Gen. Colin Powell on Leadership

“I realized then that you can’t be successful on your own; you need a supportive loved one and some spiritual guidance. I knew I was meant to play football, and if you know your purpose, and you’re patient, the ball will eventually bounce your way.”
– Chandler Harnish, Last Pick in the 2012 NFL Draft

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An amazing leader of our time, General Colin Powell, on leadership! How would you define great leadership? Powell says: TRUST

“Create conditions of trust in an organization. Leaders take organizations past what the science in management says is possible …”

“Lt. You’ll know you are a great leader if people follow you if only out of curiosity”

Take a few moments to watch this short video clip with powerful messages about leading, leadership and success:

Leading Innovative Change

“We must look for ways to be an active force in our lives.  We must take charge of our own destinies, design a life of substance, and truly begin to live our dreams.”
– Les Brown

Since taking the helm of a school district as the superintendent in 2010, I have made it a mission to “walk the walk” with regard to instructional and communication technologies. I’m humbled to have been nominated by a colleague as someone whose practices are worthy of recognition:

“We at EdSurge and Digital Promise are delighted to inform you that your colleagues have nominated you for consideration for the Walk the Walk Award for the first annual Digital Innovation in Learning Awards! The awards have been created by EdSurge and Digital Promise to spotlight great practices in education–and to share those practices with others. So thank you for all the great work you do!”

 As part of the application process, I produced a short video as required (password to watch  is DILA). In the video I show examples of how I use digital innovation in my daily practice of leadership to support our mission. In addition, colleagues of mine share comments about how I (WE) support the growth and progress of students and staff through digital innovation. To me the video is a great source of pride because it showcases how our community is impacted by digital innovation in support of the District motto: Engage, Inspire, Empower.

Over the years I have made it part of my personal and professional mission to Model the Way and Inspire a Shared Vision and Challenge the Process and Enable Others to Act and Encourage the Heart in support of innovation and progress!

Examples  of digital innovation impacted directly by my leadership  are shared through a video presentation made for the state superintendent’s association that details the initial journey in the first District I served as superintendent. In support of innovative digital leadership, I/we also support and/or use  Facebook, Twitter, my blog, use of Present.me, slideshare, Podomatic, AudioBoo, VoiceBo, and HaikuDeck. These also serve as examples of regularly integrated hands-on digital innovation and usage in “real life” in my practice of leadership as an elementary superintendent of schools.

In addition, I proudly share District implementation of digital innovation by classroom teachers – this is about which I am most proud – paying it forward and modeling that which I support and expect for all members of our learning community. The award nomination is secondary or tertiary and truly it is really for all of the teachers, administrators, students, and community members who carry the torch of educational success every day! I am but one of many (e plurbus unum) and my hope is for the spotlight to shine on everyone else and not on me!!

The long lasting impact our collective journey towards transformative communication, learning and teaching for the learners in DPS109 is also shown in professional development and those seeking us out. Some numbers that reveal the lasting impact in terms of communication reach: # of followers FB 881 DPS109 page, # of followers on @DPS109 541, District hashtag #Engage109, # of followers of @mikelubelfeld 1843, # of Subscribers to this Blog 134.

In addition, as we approach the start of school this August, we are proud of the planned transformation for all of our classrooms into 1:1 Transformative Learning Environments. This year all students in grades K-2 will receive an iPad and all students in grades 3-8 will receive a Chromebook just like we used to issue textbooks. methods for today’s learners.  Other long lasting impacts can be seen in the voluntary professional development in which our teachers have engaged this summer in anticipation of changed learning environments.  This summer we offered 17 two hour sessions. More than 110, or 38% of our (out of our 290) teachers have signed up to attend one of these voluntary “kick starter” 1:1 transformative learning environment sessions.

Our teachers are committed to the success of their own learning as well as the learning of our students. Another example, or “metric” of change impact is found in the number of teachers who already have signed up for a new (free) learning management system (LMS): 100 teachers or 34% of our teachers have already signed up for Edmodo – this is not required until school starts. Change happens when people are committed to the changes! I’m proud to share and report that our teachers are part of the solution, part of the progress, part of the change process and part of the solution! I am so proud to be part of this progressive and modern minded learning organization!

 My work encompasses the award for which I was nominated; I truly do walk the walk when it comes to digital innovation in learning! I support the notion that all children can learn and grow and they each deserve learning environments with high expectations and no limits.

Please share how you are leading innovative change, please share how you are participating in innovative change.

“Make no small plans for they have no power to stir the soul” – Niccolo Machiavelli

We started our planning in the Superintendent’s Task Force for Middle Level Education with the missive to DREAM BIG! Part of that dreaming (with the 140 member community engagement task force) led to the revolutionary changes to this years middle school exploratory programming! We are constructing STEM and Communication Media Arts labs in learning spaces previously used for computer applications and family/consumer sciences. We are changing what we do for our students. We are changing how we do what we do for our students. We lead each of these changes with professional development/training, and cost/appropriations in concert with current and former planning from the school district.

DPS109 is under new management and leadership and we continue to aim to stir the collective souls of all stakeholders. Thanks to our visionary and courageous Board of Education we are able to engage, inspire, and empower our internal and external stakeholders!

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Throughout the summer we have been involved in numerous projects designed to improve the learning conditions, safety, atmosphere, and security of our seven facilities (District Center and the six schools). In this post, I am sharing some photos of work in progress across the district, some inside, some outside, some finished, some under construction! These photos complement our overall mission and my message that we are supporting these massive changes with strategies, tactics, budget, and plans to support and equip our teachers so that they can better engage and inspire learning so that we all – as a learning community – GROW.

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Each and every project this summer, from restrooms to roofs to air quality enhancement to parking lots to state-of-the art learning labs have one thing in common: SUPPORT of our mission: Engage, Inspire, Empower. Our aims 24/7, 100% of the time, are to support learning and teaching and growth for all in our learning community. A comparison I will draw to all of this labor and construction is one that we consider in the selection and development of staff. Part of the work we do around staff selection involves a heavy reliance on research, training, practice, support, and fidelity to the structures of the selection process. Our principals, assistant principals, and other administrative leaders place a premium in terms of value of time and effort in the processes surrounding selection of staff.

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All of this labor around the district is also part of a system of research, training, practice, support, and fidelity to the structures of the construction process. Our Buildings & Grounds department, contractors, workers, and everyone involved in the projects place a premium in terms of value of time and effort in the processes surrounding the construction of learning environments reflective of our mission, vision, values, and goals. I’ve written a number of articles about leadership and change. Much of the construction work depicted here and in other posts also relates to our leadership and changes.

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With the new labs and facilities, we are taking the opportunity to support and equip our teachers and staff with the latest, greatest, and learning-focused teaching and learning spaces. This year with the 1:1 Transformative Learning Environment and planned deployment of thousands of devices in the works, our infrastructure has been equipped since last year and continuing this summer so that we can support the implementation and integration of technology in to the regular instructional programming. With the release of numerous research studies around the globe about what works, we are supporting and equipping our educators with the knowledge and training in support of their experimentation and exploration of what works in learning.

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With a reliance on data and assessment, we have more explicit awareness of our students’ learning needs, learning successes, and learning challenges. We believe all children can learn and we believe that all teachers can create learning environments that best support HIGH expectations and personalized learning. With our construction, professional development, and curriculum resource support, we are literally putting our money where our mouth is in terms of allocating resources and materials in support of our teachers and students and community.

We live and work in a community where the average, typical student arrives at school in the 60-7th percentile as reported by national comparisons to other students around the USA who take the MAP – Measures of Academic Progress assessments in reading and math.

With our unique challenges, we face a dream scenario many would say around the world. Our average class size is below 24, our low income percentages are below 2, we have no excuses based upon the current world of comparisons of public school student achievement and public school success. We have dream schools with dream students and dream teachers and a dream community.

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My dream is that we actualize this greatness in terms of updated instructional practices that lead to higher achievement and social -emotional metrics for each and every one of our students. We have an integrated and extensive professional development model, thanks to the shared leadership of our teams and of our assistant superintendent for teaching & learning Jeff Zoul. We have opportunities that support each and every initiative and plan under our sun.

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As we come closer to the opening of school, as we prepare for our second year with our Big 5, with massive construction, maintenance, security, and change, I have to pinch myself as this is truly a DREAM scenario! We have acquired digital resources for all students and teachers grades K-8 in support of the Common Core State Standards. We have put into place supplemental curricular resources in social studies and science. We have been training our staff on differentiated instruction, literacy support and development, and digital implementation strategies.

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What are you doing this summer to prepare for the start of school?

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How do you feel about the opportunities we have in store for this upcoming school year?

Leadership and Changes

“One half of knowing what you want is knowing what you must give up before you get it.”
– Sidney Howard

Last year in our District was all about CHANGE – new leadership, new philosophies, new relationships, new plans, new mandates, new opportunities, new growth! We found each other and together in collaboration we embarked on a new journey to Engage, Inspire, and Empower each and every student, staff member and the community as a whole in support of the District’s mission and vision.

The major findings - distilling from millions of studies on what works.
The major findings – distilling from millions of studies on what works.

This year is all about SUPPORT – supportive new leadership, support of the new philosophies, supportive new relationships, support for the BIG 5, support for new opportunities and support for new growth!

As we prepare for the 2014-2015 school year, starting next month, we reflect on the beginnings from last year as well as the impact of our work and of our plans. In addition, we acknowledge that the research findings about what works in education and what impacts student learning are ground breaking and revolutionary.

This year we are focusing on A LOT … science, technology, engineering, mathematics, social emotional learning, fine arts, literacy, enrichment, RtI (Response To Intervention), special education, facilities management, 1:1, energy, sustained professional development, fiscal management … just to highlight.

Change and the concepts of the change process are present in a lot of leadership research and literature. Change and the process of leading change is part of Leadership … one of the many sources of inspirational leadership for me personally and professionally can be found in Washington, D.C.

From the many inspirational and powerful monuments, to the many tributes and quotes from those who made sacrifices so that we could be free today, I am inspired and energized by the messages and the lessons. My aim is to apply and implement changes on behalf of students, staff, and community!

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One such personal hero of mine is our nation’s 16 president, Abraham Lincoln. At the Lincoln Memorial in D.C. there is a statement (shown to the left in the image) about how Lincoln saved the union. Lincoln used leadership and implemented major changes in the country that still resonate today and that still guide all of us in modern society.

The changes that we implement in our public schools might not be as dramatic as the changes to our society that Lincoln and his contemporaries put forth, but some core messages still ring true in our local public schools. Like Lincoln, whose leadership impacted and caused ALL people in our nation to be free and treated with dignity (though there are still elements of unfairness and racism against which he fought and we must continue to fight), our changes are in support of ALL learners who deserve to have high expectations and rigorous and relevant learning experiences.

While some might consider it too bold and a bit much to compare Lincoln’s greatness to the humble day-to-day work in our nation’s public schools …  I would beg the question about fundamental rights and honor, dignity, and respect that our nation’s children deserve today. From Lincoln we learn much about decision making, valuing human rights, and of course, CHANGE and the change process. From Lincoln we learn how to have the courage to fight the right fights on behalf of what is right!
The Washington Monument from the WW II MemorialAnother symbol from D.C. that resonates with me and relates to CHANGE and the processes and challenges that we public educators face each day can be found in the Washington Monument, (depicted at the right from the view of the World War Two memorial).

Like Lincoln, George Washington, father of our nation, was part of leadership and change of a magnitude never seen before, and often emulated and imitated around the world. Washington presided over our nation’s founding as well as the unprecedented declarations of liberty, freedom, governance and rights not seen in the world in his time.

Perhaps the revolutionary changes we need and we see in education today are as powerful and innovative of the great leadership and risk and CHANGE from Washington and his contemporaries. While we in public education are not necessarily founding new nations or “dissolving the political bands which have connected us with another” (reference from the Declaration of Independence), we are at a revolutionary and innovative time in our world and in our implementation of education.

The changes we are implementing this year in DPS109 are revolutionary! The changes we are implementing on behalf of children – so that we may Engage, Inspire, and Empower – are necessary and proper and it is incumbent upon us all to support the student, staff, and community learning as we CHANGE and make changes to how we practice the craft of leadership and education!

I welcome your thoughts, reflections, challenges, and comments in general!

 

 

 

Philosophy and Background … What is YOUR purpose/aim/philosophy?

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As part of my summer blogging – professional reflections – professional re-calibration and re-focus … I share this blog to reaffirm who I am (educationally speaking), what my aim is (macro/big picture) and what my philosophy is (foundation).

My aim is to support educational leaders so they can support teachers who, in turn, can support student learning, growth, and development.

What is your “aim” professionally?

 

The Mandarin Chinese symbol "listen" - the heart, ears, eyes ... together - Listen.
The Mandarin Chinese symbol “listen” – the heart, ears, eyes … together – Listen.

Educationally speaking, I have four degrees, three licenses, post-doctoral certification (ISAL Fellow): I earned my Ed.D. in Curriculum & Instruction from Loyola University Chicago in 2005; I earned my Ed.S. in Administration and Supervision from National-Louis University in 2009. I also earned a Master of Arts in Teaching from National Louis University in 1993 as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 1991.

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Earning all of these degrees and credentials does not necessarily indicate that I’m smart … it means I really like school, I truly embody life-long learning, and the “system” works for me. It also demonstrates through achievement that I hold very high expectations for success for myself and my aim is to transfer that desire for high expectations to all with whom I encounter.

Professionally speaking,  I’ve been a public school educator for more than 20 years, I have served as an assistant superintendent, a middle school associate principal, a principal, and a middle school teacher, teaching social studies, reading, and civics. Earning my doctorate in education in curriculum and instruction allowed me to test theories of learning in action.  In addition, I have proudly served as a Lion’s Club member and I proudly serve as a Rotarian.

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 Currently I proudly serve as the superintendent of schools for the Deerfield Public School District 109 in Deerfield, Illinois.

My Educational Philosophy: (as I have shared briefly in past posts)

Education is the most fundamental prerequisite for competitiveness. In addition to preparing our young citizens for the competition in the job market and post-secondary education, teachers and administrators must be deeply committed to helping young people learn to open their minds to new cultures and philosophies. I became a teacher to share my knowledge and experiences with our young citizens to prepare them for their futures. I became an administrator to more broadly impact public education and the opportunities for young people through sound management and inspirational leadership of teachers and educational support personnel in a school and school system. From my earliest entry in to this profession, I have believed in returning some of my personal benefits to help support and promote the common weal.

Our society is complex enough to present many challenges to people as they pass from childhood to adulthood. It is my firm belief that a strong foundation in educational preparation will support a person’s quest for success and prosperity. My philosophical foundation holds that young people are our windows to the future; working with them has given me a unique vantage point to assess their goals, needs and abilities. I have been, and I remain committed to preparing our young citizens, and those who teach and support them, for their futures – and ours.

In addition, I have become an expert in “cybergogy”, the pedagogy of online instruction. With more than 9 years of blended online/on ground higher education instructional experience, I find myself committed to new formats for education and instruction, and teaching in general, for all students. I am invested in supporting learning in as many formats and media available and possible as a 21st Century leader.

So I ask … as you reflect this summer – Who are you?

What is your philosophy?

Why do you lead?

I would love your feedback and comments!