing the hot spots for behavioral issues in the building played a large role as to where we placed our staff during lunch. One of areas known in our school where fights often start are on the second floor gymnasium. In creating this, we were very strategic in having the administrative team and the school resource officer rotating in and out of that area of the school. |
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School Security Team Meeting Minutes
After the Parkland High School shooting in Florida, our administrative team at DPLC came together to create a "security team," to help create a safer school for our students. Our building is unique because we share our space with with two public entities: Durham Parks and Recreation and a Duke Health Clinic. Therefore, people from the street are constantly entering our building. In response to the shooting that took place, we were inspired to tighten security. We held a meeting with our security team as well as district level security to discuss ways of making our school environment safer. |
Global Perspective – Understands the competitive nature of the new global economy and is clear about the knowledge and skills students will need to be successful in this economy.
Durham Youthwork Internship Program
A major focus for the administrative team at DPLC is to prepare our students for life after graduation. Our school has teamed up with the Durham Youthwork Internship Program to help facilitate our seniors transition from high school to the working force. Durham Youthwork comes to our school once a week to work with our students on the basics of getting hired for a job. They educate our students on how to create a resume as well as give interview strategies and facilitate practice interviews. We are working to prepare our student to be competitive in the global economy and therefore are partnering with community based organizations to help grow them into the leaders they need to be to be successful in today's economy.
A major focus for the administrative team at DPLC is to prepare our students for life after graduation. Our school has teamed up with the Durham Youthwork Internship Program to help facilitate our seniors transition from high school to the working force. Durham Youthwork comes to our school once a week to work with our students on the basics of getting hired for a job. They educate our students on how to create a resume as well as give interview strategies and facilitate practice interviews. We are working to prepare our student to be competitive in the global economy and therefore are partnering with community based organizations to help grow them into the leaders they need to be to be successful in today's economy.
Judgement – Effectively reaching logical conclusions and making high quality decisions based on available information. Giving priority and caution to significant issues. Analyzing and interpreting complex information.
Budget Project-Benson Middle School
As part of our course work in DPLA we were required to take a Budget class. In this class, our final project was to analyze Benson Middle Schools qualitative and quantitative data and create a budget plan that would best meet the needs of the school. We had to make decisions on how best to spend federal, state, and local money on things such as technology, instructional programs, etc. |
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Organizational Ability – Effectively plans and schedules one’s own and the work of others so that resources are used appropriately, such as scheduling the flow of activities and establishing procedures to monitor projects.
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ACCESS Testing Schedule
As part of my role as the testing coordinator at DPLC, it is my job to create schedules for tests. I strive to streamline the schedules in a way that anyone who needs information can quickly access the schedule and understand where and when to send their students. For this particular test, there are four sections: Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking. It is important to keep track of all the students who have taken each section because they build off one another. For example, students who have not tested reading but tested listening cannot take the writing or the speaking because Reading and Listening tier the students for the other two. Keeping a structured, organized schedule helps to facilitate and streamline testing. |
Personal Ethics and Values – Consistently exhibits high standards in the areas of honesty, integrity, fairness, stewardship, trust, respect, and confidentiality.
Email of Thanks to the Staff
Part of who I am and what makes me a successful leader is my focus on people and the hard work they put in day after day. I make it a point to show my appreciation to my staff and acknowledge them either through emails, one-on-one conversation, or thank you cards. I do this to strengthen relationships, build trust and respect. This artifact was written after the ACCESS testing window closed. I wanted to personally thank all of the people that went above and beyond to make the test so successful. |
Personal Responsibility for Performance – Proactively and continuously improves performance by focusing on needed areas of improvement and enhancement of strengths; actively seeks and effectively applies feedback from others; takes full responsibility for one’s own achievements.
Weekly Personal Reflection
As part of the DPLA program, fellows are required to keep logs and reflect on their practice every week. Ive learned over the course of this school year how important self reflection is. It gives me an opportunity to think about my work and grow in areas that need it most. I think in order to be strong leader, you need to be ok with not always having the answer, but be reflective on how you can better your self moving forward. |
Responsiveness – Does not leave issues, inquiries or requirements for information go unattended. Creates a clearly delineated structure for responding to requests/situations in an expedient manner.
Educators Handbook- Data and Professional Development
Educators Handbook gives a wide array of data for administration to analyze and respond to. For example, we noticed that teachers were inputting referrals incorrectly into the system. Due to these errors, we had a very inflated number of students coded ISS. The teachers were coding it as ISS when they should have coded it a "period detention." Based off of this information we created a school based PD on how to properly code and refer students. Part of being an Assistant Principal is dealing with issues that can arise throughout the day. Educators Handbook helps to streamline and any behavioral problems in the school. When teachers write students up for issues in their class, I get a text message send to my phone and I can go deal with the issue right away. |
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Results Orientation – Effectively assumes responsibility. Recognizes when a decision is required. Takes prompt action as issues emerge. Resolves short-term issues while balancing them against long-term goals.
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Dean of Students Job Description
When I first arrived at DPLC as Assistant Principal, one of the first things I noticed was that we were lacking in instructional rigor. In order to increase our teachers capacity for instruction, my Principal and I needed to be more available to be in classroom and not have to worry as much about day to day discipline. As a result, we created a new Dean of Students position at our school. With the this in place, our attention can be more firmly on instruction and less on day-to-day discipline. |
Sensitivity – Effectively perceives the needs and concerns of others; deals tactfully with others in emotionally stressful situations or in conflict. Knows what information to communicate and to whom. Relates to people of varying ethnic, cultural, and religious backgrounds.
Staff "Thank You"
During our ACT preparation this year we had a team of people working to get it done efficiently and with the highest possible student turn out. One of our guidance counselors was instrumental in this process. However during all of this she was struggling in her personal life. I could tell that she was having difficulty and I wanted to make sure that I thanked her for all her hard work while also letting her know if she needs anything from me I would be happy to help. |
Systems Thinking – Understands the interrelationships and impacts of school and district influences, systems and external stakeholders, and applies that understanding to advancing the achievement of the school or team.
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DPLC PLC Framework
As part of an initiative to improve our instructional framework at DPLC, we began requiring teachers to meet in PLC's. This framework was new to many of our teachers so we created a system to help their meetings be most efficient. The following expectations were given to our departments:
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Technology – Effectively utilizes the latest technologies to continuously improve the management of the school and enhance student instruction.
DPLC Electronic Walkthrough Form
As part of a way to give teacher feedback efficiently I created a walkthrough tool using google forms. Using this form I can go into a classroom and give immediate feedback to that teacher. Before this, I was taking hand notes and having to go and write emails to teachers. Using this technology streamlined the process for walkthroughs and feedback at our school. Not only does it make it more more efficient but it also stores all the feedback in a google sheets for the administrative team to reference during formal observations, crucial conversations, or instructional meetings. |
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Time Management – Effectively uses available time to complete work tasks and activities that lead to the achievement of desired work or school results. Runs effective meetings.
School Testing Plans- ACCESS and ACT
As the schools testing coordinator it is imperative the I use my time wisely. This means getting planning done quickly and in way that makes the work easier for every stakeholder. The testing plans were created with efficiency in mind. Come test day, testing can run smoothly because these plans are in place. Every part of the testing process has a procedure to follow. Having these plans in place help to facilitate testing in a productive, timely way.
As the schools testing coordinator it is imperative the I use my time wisely. This means getting planning done quickly and in way that makes the work easier for every stakeholder. The testing plans were created with efficiency in mind. Come test day, testing can run smoothly because these plans are in place. Every part of the testing process has a procedure to follow. Having these plans in place help to facilitate testing in a productive, timely way.
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Visionary – Encourages imagineering by creating an environment and structure to capture stakeholder dreams of what the school could become for all the students.
Friday School
Our school has traditionally struggled with attendance and student proficiency. When I arrived to DPLC, my Principal and I were brainstorming ideas to help increase student commitment to the school. We eventually agreed to change our school from a traditional model to one that was more outside the box. The Friday School initiative is a way to incentivize our students to come to school and work hard when they are here. If the students meet the standards set forth by their teachers Monday through Thursday the student does not have to attend school Friday. If they do not meet the standards then the students are required to come to school for one-on-one targeted tutoring and make up work. As an alternative school, we wanted to create an alternative schedule that best meets the needs of our students.
Our school has traditionally struggled with attendance and student proficiency. When I arrived to DPLC, my Principal and I were brainstorming ideas to help increase student commitment to the school. We eventually agreed to change our school from a traditional model to one that was more outside the box. The Friday School initiative is a way to incentivize our students to come to school and work hard when they are here. If the students meet the standards set forth by their teachers Monday through Thursday the student does not have to attend school Friday. If they do not meet the standards then the students are required to come to school for one-on-one targeted tutoring and make up work. As an alternative school, we wanted to create an alternative schedule that best meets the needs of our students.