EDLD+5399+-+Internship+in+Superintendency


 * EDLD 5399 - Internship in Superintendency **


 * WEEK ONE***
 * __Self-Assessment Reflection:__**

After reviewing my self-assessment from the beginning of this process I was surprised to see that most of my answers were the same. The consistency of the answers was nice, but I was expecting to see more strengths with the competencies because I know I have gained knowledge through these courses. I think I may have started this process thinking I knew slightly more than I did or maybe I am little more critical now with the knowledge attained through this program. There is also a good chance that it could be a little of both. All of the “I”s in my first assessment are now “C”s and some of my original “C”s are now “S”s. Overall I saw a moderate amount of improvement between the two assessments. I rated myself Competent in most of the Competencies. There were a few areas where I rated myself with a “S”. I scored the highest in Competency One. Through my educational experiences and this program I feel very comfortable with most roles and responsibilities of a superintendent.
 * Section A of Comprehensive Final Report: Career Position and Leadership Goals ** **Statement**

My ultimate goal is to become a superintendent. However, in my current position and district I do not feel like I am ready for that leap. I do not feel like it would be appropriate to make a jump from principal to superintendent in a district larger than 2A. I would feel very comfortable (and very interested) if our assistant superintendent position were to become available. In our district we also have a few other central office administrative positions. I do not think I would enjoy any of the other positions, so my focus will remain on the assistant superintendent position. It is critical to understand all aspects and roles of the superintendent. The more experience and exposure you can get, the more prepared you will be for the “big desk”. I do not have any desire to leave our district. If I ever get to the point where I want to move districts, I still find it vital to move through the ranks in the other district. I do not think it is wise to move into such an important role without knowing how things are done in a district. That is not to say that it cannot be done because superintendents are hired every year that are new to that district and most are successful. For me, and my preferences, I would want to be there awhile before moving into that role.
 * // Position Goal: //**

Being an educational leader is more than just having the power to make critical decisions. It is the ability to make the biggest difference in the lives of your students. Whenever you are a teacher, you learn that you greatly affect the lives of those that you interact with. As you move up the educational career ladder, you have the ability and duty to directly affect thousands of students. I hope to continue affecting the lives of today’s youth as the years go on, but I think I can affect even more students as the superintendent. Through my internship I have gained a vast amount of experiences and knowledge that will help me lead a district and impact student learning.
 * // Leadership Goal: //**

***WEEK TWO***


 * Domain I—Leadership of the Educational Community – Competencies 1 - 4 **
 * Competency 1 Area: **

The superintendent knows how to act with integrity, fairness, and in an ethical manner in order to promote the success of all students.

What I did to address this competency and how did I address all elements of the competency:


 * 1) 31(c) Ethics & #32(a) Interpersonal Relationships

With the activities under this competency I worked with a group of students on ethics in our school and I worked on improving my interpersonal relationships while communicating with others in common conversations, in meetings, and through electronic communication. Most areas of the competency were addressed by these activities.

Positive experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest positive experience in the activities from Competency 1 was working with the students to get their perspective on ethics. It is always exciting to spend some time with students in meaningful dialogue. Another positive experience was learning how to be a better communicator. Developing and enhancing my interpersonal skills will remain a goal, but this helped me in many areas of communication.

Negative experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest negative experience in the activities from Competency 1 was while I was working with our students I saw first hand how much they struggle with common vocabulary; such as ethics, diversity, professionalism, integrity, etc. It is always amazing to me that we do fairly well on Reading and Writing tests because our students do not always exhibit those skills. I would rather that they show off all of the time and not just on test day, but if I had to pick one day that is not a bad day to choose. Another negative experience was trying to keep up with the different experience associated with #32(a). The different conversations and experiences probably would have amassed into the thousands with accurate documentation. This was definitely an area I needed some work in and I will continue to grow in this area for years to come.


 * Competency 2 Area: **

The superintendent knows how to shape district culture by facilitating the development, articulation, implementation, and stewardship of a vision of learning that is shared and supported by the educational community.

What I did to address this competency and how did I address all elements of the competency:


 * 1) 1(d) Vision/Mission, #25(a) Community/Public Relations, #26(c) Parent Involvement, #28(a) Community/Business Involvement and Partnerships, & #30(a) Philosophy/History of Education

With the activities under this competency I worked on developing a new vision statement for our campus, talked with our superintendent about public relations, came up with a way to increase parental involvement, compiled a list of services available to our students, and interviewed a retired community member to discuss the history of Ferris and our school district. Although some were done indirectly, all activities addressed Competency 2.

Positive experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest positive experience under Competency 2 was finding a way that might finally increase parental involvement. I try new things every year, but this one might just do the trick. Another positive experience was talking with a member of the community about the changes that have occurred in our city and district over the last several decades. He has great insight and really opened my eyes to the way the community used to be.

Negative experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest negative experience under Competency 2 was gathering information to compile the list. It seems like such an easy thing to do, but it is very time consuming and you are always coming across a few more to add on there. I guess this was also a positive too because now have some places to offer as suggestions to parents, students, or teachers needing the help. Another negative experience was discussing public relations and small town politics. That is just not an area of administration I enjoy.


 * Competency 3 Area: **

The superintendent knows how to communicate and collaborate with families and community members, respond to diverse community interests and needs, and mobilize community resources to ensure educational success for all students.

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What I did to address this competency and how did I address all elements of the competency:


 * 1) 25(a) Community/Public Relations, #26(c) Parent Involvement, #28(a) Community/Business Involvement and Partnerships, & #30(a) Philosophy/History of Education, #38(a) Professional Library, & #4(f) Effective Communication

With the activities under this competency I talked with our superintendent about public relations, came up with a way to increase parental involvement, compiled a list of services available to our students, interviewed a retired community member to discuss the history of Ferris and our school district, compiled a list of relevant resources related the superintendency, and I reviewed how our district monitors ongoing communication. Most areas within this competency were addressed in these activities.

Positive experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest positive experience with Competency 3 was the same as the two written in the previous section. These activities overlapped onto this competency and those two were again the more positive.

Negative experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest negative experience with Competency 3 was realizing that our district does not really have any method of monitoring ongoing communication. We communicate with the family but there is not a method to monitor it. Another negative experience was compiling the list of books and other resources relevant to a superintendent. Again, it was not a difficult task, but trying to figure out whether it is good enough or current/applicable enough was a bit difficult.


 * Competency 4 Area: **

The superintendent knows how to respond to and influence the larger political, social, economic, legal, and cultural context, including working with the board of trustees, to achieve the district's educational vision.

What I did to address this competency and how did I address all elements of the competency:


 * 1) 37(b) Professional Affiliations and Resources & #15(b) Change Process

With the activities under this competency I compiled a list of useful resources for principals and I conducted some interviews on why we implemented CSCOPE this year. Some of the elements of Competency 4 were addressed with these activities but not all of them.

Positive experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest positive experience from Competency 4 was the discussions I had with upper administration about why we moved to CSCOPE and the steps they went through in their decision process. The way that they planned on rolling it out with the principals and teachers was also an interesting perspective. Our superintendent had to be convinced a little at first too, but he is very good at getting buy-in. Another positive experience was comparing the responses between the curriculum director, assistant superintendent, and superintendent. Different people obviously have different perspectives, but when a group or a team share the same vision/goals it is interesting how in line their answers are to one another.

Negative experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest negative experience from Competency 4 was once again compiling a list. It was kind of boring and took as long as a more beneficial activity. Looking back I wish I had changed my choice of activity in a few areas.


 * DOMAIN II—INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP – COMPETENCIES 5 - 7 **


 * Competency 5 Area: **

The superintendent knows how to facilitate the planning and implementation of strategic plans that enhance teaching and learning; ensure alignment among curriculum, curriculum resources, and assessment; use the current accountability system; and promote the use of varied assessments to measure student performance.

What I did to address this competency and how did I address all elements of the competency:


 * 1) 2(b) Strategic Planning, #3(c) Data Collection and Analysis, #7(d) Analyzing the Curriculum, #12(d) Evaluation of Student Achievement/Testing and Measurements, #27(a) Climate for Cultural Diversity, #36 (a) Current Issues Affecting Teaching and Learning, #14(d) Staff Development/Adult Learning, & #11(d) Learning Technology

With the activities under this competency I helped create a strategic plan for our district, looked at how we utilize data, analyzed curriculum, analyzed how we could improve in a specifically tested area, checked our library for culturally diverse books, looked at current issues affecting education, looked at staff development on our campus and tried to find ways to improve, and I observed one of our labs to see how effective it was for student learning. Most of the elements of Competency 5 were addressed with these activities.

Positive experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest positive experience for Competency 5 was the strategic plan. We created a Five-Year Plan about five years ago. I was part of that committee too, but we were overdue on creating a new plan. Our new strategic plan will address several of the areas for years to come. Another positive experience was seeing that our library is pretty well stocked with culturally diverse literature. Our library is not that big, but we are adding to it every year and we are intentional with our additions.

Negative experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest negative experience for Competency 5 was the current issues facing education. There are many factors that go into a well-run school and the success of students. Most literature addresses issues that affect the majority and some only look at specific issues in certain areas. Our school, like most others, is unique and I did not feel like most of the issues directly correlated with our campus. General ideas and concepts can adequately be compared to our campus. Another negative experience was looking at our staff development. There were many hours spent in professional development and I do not always see a correlation between the training they receive and the increase performance of students. Teachers are out of the classroom too much. I really feel like the majority of staff development should be done during the summer.


 * Competency 6 Area: **

The superintendent knows how to advocate, promote, and sustain an instructional program and a district culture that are conducive to student learning and staff professional growth.

What I did to address this competency and how did I address all elements of the competency:


 * 1) 12(d) Evaluation of Student Achievement/Testing and Measurements, #27(a) Climate for Cultural Diversity, #36 (a) Current Issues Affecting Teaching and Learning, #14(d) Staff Development/Adult Learning, #11(d) Learning Technology, & #10(e) Learning/Motivational Theory

With the activities under Competency 6 I analyzed how we could improve in a specifically tested area, checked our library for culturally diverse books, looked at current issues affecting education, looked at staff development on our campus and tried to find ways to improve, I observed one of our labs to see how effective it was for student learning, and I looked at student participation in club/activities. Most of the elements of this competency were addressed with the activities.

Positive experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest positive experience from Competency 6 was the activity with students and their participation with clubs/organizations. It was amazing to actually see the numbers. Our students are extremely involved. We have less than 10% who do not participate in anything and the majority of our students participate in three or more clubs/organizations. Another positive experience was trying to figure out how to improve our instruction to better influence math scores. We have always struggled with math and we try new things every year. Hopefully this year all of their hard work will be seen in the test results.

Negative experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest negative experience from Competency 6 was again the current issues facing education. There are many factors that go into a well-run school and the success of students. Most literature addresses issues that affect the majority and some only look at specific issues in certain areas. Our school, like most others, is unique and I did not feel like most of the issues directly correlated with our campus. General ideas and concepts can be adequately compared to our campus. Again my other negative experience was looking at our staff development. There were many hours spent in professional development and I do not always see a correlation between the training they receive and the increase performance of students. Teachers are out of the classroom too much. I really feel like the majority of staff development should be done during the summer.


 * Competency 7 Area: **

The superintendent knows how to implement a staff evaluation and development system and select appropriate models for supervision and staff development to improve the performance of all staff members.

What I did to address this competency and how did I address all elements of the competency:


 * 1) 9(b) Supervision of Instruction/Instructional Strategies

With the activity under Competency 7 I conducted two classroom observations following the clinical supervision model. Eventhough there was only one activity, I feel like it was pretty much on point with the elements of this competency.

Positive experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest positive experience with the activity from Competency 7 was the open dialogue that was encouraged by the clinical supervision model. Having a pre-conference to discuss what I would be looking for and then a post-conference to discuss what was seen was vitally important. I think this model should be implemented more and I will try and find a way to do it more often.

Negative experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest negative experience with the activity from Competency 7 was the time it took to meet to discuss the observation. It is not because I do not see the value of it, but between my schedule and the teacher’s schedule it makes scheduling such conferences very difficult.


 * DOMAIN III—ADMINISTRATIVE LEADERSHIP – COMPETENCIES 8 – 10 **


 * Competency 8 Area: **

The superintendent knows how to apply principles of effective leadership and management in relation to district budgeting, personnel, resource utilization, financial management, and technology application.

What I did to address this competency and how did I address all elements of the competency:


 * 1) 11(d) Learning Technology, #5(c) Negotiating/Consensus Building, #6(c) Collaborative Decision Making, #8(b) School/Program Scheduling, #18(d) General Office Administration/Technology, #23(b) Personnel Procedures, #24(c) Supervision of the Budget, #19(c) School Operations/Policies, #35(a) Issue and Conflict Resolution, #20(b) Facility and Maintenance Administration/Safety and Security, #21(a) Student Transportation, #22(a) Food Services, & #29(a) Position Goals and Requirements

With the activities under Competency 8 I observed one of our labs to see how effective it was for student learning, I helped resolved a conflict/issue, I assessed the perception of collaborative decision making, I scheduled students into their classes, I assessed our administrative technology, I assisted in the interview process of our new athletic director, I participated in the budget planning process, I made observations in regards to school opening and closing, I assisted in conflict resolution between two individuals, I interviewed our maintenance director and shadowed him for an hour, I interviewed our transportation director, I interviewed our food services director, and (finally) I analyzed our superintendents job description and compared it to his evaluation instrument. These activities addressed the elements of this competency very well.

Positive experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest positive experience from the activities with Competency 8 was watching the whole process of hiring a new athletic director and watching how our superintendent handled the whole process. I think since I was going through this program I was much more observant and asked more questions so that I could better understand his perspective in this process. He did a great job from beginning to end. Another positive experience I had was from analyzing the job description and evaluation instrument. It is always a good idea to know what you are getting yourself into. Since I want to stay in our district it was very useful in preparing myself mentally for what may come. This was my overall favorite competency because the activities done here were more in line with the aspects of the job I like.

Negative experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest negative experience from the activities with Competency 8 was dealing with conflict resolution. I do not particularly enjoy conflict and when two individuals do not like each other it is difficult for me to maintain the peace and keep it cordial. Tone of voice and body language usually say more than the actual words. I realize that at some moments tension will be thick within the role of the superintendent so I guess it was still a good experience, just uncomfortable. Another negative experience was the opening and closing of school. I think I disliked it mainly because I have done it for several years and it was a boring activity – again poor choice on my part.


 * Competency 9 Area: **

The superintendent knows how to apply principles of leadership and management to the district's physical plant and support systems to ensure a safe and effective learning environment.

What I did to address this competency and how did I address all elements of the competency:


 * 1) 19(c) School Operations/ Policies, #20(b) Facility and Maintenance Administration/Safety and Security, #21(a) Student Transportation, #22(a) Food Services, #29(a) Position Goals and Requirements, #13(d) Supervision of Co curricular Education, #17(c) Student Services, & #16(b & c) Student Discipline

With the activities under Competency 9 I made observations in regards to school opening and closing, I interviewed our maintenance director and shadowed him for an hour, I interviewed our transportation director, I interviewed our food services director, I analyzed our superintendents job description and compared it to his evaluation instrument, I met with a group of students to discuss ways to improve and expand co-curricular activities, I interviewed the nurse to discuss concerns and issues, and I analyzed our student code of conduct as well as analyzed discipline referral data over the last three years. These activities addressed the elements of this competency fairly well.

Positive experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest positive experience from the activities in Competency 9 was the analysis of our discipline. I love looking at data – it does not lie and you can learn a great deal from it. This is a task that every administrator should look at. It is very telling and will enable you to make necessary adjustments. Another positive experience was shadowing our maintenance director and interviewing him. He is a great guy and will do anything for us, so it was just really nice to spend some time seeing what he does on a typical day.

Negative experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest negative experience from the activities in Competency 9 was again the opening and closing of school activity. I think I disliked it mainly because I have done it for several years and it was a boring activity – again poor choice on my part.


 * Competency 10 Area: **

The superintendent knows how to apply organizational, decision-making, and problem-solving skills to comply with federal and state requirements and facilitate positive change in varied contexts.

What I did to address this competency and how did I address all elements of the competency:


 * 1) 15(b) Change Process, #35(a) Issue and Conflict Resolution, #20(b) Facility and Maintenance Administration/ Safety and Security, #21(a) Student Transportation, #22(a) Food Services, #29(a) Position Goals and Requirements, #16(b & c) Student Discipline, #33(a & e) School Board Policy and Procedures/State and Federal Law, & #34(d) Federal Programs Administration

With the activities under Competency 10 I conducted some interviews on why we implemented CSCOPE this year, I assisted in conflict resolution between two individuals, I interviewed our maintenance director and shadowed him for an hour, I interviewed our transportation director, I interviewed our food services director, I analyzed our superintendents job description and compared it to his evaluation instrument, I analyzed our student code of conduct as well as analyzed discipline referral data over the last three years, I reviewed the board policy manual and interviewed the superintendent and board president about the relationships of their roles, and I interviewed our Special Programs Director about our ESL program. These activities addressed the elements of this competency fairly well.

Positive experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest positive experience from the activities in Competency 10 was again the discipline data activity. I love looking at data – it does not lie and you can learn a great deal from it. This is a task that every administrator should look at. It is very telling and will enable to make necessary adjustments. Another positive experience was looking over the board policy manual and interviewing the board president. It was interesting to see where the superintendent’s perception of the Team of 8’s relationship and responsibilities were almost the same as the school board president’s perception.

Negative experiences and lessons learned from the experiences:

The biggest negative experience from the activities in Competency 10 was (for the third time) the conflict resolution activity. Another negative experience would be reviewing the board policy manual. It got a little boring. I learned more from the interview portion of that activity.


 * WEEK THREE***

I had the good fortune of being the chairperson for our campus site base committee and the district site base committee. Both committees were charged with the task of writing and approving the appropriate improvement plan. Many hours went into both documents and it was a joint effort to write both. We looked at our available data and made some assessments. We knew of some new things we were already putting in place this school year to take care of these problems, but we also knew we had to come up with other ideas to address our concerns. Our committee members helped very minimally with the plan. I wrote the majority of the campus plan and our Special Programs Director wrote the majority of the district’s plan. In a perfect world everyone would contribute equally to the discussions and everyone would actively participate in writing the document, but the reality is that it is much easier and more efficient for one person to do the bulk of the legwork. I have a few concerns with the way we take care of this process and I think there is room for improvement. First, I think we need to have better participation and selection of our committee members. I know of some administrators who tell the parent rep. that they do not have to come to the meetings and they just have to sign the paper. We also have some parents who serve on committees from elementary on up to high school. While I appreciate their efforts, we should try to hear other viewpoints too. Our business representatives are usually parents too. I think it would be a good idea to get an “outsider’s” perspective on things from time to time. Another concern I have is with the effectiveness of the plan. We do not really do anything to gauge the success of our efforts. Did we implement the right program(s)? Did we see success with our Math program? Did the attendance incentives make a difference with our attendance rate? The final, and greatest, concern I have is with the improvement plans themselves. They sit on a shelf all year and rarely does anyone take the time to review it or address any new needs that come up. We need to utilize these plans and readjust as the year goes on. There are some things we are doing well and should continue. This year we were able to work our schedule to where all core teachers have a common planning period. This has proven to be invaluable. Our teachers are sharing with each other, they are discussing data, they plan together, etc. Our teachers went from doing their own thing to working in a collaborative setting. Their professional learning communities have been a HUGE success. Another success we have seen from our improvement plans has been the overall improvement of classroom instruction. We have begun utilizing CSCOPE. Our teachers have embraced the change after some slight reluctantcy. Teachers have seen how a slight change in the way you teach something or the order you teach it in can make a difference to the learning in your classroom. Students also were a little shell-shocked at first because we have definitely increased the depth and rigor of our instruction. Our expectations had to rise if we wanted our kiddos to be successful on the STAAR. Finally, I think another thing that should stick around in our plans is our positive behavior support. Focusing on the positive behaviors that students exhibit instead of the negative ones has really made a difference on our campus. We are very intentional with our expectations and our students usually behave to the high standards we set. The experiences of the improvement initiatives proved to be very positive, but there is room for improvement. I plan to change things by taking the binder out this week and reviewing it with our staff. The CIP (Campus Improvement Plan) needs to become what it is intended to be - a Continuous Improvement Plan. Without measurable goals and continuous re-evaluations, the improvement plans are just well intended documents. They should be something more than a bookend. The experiences here will be long lasting with me.


 * ***WEEK FOUR*** **

Reflection is critical to the success of any leader. In education it is especially critical because we have new and different experiences everyday. It may be a similar situation, but it is always something new. Our decisions are shaped by our prior knowledge. If we reflect on those prior experiences we are better equipped to make a better decision the next time a similar situation arises. Reflection should be done shortly after your experience and it should be done consistently. Reflection is an important skill in leadership because it allows you to reevaluate earlier situations to improve upon them. Without reflection an individual is more likely to make the same mistake more than once. In reflection of our superintendent program I think the professors intentionally made reflection a major focus because they have witnessed first-hand how powerful it can be. We were very lucky to have such a fantastic group of professors and their supporting cast. I enjoyed all of our classes and professors, but I particularly enjoyed Dr. Creel and Dr. Nicks. They helped us know that we were in this together and were very supportive and encouraging with their comments. They also kept conversations educational, fun, and relevant. In looking back over the whole program there are some areas of reflection that stick out.

Course Assignments Blogs Wiki Course and Campus Supervised Logs Assessments Interviews
 * Many of the course assignments focused on experiences or activities to prepare us for the superintendency. Through these experiences we were able to have a small taste of some of the day-to-day operations of a superintendent. I think these experiences were vital to see the time it takes and the wealth of knowledge you must possess to be in this role.
 * Another reflection I have looking back over my experiences with course assignments was how much work we did. The last year has flown by. I wish I had a better handle on time management when it comes to course work. I tend to put this on the back burner quite often and the log activities began to pile up. I wish I could go back and get it all done by Christmas Break like I originally planned.
 * The technology incorporated into this program was really good. From the blogs, to the wikis, to the web conferences, to TK20, it all flowed together very well. I have always wanted to write a blog and now I can saw that I have. I think this is something I may continue for our school going forward. Communication is vital and this could be one more form of communication.
 * I really enjoyed looking at other students’ blogs. Reading the viewpoints of others and having open discussions really gives you a sense of collaboration and class discussion even though we were hundreds of miles apart.
 * This too was something that I wish I had done a better job keeping up with. I had it laid out pretty well and had good intentions to fill it up and keep accurate track of each course, but as with other assignments and pushed it to the side as time got scarce.
 * Wikis are good for electronic collaboration and we had one major assignment where we put that to the test and things went very well for our group. Our teachers could use Wikis with other campuses for vertical alignment or it could be used with other districts across the state for collaboration.
 * I learned a great deal from our logs. This is where we got the majority of our experiences. We were given multiple opportunities to experience a little bit of what it is like to sit behind the big desk.
 * Looking back at the logs, I enjoyed the campus-supervised experiences more than the course-embedded activities. Many of the activities were done for the benefit of our school or our district, which was beneficial for both our learning and the application.
 * I particularly enjoyed our first practice exam. It gave me a look at some test-like questions and it allowed me to see that the test was not as hard as I thought it might be.
 * I also enjoyed the pre-course/post-course assessments. It was an easy way to see what knowledge you started with and how much you learned through the course. With the activities and lectures, it was hard not to add more knowledge to my limited foundation.
 * The interviews were by far my favorite aspect of this program. Not only were you working on an assignment, but you also could pick the brains of some very knowledgeable educators. I enjoyed the time spent with my superintendent the most, followed by the web conferences with Dr. Creel. Both gave me some great advice and insight into the superintendent world.
 * I think there were some interviews where I should have been better prepared or should have asked the follow-up question that I held back from asking.

I plan to use personal and professional reflections to improve my leadership skills. I also plan on improving my reflection skills. I think the reflections I have been doing lately were mostly forced upon me by this course, but moving forward I need to be more consistent and immediate with my personal and professional reflections. Mastering this skill will be a needed focus of attention before growing to the point of being ready to become a superintendent. Not only that, but it can only help me be a better principal.

// Become more curriculum-minded // || ** TExES Domain and Competency ** // Domain II, Competency 5 // || ** Objective ** // Increase working knowledge of curriculum and data analysis // || ** Course Work/Book/ Workshops ** // CSCOPE Conference & Data Analysis Workshop // || ** Mentor/ Professional Support ** // Curriculum Director, Coleen Butterfield // || ** Date of Completion ** 5-1-13 || ** Evaluations ** // Completion of workshops and implementation of skills learned // || // Begin networking and attending superinten- dent conferences and workshops // || ** TExES Domain and Competency ** // Domain I, Competency 4 // || ** Objective ** // Increase contacts and knowledge-base pertaining to superintendency // || ** Course Work/Book/ Workshops ** // TASA/TASB Convention and Midwinter Conference (including Aspiring Superintendent Academy) // || ** Mentor/ Professional Support ** // Superintendent, Mike Bodine // || ** Date of Completion ** // 2-1-13 // || ** Evaluations ** // Completion of workshops and implementation of skills learned // ||
 * WEEK FIVE*****
 * // Year One //**
 * ** Goal **
 * ** Goal **

// Learn how to lead a district through strategic planning // || ** TExES Domain and Competency ** // Domain II, Competency 5 // || ** Objective ** // Help develop a strategic plan for our district that will move us to an elite status within five years // || ** Course Work/Book/ Workshops ** //__ [|Stakeholder-Driven Strategic Planning in Education: A Practical Guide for Developing and Deploying Successful Long-Range Plans]  __// || ** Mentor/ Professional Support ** // Superintendent, Mike Bodine & Assistant Superintendent, Ofeila Grass // || ** Date of Completion ** // 5-1-14 // || ** Evaluations ** // Results as the years go on. The plan put in place should improve our school district through SAT, ACT, grades, attendance, STAAR, etc. // || // Become a better communicator // || ** TExES Domain and Competency ** // Domain I, Competency 3 // || ** Objective ** // Increase forms and styles of delivery to increase amount and effectiveness of communication // || ** Course Work/Book/ Workshops ** // Workshop on effective communication // || ** Mentor/ Professional Support ** // Superintendent, Mike Bodine & Assistant Superintendent, Ofeila Grass // || ** Date of Completion ** // 5-1-14 // || ** Evaluations ** // Analysis of communication, media, and their overall effectiveness // ||
 * // Year Two //**
 * ** Goal **
 * ** Goal **

// Improve the quality of staff development for our district // || ** TExES Domain and Competency ** // Domain II, Competency 7 // || ** Objective ** // Perform a needs assessment on our district’s staff development program // || ** Course Work/Book/ Workshops ** // Leading and Creating Staff Development Workshop // || ** Mentor/ Professional Support ** // Assistant Superintendent, Ofeila Grass and Curriculum Director, Coleen Butterfield // || ** Date of Completion ** // 5-1-15 // || ** Evaluations ** // Increase in student engagement and test scores; increase in teacher effectiveness // || // Become a budget guru. // || ** TExES Domain and Competency ** // Domain III, Competency 8 // || ** Objective ** // Increase my knowledge on all aspects of the budget (law requirements, historical background, planning, creating, audits, etc.) // || ** Course Work/Book/ Workshops ** // Budget planning workshops; Possibly another school finance course // || ** Mentor/ Professional Support ** // Assistant Superintendent, Ron Smith // || ** Date of Completion ** // 5-1-15 // || ** Evaluations ** // Informally through my ability to intelligently discuss the budget and through my own interactions with all budget processes // ||
 * // Year Three //**
 * ** Goal **
 * ** Goal **