On a recent flight I sat next to a woman who had a very intriguing story. She was once a teacher, and apparently a pretty good one. But she opted to change careers in her early-40’s because she couldn’t take it anymore. Instead she became a flight attendant.

What was the problem? Was teaching really that bad?!

Last Thursday I led our “Building Board Engagement” workshop for administrators and board leaders from schools that are members of the Association of Delaware Valley Independent Schools (ADVIS). Barbara Kraus-Blackney, Jennifer Braxton, and the rest of the ADVIS team provided a wonderful professional development venue at The Haverford School. 

Three consecutive days this week we taught our BUILDING FACULTY ENGAGEMENT Workshop on three different campuses. Talented, energized, and engaged educators change the world, which is why we do what we do at School Growth and it's why we designed this unique professional development experience.

Gallup has conducted numerous research studies on the factors that influence school quality, and faculty engagement has consistently been the most reliable and important predictor. An engaged teacher is defined as one who is, "involved with, enthusiastic about, and committed to their work." That is, they are emotionally and energetically invested in the mission, culture, and strategies of the school. 

An unengaged teacher, on the other hand, is content with just working for a paycheck. In performing her/his duties, this person is less likely to seek out opportunities for professional growth and improving the team. She/he doesn't feel emotionally connected to the leadership and community of the school, which causes a loss of energy across the school culture rather than positively contributing to it. 

A gutsy business executive in Raleigh, North Carolina, designed a private school that delivers a quality education for around $5,000. This innovative design has been replicated to four campuses so far, and even greater expansion is planned.

Like so many others I was saddened to read about the death of actor/comedian Robin Williams. As a long time fan of his many characters over the years, it struck me how such a talented person struggled in so many ways. Though his bouts with depression and addiction have been written about, I was more knowledgable about the roles than the reality.

April showers bring May flowers. After such a long, hard winter we're all ready for spring, but the spring season brings with it some big challenges for school leaders.

A survey of school websites produced this wordle image. The size of each word is indicative of the frequency of its usage on each page. As you can see, "Excellence" is used consistently and persistently as a means of communicating the high standards and quality of the program. But how does the school leader support this statement? What evidence can the faculty offer to support the school's "Excellence" claim?