Have any of the teachers in your school systems tried flipping their classrooms yet? Have you heard about it and what the advantages might be? As you know, new content is “typically” delivered to all students at the same time by their teacher. Some call this “sage on the...
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If you want to know about the latest terminology and acronyms, ask a young person! It seems that the only thing you can really count on in this world is change, and we have certainly lived through huge changes in education as well. How do we keep up with...
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This past November, I had the opportunity to be part of the Senior Consortium for School Networking Delegation to Montevideo, Uruguay and Buenos Aires, Argentina. CoSN is the premier professional association for school district technology leaders. CoSN’s mission is to empower educational leaders to leverage technology to realize engaging...
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As we try to raise the awareness level of special education and mental and emotional needs in the world of public education, we must draw attention to what it means to be on the autism spectrum—especially on the highly functioning end of the spectrum. You see, looks can be...
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Technology has changed the way virtually every industry in the world operates – from farmers to physicians – by supporting people’s relationships with one another and their work. Just as eBay altered commerce, iTunes changed the music industry, and Amazon forever changed the corner bookstore, technology innovations are poised...
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In May 2011, tornadoes ripped through Joplin, Missouri. A community was destroyed. The hub of that community is the local public school system. The administrative building and many of their schools were leveled. Seven lives were lost within the Joplin school family. But, nothing stops the people of Joplin....
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In a world where many are nearing retirement, public education faces changes in leadership across our country. How does a school system prepare and transition with new leaders? Grow your own! Many local school systems have implemented leadership academies. These one- or two-year programs are structured for teacher leaders...
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Missouri School Boards Association’s 2011 Pre-Conference was themed “Technology Trends in Education.” As a part of the day’s agenda one of Apple’s Distinguished Educators (ADE) Jennifer Magiera shared the innovate practices she is implementing in the Chicago Public School System. Jennifer is the iPad Project Leader/Trainer for CPS, the...
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Is your school board’s work in the weeds or are you looking from a global perspective? It’s so easy to get off track. For boards of education, it is imperative that the board simply follow the system-wide strategic plan with that plan driving the monthly meetings of the board....
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You may have begun to see funny-looking black and white squares (QR Codes) that look a bit like stamps stuck on advertisements in magazines. I really hadn’t paid attention (eyes rolled) because sometimes I get a bit wary when I hear about ANOTHER new techie thing. Who has time...
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Local school boards meet all around this country in governing our nation’s public schools. Who makes the agenda? In my home state of Georgia, the superintendent and board chair have the responsibility of creating the monthly agenda; each member of the board can additionally request that an item be...
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Art, music, P.E., drama…do we need performing arts and physical education in our schools? Absolutely. There are some students who only come to school because they look forward to their art class. The same is true within the other disciplines. So, then why are these the first things to...
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Is your head in the clouds? It should be. If you are a school administrator or a board member, you may have never heard or thought about “cloud” technology. I mentioned the word the other day in an e-mail and was surprised to hear back that it meant nothing...
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The Center for Digital Education held nine conferences this spring with a theme “Connecting the Dots” where participants not only heard from experts in the field of demographics but also engaged in roundtable discussion on relevant topics for public education. The conversations at the event in Georgia included professional...
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Planning for accreditation can be an incredibly busy time for any district. Our plates are all full, as the tired saying reminds us, but we needed to collaborate on this extremely important sign and seal of our district work. And as with all things in a school district, working...
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If you’re like me, you’ve attended your fair share of meetings (staff meetings, board meetings, cabinet meetings…you name it.) Most of these meetings have had an agenda but many agendas were just SKELETONS, or basic outlines of the topics that will be presented, discussed or acted upon. So as...
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At the eBOARDsolutions User Conference in March 2011, I co-presented with Dr. Valery Hall of the Forsyth County Public Schools in Georgia. In her role of assisting both the superintendent and the board of education, Valery is integrally involved in preparing the agendas for their board’s meetings. Thus, our...
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Over the past two years, I have had the privilege and good fortune to be a part of what I believe to be one of the greatest movements in Georgia history to transform public education. In 2009, the Georgia School Boards Association and the Georgia School Superintendents Association embarked...
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NSBA’s FRN Leadership Conference recently closed with a general session featuring speaker Jamie Vollmer. His remarks “Welcome to the Great Conversation: The Role of Associations in Public Support for America’s Public Schools” were right on THE MARK! Jamie shared a story about blueberries…his career included being the president of...
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Now that doing more with less is the new norm, how do you market and promote your school district and successful programs? Maybe it’s time for a brainstorming session with your school public relations professional. Don’t know where to start? I’ll kick the conversation off with these five freebies:...
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