Campus Budget Plan Proposal

Week 1 - Discussion 1
Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Reference the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

The following quote by Sorenson and Goldman (2013) reveals the components of a functional school culture (collegial spirit, shared values, beliefs, and traditions) and the best way (through enthusiasm, energy, and motivation) to have a school where all students succeed as learners: “The integrated budget model requires a school culture receptive to collaboration. Schools, which possess a collegial spirit, shared values, beliefs, and traditions are more apt to spawn the required collaborative environment that in turn increases enthusiasm, energy, and motivation.”
To prepare for this discussion you will read the “Culture, Data, and Celebrating Success” section of Chapter 3 of the required text by Sorenson and Goldman (2013), the Healthfield (2011, 2010) articles, and the Schein (1993) article. These authors discuss how to understand and change school culture. When you understand the culture of your school, you can make sure that it is sufficient to successfully provide optimum learning for all the subgroups of students in the school.
Initial Post - In your initial response construct at least one succinct yet descriptive paragraph for each point listed below.

Discuss what school culture is and identify what the typical components of a functional school culture are using Sorenson and Goldman (2013, pp. 60-63) and the Healthfield (2010) article as resources to support your discussion. 

According to an article on the Education World website, school culture is the set of norms, values and beliefs, rituals and ceremonies, symbols and stories that make up the 'persona' of the school (Education World, 2017). I also liked the thoughts given in our text by Wilkins and Patterson (1985) - culture consists of the conclusions a group of people draws from its experience (as cited in Sorenson and Goldman, 2013). Our text lists the components of a functional school culture as values, beliefs, and attitudes. All of us have a set of values that we live by, they are standards that guide us and in this case by which a school governs. Beliefs are things that we believe to be true. How many times have we heard that our attitude determines our actions? For our attitude is how we think or feel about a person or thing.

Describe strategies that can be used to facilitate a school meeting the components of a functional school culture.

There are several strategies that come to mind:

1. The principle and leadership team speaks about and demonstrates the values, beliefs and positive attitude that they want to see in the staff and students.

2. The principle can have regular staff meetings where he/she highlights the successes of the team and/or a class.

3. The principle maintains an open door policy and creates an environment where staff feel comfortable sharing issues/ concerns. As the principle works through the problem in a positive way, trust and respect are built. Hopefully, this will result in the staff demonstrating similar behavior.

Explain how knowing what the components are of the school culture can inform your ability to detect the makeup of a school culture and select strategies for implementing a functional school culture.

Knowing the components of a school’s culture will allow a person to make judgments based on observations of the principle, staff and to a degree, the students. A person should be able to tell rather immediately if the leader has a positive disposition. It will also show in how the staff relates to one another.

References

Education World. (2017). Is Your School’s Culture Toxic or Positive? Retrieved from http://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin/admin275.shtml.

Sorenson, R. D., & Goldsmith, L. M. (2013). The principal’s guide to school budgeting (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin

Week 1 - Discussion 2
Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Reference the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

Functionality refers to whether the culture of an organization aids in meeting the mission of the organization as well as serves in promoting an environment of respect between members of the organization and in accomplishing successful learning for all subgroups of the students.
Initial Post - Determine the functionality of your school by holding an informal discussion with at least three employees, preferably a school leader, a teacher, and a para-educator. Discussions can be conducted through face-to-face, email correspondence, or telephone conversation. If you are not currently employed in a school setting but you know people who are, you may use them as contacts. Use the questions below to determine the functionality of your school. Be sure to include the positions and first names only of the person with whom you had your conversation with.

What would you tell a friend about your school if he or she was about to start working there?

Emily, Asst. Principle: It’s a good school and a great place to work

Janice, 3rd Grade Teacher: It can be challenging, but it is a good school and you’ll love the kids (most days)

Dennis, 5th Grade Teacher: If you follow the rules and meet the objectives, you’ll do well

What is the one thing you would most like to change about this school?

Emily, Asst. Principle: We have a 43% poverty ratio, 7% short of qualifying to be a Title 1 school. Although more resources come with the Title 1 designation, I would like to see the families that fall in the 43% to get out of poverty and be able to provide a better life for their children.

Janice, 3rd Grade Teacher: I can’t think of anything that I would change.

Dennis, 5th Grade Teacher: We have great programs, good parental involvement and a supportive principle; there is nothing that I would change.

How are decisions made at this school?

Emily, Asst. Principle: It depends, some are made by the principle; some she asks for input from the leadership team and/or survey’s the teachers.

Janice, 3rd Grade Teacher: The principle mostly, but sometimes she asks for our input.

Dennis, 5th Grade Teacher: Mainly the principle and her staff make the decisions. She has asked for the teachers/staffs preferences on certain things.

What is your favorite characteristic that is present in your school?

Emily, Asst. Principle: Collaboration among leadership and the staff

Janice, 3rd Grade Teacher: Family environment and fun

Dennis, 5th Grade Teacher: Teamwork

What does it take for the adult professional to be successful in your school?

Emily, Asst. Principle: Believe in the mission and do your job with passion and positivity

Janice, 3rd Grade Teacher: Knowing what is expected and having a thorough plan to achieve the objectives

Dennis, 5th Grade Teacher: I don’t know, doing my job well and being a team player

What is your favorite question to ask a candidate for a leadership position in your school?

Emily, Asst. Principle: Tell me about a day where nothing went the way you planned? How did you react? How did you solve the issues?

Janice, 3rd Grade Teacher: How will you inspire and motivate your staff?

Dennis, 5th Grade Teacher: What experience do you have that would help you in this position?

Based on the results of your discussions, identify and share in detail how functional your school is. The traits you identify as needing to be changed will be considered the dysfunctional traits.

I spoke with people who work at my daughter’s school. Based on their comments and what I have observed at the school, I could not identify any dysfunctional traits. The school seems to be quite functional. Everyone genuinely appeared to be happy with the school and the way that it operates.

Week 2 - Discussion 1

Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Reference the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

In the Overview section of Hurwitz (1996) you are introduced to various school leaders who have developed strategies to create safe schools and functional school cultures. Consider this quote from Hurwitz (1996):

Administrators work with all school personnel to create a climate of school ownership and pride. Students, parents, staff members, and members of cooperating community agencies are made to feel that they are important parts of the school community. This feeling of inclusion is accomplished by their involvement in the development and implementation of the safe-school plan (p.1).

For this discussion, review the strategies in Hurwitz (1996) to determine which ones you would use if you were a leader at a school needing to make changes.
Initial Post - Listen to at least three administrators’ audio tracks from Hurwitz (1996) before you respond to the following questions. 

The three administrators I listened to were:

1. Maxine Womble

How do leaders manage school change and improvement?

I think leaders manage school change by strengthening their school’s leadership, leading from the front; by putting more emphasis on classroom management; and creating programs designed to increase student engagement.

What are the goals of school leaders? 

The main goal of school leadership should be to create a positive culture and learning environment where students and staff feel safe and supported. Another goal would be to involve all of the stakeholders (administrators, teachers, parents, law makers, business owners & the local community at large) to actively participate in problem solving issues in the community. This will allow students to focus on learning instead of what is happening outside of the school.

What are their action options?

Finding positive role models

Finding and alternative activities for students that keep them out of the streets

Engaging parents using various means of communication

Finding the resources, programs, and solutions that work for their school. All schools are unique, therefore the fixes should be as well.

What are the likely implementation pitfalls?

Only addressing part of a problem instead looking at the situation as a whole.

Not getting the buy-in from administrators, teachers, students, and parents.

Not taking the time to assess the needs before moving to action.

What are some ways to mitigate the pitfalls?

Leaders should take time to listen to their administrators, teachers, students, and parents.

Take time to fully assess and understand the challenges.

Partner with experts and stakeholders to develop a comprehensive plan that covers all of the issues.

Choose the audio track that resonated with you the most and discuss why you chose this track.

Picking one audio track that resonated with me the most was difficult because they were all powerful statements. The one that I am choosing to highlight is Barbara Clayton, coordinator of the Peer Intervention Program in Chicago, IL (Hurwitz, 1996). The reason her statement sang to me is because I’ve tried applying techniques and strategies to situations/problems that I’ve seen work for other people and/or organizations, but didn’t work for me. I would get frustrated and think that I was doing something wrong. It took many attempts and conversations with my mentor to realize that I was using the wrong approach. There is not a one stop shop for solving problems. Implementing new strategies won’t work if they do not meet the unique needs of my situation(s). I had to do as Ms. Clayton suggested and assess my situation to make sure I was getting to the root of the problem. I had to listen to people around me to hear what they were saying, more importantly, what they weren’t saying. With those actions done, I did some research to find strategies that could fit my situation. I also engaged a consultant to help me with messaging, addressing the team, implementing the strategies and support for myself and staff.

References

Hurwitz, E. (1996). Critical issues: Developing and maintaining safe schools. Retrieved from 
http://web.archive.org/web/20150901181309/http:/www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/envrnmnt/drugfree/sa200.htm.

Compile the findings of all three administrators to into a single response to all of the questions. Please include which administrators you listened to and are discussing.

#1

Maxine Womble

Maxine Womble, director of the Midwest Regional Center for Drug-Free Schools and Communities, discusses the need for a wide range of prevention activities and the importance of good role models in the lives of children. Excerpted from the video series Schools That Work: The Research Advantage, videoconference #6, Preparing Students for Drug-Free Lifestyles (North Central Regional Educational Laboratory, 1992).

"Prevention should look at the whole child. For a child to grow up healthy and in a drug free environment would require a positive role models and alternative activities that encourage academic, personal and social success. Prevention is a proactive, ongoing process rooted in real life activities and nurtured by community support to help our children grow up drug free."

This Critical Issue was researched and written by Emanuel Hurwitz, Ph.D, Associate Professor of Education, University of Illinois at Chicago; Julius Menacker, Ed.D, Professor of Education, University of Illinois at Chicago; and Ward Weldon, Ph.D, Associate Professor of Education, University of Illinois at Chicago. Additional comments were provided by Carol Sullivan, a Minneapolis-based violence prevention consultant.

Date posted: 1996

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#2

Barbara Clayton, coordinator of the Peer Intervention Program in Chicago, describes why the assessment of problems at individuals schools is a highly important part of any prevention program. Excerpted from the video series Pathways to Prevention, videotape #3, Lessons Learned (Chicago Public Schools and the Midwest Regional Center for Drug-Free Schools and Communities, 1994).

"I think to many, importance to take time to take a needs assessment, because one thing works one place does not mean that it's going to be applicable at another place, and our schools really demonstrate that. What we did for students three years might not be applicable now. So, we're really looking to quite a bit of evaluation."

This Critical Issue was researched and written by Emanuel Hurwitz, Ph.D, Associate Professor of Education, University of Illinois at Chicago; Julius Menacker, Ed.D, Professor of Education, University of Illinois at Chicago; and Ward Weldon, Ph.D, Associate Professor of Education, University of Illinois at Chicago. Additional comments were provided by Carol Sullivan, a Minneapolis-based violence prevention consultant.

Date posted: 1996

#3

Cheryl Hollis, a family room liaison for the Omaha Public Schools in Omaha, Nebraska, describes how the schools in her community attempt to involve parents in their prevention programs. Excerpted from the video series Schools That Work: The Research Advantage, videoconference #6, Preparing Students for Drug-Free Lifestyles (North Central Regional Educational Laboratory, 1992).

"We get them involved by calling them on the telephone, giving them good news about their children instead of a negative answer in response to what the children are doing. They like to hear something positive every once in a while. They get frantic when a school authority will call, but when I call them, I give them good news. That's a good way to meet the parents on a positive level. We send out fliers, we hold in-services that the parents request information in, we get in contact with them in seminars, anything, the family rooms are there to get the parent more actively involved in their children's education as a whole." 

This Critical Issue was researched and written by Emanuel Hurwitz, Ph.D, Associate Professor of Education, University of Illinois at Chicago; Julius Menacker, Ed.D, Professor of Education, University of Illinois at Chicago; and Ward Weldon, Ph.D, Associate Professor of Education, University of Illinois at Chicago. Additional comments were provided by Carol Sullivan, a Minneapolis-based violence prevention consultant.

Date posted: 1996

Week 2 - Discussion 2
Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Reference the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

Many surveys confirm the following quote by Hurwitz (1996): 

Crime, violence, and disorder in schools have become major national issues, as reported in various national surveys of school order and safety. These problems not only endanger students and teachers, but they also prevent teachers from concentrating on teaching and students from concentrating on learning. (p.1)

School crime, violence, and disorder are on the rise and school leaders are faced with developing school safety plans. As a result, it is necessary for school leaders to assess whether their schools are safe and functional. Learning is less successful if students and teachers are feeling unsafe. The US Department of Education notes that, “…too many students experience or are exposed to violence,” (USDOE, n.d.). Taking on the role of building administrator, consider the contributing factors of school safety as you prepare your response to the discussion. 
Initial Post - Select a context below for your response and address the prompts as directed. If you are not currently in a school setting, select a school that you have access to information dealing with the state of its safety. Access the school district’s website or call their school’s public relations department for information. Schools generally share their safety guidelines through community communications. Support your initial post with information presented in Hurwitz (1996) article and on the USDOE website. 
If you are currently in a safe school and functional school setting, 

Explain what characterizes a safe school. 

Safe schools are crime and violence free and are a safe place for staff and students alike (U.S. Department of Education, n.d.). Safe schools not only have security procedures and provide an environment that is healthy and encourages learning; they also help students develop skills that allow them to thrive in all circumstances. Some characteristics of a safe school are:

• Programs that encourage healthy behaviors and help students learn about fitness, nutrition, and healthy choices.

• A school that communicates caring and minimizes fears that might interfere with learning.

• A safe school’s climate includes a safe and clean school facility, caring/committed teachers, and respectful relationships among staff as well as students.

(California Department of Education, n.d.)

Explain the factors contributing to a safe school. 

In order for leaders to take steps in ensuring they have safe schools, they must first understand the safety concerns of their staff and students. In order for progress to be made, I think there has to be an acknowledgement that there is a threat to safety or the potential threat to safety. Schools, communities, law enforcement, students, parents, teachers’ administrators working together to prevent and/or deter violence and a negative environment are all contributing factors to a safe school (Hurwitz, 1996).

Describe the history of safety at this school.

My daughter’s school has had a history of being safe. There have been no recorded acts of violence at the school. As a result of the school shootings several years ago, they installed a system by which all of the outside doors remained locked. In order to gain access to the school, you must announce yourself and be seen through the camera in the office. Once verified, you will be buzzed into the building and must go to the office. The school also has regular safety drills in case they encounter an active shooter or some other threat. In case something happened in the community, the school will be locked down.

Explain what characterizes a functional school culture.

In an article written by James Noonan, 2004, he lists seven characteristics of a functional school.

(Role) Models – adults in the school that present themselves in a way that is positive and successful.

Consistency – maintaining constant and clear messaging in the school, classroom, and with parents

Depth – the beliefs of the school must be known and felt beyond the mission statement. They must be reiterated constantly in order for them to become a part of the school’s culture.

Democracy – the principal must sometimes share decision making power with other administrators and teachers, to a degree. When others feel that they have a voice and the voice is heard, they tend to have positive feelings that in turn will reflect positively on the school’s culture.

Community – school leadership must realize that in order to be successful, they must go beyond their doors and engage and encourage community members, parents, and college students to volunteer at the school and in classrooms.

Engagement – encourage students to become active participants in the learning process.

Leadership – so goes the leader, so goes the school – leaders play a critical role in the success of their schools. They must engage their staff, families, community members, and students in creating and maintaining a positive school climate.

Describe the strategies you would select to prepare leaders in this setting to sustain their safe school and functional school culture.

• I would require leaders to attend trainings and briefings in order to stay up-to-date on current issues and trends as it relates to school safety.

• I would ask that leadership have regular meetings with law enforcement, community leader, and other key stakeholders in the community in order to know if there are any new concerns or threats.

• I would have leadership hold regular school meetings in order to provide training and address any concerns of staff.

References

California Department of Education. (n.d.). A safe and healthy school environment. Retrieved from http://pubs.cde.ca.gov/tcsii/ch8/safehlthyenviron.aspx.

Hurwitz, E. (1996). Critical issues: Developing and maintaining safe schools. Retrieved from 
http://web.archive.org/web/20150901181309/http:/www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/envrnmnt/drugfree/sa200.htm.

Noonan, J. (2004). School climate and the safe school: Seven contributing factors. Educational Horizons , 83 (1), 61-65. Retrieved from http://scholar.harvard.edu/jmnoonan/publications/school-climate-and-safe-school-seven-contributing-factors.

U.S. Department of Education (n.d.). Working to keep schools and communities safe. Retrieved from http://www.ed.gov/school-safety.

Week 3 - Discussion 1
Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Reference the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

Remember, when creating or developing a school budget plan, the inclusion of school stakeholders is needed so the plan is reflective of all members of the school community as well as involving a process of shared decision making. The question becomes who to include and why to include them in the process of creating or modifying a school budget plan. The school administrator in charge of leading the budget planning process is the person answering this question. Assume the role of the school administrator for this discussion as you address the four areas below. 
Initial Post - Read Chapter 4 of our text to inform your initial effort in developing the Campus Budget Plan Proposal. In your initial post:

Describe the stakeholders who need to be considered in a campus budget plan proposal. Provide a substantial argument for why you would include or exclude key people from your stakeholders’ list.

In every capacity that I’ve worked, I’ve always had a role in budget development. There are always stakeholders to include when making budget considerations. It is no different when creating a campus budget plan. As our text states, every stakeholder is important to the valuable to the collaborative planning process, for each stakeholder brings a unique perspective to the planning process. I would include teachers, staff members, other professionals, administrators, community members when planning the budget. I would exclude parents and students from the budget planning process. I believe that that the first group would offer more insight to specific programs and classroom needs than the excluded group. I also believe that most, if not all in the first group may be able positioned to understand policy and guidelines as it relates to the budget. While I would consider the wants of the excluded group, I believe they would be more emotional about the budget and wouldn’t understand why certain decisions would need to be made.

(Sorenson & Goldsmith, 2013)

Evaluate the special interests each of the stakeholders might express.

Teachers: are hands-on with the students and can tell first-hand what types of programs and/or resources that could benefits the students and make teaching easier

Staff members: will want to add advocate for things that will benefit them, not necessarily something that is needed.

Other professionals: this category could include the superintendent or budget committee members. The superintendent will be aiming to make sure that his/her interests are being represented in the budget.

Administrators: the administrators’ should support the principal’s vision and plan for the school budget They would be good advisors’ and could challenge the principal’s thinking to ensure a sound plan is being submitted.

Community members: may be interested in the school budget in as far as part of their tax dollars support local schools. They may want to know how their dollars are being spent.

Evaluate how the lead administrator in the budget process might communicate and collaborate with the stakeholders.

As the principle, I would find out the superintendent’s expectations for my budget and incorporate them into my plan. I would meet with the teachers and staff to find out their thoughts and get a draft of the initiatives they want to support that have budget implications. I would draft a proposal that I would present to my leadership team. I would want to get their thoughts, ideas, and buy-in to the budget plan. Once I had a cohesive budget proposal, I would submit it to our budget planning committee made up of our key stakeholders for debate and revision. After reviewing their recommendations, I would their revisions and ng the draft and considering all recommendations and I would then invite stakeholders to a public meeting so they could hear the budget proposal and ask questions.

Explain what is needed to ensure that shared decision making is used to finalize the budget plan.

As previously mentioned, I would seek the input and budget review from my staff and a budget committee to ensure that shared decision making was used. While preparing the budget may be a collaborative effort, the stakeholders must know and accept that school and/or district priorities can change, thus the budget may have to be amended.

References

Sorenson, R. D., & Goldsmith, L. M. (2013). The principal’s guide to school budgeting (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin. 

Week 3 - Discussion 2
Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Reference the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

In the first discussion for this week, you identified stakeholders to be included in the creation of your budget plan. The next step is to consider the way to align fiscal, human, and material resources. Sorenson and Goldsmith (2013) state that “current funding systems need to link the availability of school funding with the educational needs and academic achievement of students” (p. 112). Thus, it is imperative that budget plans align fiscal, human, and material resources.
Initial Post - Read the Gary Marx (2002) article to determine the trends that will drive fiscal, human, and material resource budgeting during the 21st century and Chapters 5 and 6 of the Sorenson and Goldman (2013) text to form your response. In your initial post:

Evaluate effective and efficient budgeting practices. 

Our text gives three tips to successful budgeting: visionary manifestation, constancy in planning, and an interminable linkage to school goals and objectives. Following these practices will help the leader to be efficient and effective. We are also given the advice of using what we are budgeted wisely. With that, the authors offer a top 10 school budgeting priority list that will further assist us in being effective and efficient.

1. Utilize a Budget Calendar

2. Identify Budgetary Allocations and Restricted Funds

3. Project Incoming and Exiting Student Populations

4. Project Faculty and Staff Increases and Reductions

5. Conduct a Needs Assessment

6. Receive Input from All Stakeholders

7. Project and Prioritize Expenditures

8. Build the Budget

9. Defend the School Budget

10. Amend and Adjust the School Budget

(Sorenson and Goldman, 2013)

Describe the expenditures that are necessary to ensure that learning improves for all subgroups of students. 

In this day and age, I would recommend expenditures that will enhance learning such as science, engineering, technology and math. Tied to this, I would recommend sponsoring a school garden. It would combine some of the aforementioned subjects with environmental stewardship and community/social development. Expenditures in these categories could greatly enhance the educational experience for students’ in all subgroups and spark thought toward a potential career path. I would also add professional development for leadership and teachers. Having these groups trained and equipped with the most up-to-date strategies and techniques for running schools and teaching students, will benefit all subgroups. These expenditures should be carefully considered when budgeting planning.

Evaluate components of the budgetary process that are factors in making learning of all subgroups of students a priority.

Our text indicates that the best way to ensure that subgroups are a priority is to create the school’s academic/improvement plan at the same time as the budget planning. This should be done to help identify the costs necessary to support the academic plan and instructional program. Planning in this way supports the principal’s main goal of planning for the needs of the students as opposed to letting the available funds determine the which instructional programs are implemented (as cited in Sorenson and Goldman, 2013).

References

Sorenson, R. D., & Goldsmith, L. M. (2013). The principal’s guide to school budgeting, (2nd edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Week 4 - Discussion 1
Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Reference the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

Daresh and Daresh (2013) state that “due to a decline in economic conditions, the job market has increasingly turned to favor the ‘buyers,’ or employing organizations, in many fields, including education” (p. 1). However, recruiting and hiring new staff will always be necessary because of employee turn-around and because the recruitment and hiring process is competitive. Hiring the right people is a critical step toward making the required changes and improvements to a school. From conducting the search to planning and carrying out interviews, all stakeholders’ values and beliefs represented in your school’s vision must be included during each phase of the hiring process. 
Initial Post - Reading Chapters 2 through 6 of Daresh and Daresh (2013) will support you as you assume the role of the principal during the recruitment and selection of new school staff. In your initial response:

Assume your values and beliefs also include those of the various stakeholders of your school and, describe the values and beliefs that would impact your decision of who to hire to join your school staff.

I believe that in order to have a successful team, we need to have shared values and beliefs that govern our actions and how we relate to one another at the school. There are many values that I can list, but I think the most important fall in the buckets below.

Character

• Ethical integrity and a fundamental spirituality,

• An emphasis on seeking solutions, not casting blame,

• An honest communicator and one that can be open when there are differences of opinion.

Competence

• Creative, Decisive,

• Takes initiative for self-growth,

• Leadership skills with the attitude of a team player, willingness to share information,

• Someone who is disciplined, who continues to learn and consistently applies the best methods to achieve goals.

Commitment

• Commitment to one's teaching group, the students and the school,

• Someone who takes responsibility and feels personally empowered,

• Encourages students to grow and empowering them to do so.

(Nies, 2006)

Explain all the ways to which a search for a new staff member will be conducted. 

To search for a new staff member, I would first look at internal possibilities – is there a substitute teacher that has been doing well and would be a good fit as permanent staff. The job would be posted on the district’s website, I would ask for referrals, post the position on job boards, have a booth at local job fairs, and contact local colleges/universities (Daresh and Daresh, 2013).

Describe how you would carry out interviews and provide a list of up to 10 questions you would ask.

I would have an interview panel made up of various stakeholders (administrators, teachers, parents) that would conduct the initial interviews. Candidates that pass the first interview will then have an interview with me (the principal), I will forward the finalists to the superintendent for interviewing, and he will make a final recommendation to the district school board.

Interview questions:

Why do you want to become a teacher?

List three of your strengths your strengths and explain each one.

Describe three of your weaknesses as a teacher.

In what ways do you encourage creativity in your classroom?

Tell us about a lesson in which you've used differentiated instruction.

How do you teach kids to utilize higher-order thinking skills in your classroom?

What do you do to prepare your students for state or standardized tests?

Do you make learning fun for students?  How?

If I walked into your classroom on a typical afternoon, what would I see going on?

How do you measure student performance in your classroom?

What would you do if a student was complaining about an assignment you've given?

What would you do if a parent complained about an assignment?

Describe some methods of "positive reinforcement" that you might use in your classroom.

(100 Teacher, n.d.)

Explain what factors would help you determine who to select. These factors might include the kinds of responses you would expect from the interview questions, prior experience, demeanor of the candidate, and other traits you deem important.

• The factors that I would use to determine a candidate are:

• Qualifications

• Values/beliefs

• Responses to interview questions

• I would also factor in if I thought the candidate would be a good fit for our school.

References

Daresh, J. C. & Daresh, B. N. (2013). How to interview, hire, & retain high-quality new teachers. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.

Nies, T. (2006). Three Core Values Great Employees and Employers Must Have. Retrieved from http://www.crmbuyer.com/story/49623.html.

100 Teacher Interview Questions. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.teachinginterview.com/teacherinterviewquestions.html.

Week 4 - Discussion 2
Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Reference the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

Daresh and Daresh (2013) report that the success of school change and school improvement is closely connected to the work being done by dedicated and talented new teachers. Besides being a school change issue, recruiting and retaining new teachers is a budget issue as well as the cost of replacing teachers leaving the school district continues to spiral. Thus, it is important that the school district have an effective training and support program to initiate and support new hires.
Initial Post - Read Chapters 2 through 6 of Daresh and Daresh (2013). In your hypothetical role as school principal, you need to consider training the staff new to your school. In your initial post:

Describe a process to guide new teachers after being hired. What do they need to know and who can help?

To guide new teachers, I would:

• Hold a get to know you session/reception with the other teachers in the grade that includes a school tour

• Determine a schedule for induction program

• Assign the new teacher a mentor; someone who is a senior teacher with a good track record

• Have weekly meetings with the new teacher(s) to discuss how things are going, answer questions, and address concerns.

• Require the new teacher(s) to complete at least one professional development opportunity per school year.

(Daresh and Daresh, 2013)

Explain what the training must contain in order to prepare new teachers to be effective educators that support student learning.

The induction program will include:

• Establishing classroom management and discipline plans

• Creating lesson plans

• Working effectively with parents

• Addressing students with learning and physical challenges

• Effective ways to maintain wellness and a positive perspective for

• Preparing students standardized tests

• Beginning, middle and end-of-year procedures

(Daresh and Daresh, 2013)

Discuss how this training will impact the overall performance of new teachers in terms of ensuring the success of all students.

I believe that this training will help new teachers to feel comfortable and get acclimated to the school and procedures. Establishing good practices from the start will go a long way in helping them be successful in the classroom and their careers.

References

Daresh, J. C. & Daresh, B. N. (2013). How to interview, hire, & retain high-quality new teachers. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.

Week 5 - Discussion 1
Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Reference the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

In order to make informed decisions when it comes to forming a budget a principal needs to analyze data that is collected. The viewpoints of stakeholders’ should be included to ensure the plan is reflective of the demographics of the school and support the school vision. The data needed to complete the budget includes student achievement results, attendance data, dropout rate, failure rate, parent, teacher, and student surveys, retention rates, discipline data, staffing patterns, and any other information useful in measuring the school’s performance. This data is sorted, coded, and disseminated so that all stakeholders have this information and can help create the budget plan. We also collect data to ensure that the incorporation of standards based learning and student data is in concert with the mission and vision statement of the school. In the discussion this week, you will discuss why we collect data and how to use this data when we are involved in changing a school culture, supporting the success of all students, and making sure there are sufficient finances to cover the changes
Initial Post – Review data related material in Chapter 3 and 4 of the Sorenson and Goldsmith textbook, Earl and Katz (2006), and use “Principles and Indicators for Student Assessment Systems” (2007) to determine whether your organization utilizes the appropriate student achievement results to measure school success to help address the following three points:

Describe a situation in your past experience where data was necessary to implement change. If you have no past experience, you may construct a hypothetical one. 

In the not too recent past I conducted research regarding expanding the telecommuting program at my job from three to four days. The research came about because the company that I work for decided that they were only going to pay for parking for senior managers. Mind you, they had been paying for employee parking for 15+. The team in my office was looking at paying approximately $1300 a year to park. Needless to say, this presented a big problem for me and the rest of the staff. Not to mention that I have a fundamental issue with anyone paying in order work. The majority of us live in the suburbs; public transportation is not a viable option.

I conducted a telecommuting study where all of the employees worked from home four days a week. They were required to take a pre and post survey study, complete an observation journal, one-on-one interview, and have accountability meetings. The study lasted for six weeks.

Analyze how you could use data to increase the effects of this change; support your response with reference to the required reading material. 

I used the data to create a comprehensive report that I first verbally presented to my boss and then gave him the findings and proposal in writing. The data strengthened my case and allowed my boss to see the issue from a different perspective.

Principle 1: The Primary Purpose of Assessment is to Improve Student Learning

Although principle 1 from the Earl and Katz (2006) article applies to education, I believe that it can fit just about any situation. The primary purpose of assessment is to improve… Replace student learning with the focus of the assessment. In my case, it was morale and quality of life.

Analyze to what extent this change process was a success; support your response with reference to the required reading material. 

As a result of my study and subsequent data analysis, my proposal, after being tweaked several times, has been submitted to our Human Resources division for review and consideration.

Principle 2: Assessment for Other Purposes Supports Student Learning

(Earl and Katz, 2006)

I think the same thing I said about principle 1 can be said about principle 2. Replace student learning for what resulted as an outcome of the assessment. For me it was positive change and growth.

References

Earl, L. M., & Katz, S. (2006). Leading schools in a data-rich world: Harnessing data for school improvement. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.