Internship Plan Review



Dr. Joan Bowman, Asst. Supt of Instructional Services 

I met with Dr. Joan Bowman on September 21, 2011 at 8:30 a.m. in her office. We reviewed the Skill/Knowledge chart and then looked over my internship plan. Dr. Bowman was complimentary about the internship plan. She felt that it covered the competencies well.  She liked the activity that focused on conducting a capacity study, but felt it was too verbose. We reworded it to make it more to the point. She also liked the activities about Strategic Planning and conflict resolution. I thought I was going to end the conference without making any further changes. However, that was not the case. Dr. Bowman felt that a few of the items needed to be strengthened. 

The first activity that we changed was Activity 24d. Dr. Bowman did not feel that it was challenging enough. We changed it from creating and following a requisition to the following:

‘Submit the Memorandum of Understanding with JJAEP to the school board for approval.  Then complete the request for an open purchase order from the budgeted account. A copy of the Memorandum of Understanding, School Board recommendation, the purchase order and a brief description of the path it follows for approval is to be included in the notebook.”

The second activity that was changed was 22a. This activity had focused on interviewing the Director of Child Nutrition. Dr. Bowman changed this activity to read:

“Facilitate the district’s School Health Advisory Committee (SHAC) in the development of an updated FFA (Local) policy in regards to child nutrition and school wellness.”

Lastly, activity 15c was changed to be more comprehensive. It now reads:

Develop a Corrective Action Plan to address Homebound attendance accounting concerns during the 2088-2009 school year. A copy of the Corrective Action Plan submitted to TEA will be filed in the notebook.

We did not add any additional activities to the plan.  I was glad to have had an opportunity to sit down with Dr. Bowman and review the plan. I think the changes we made are positive and will add to my experience.

Internship Plan Revisions



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After reading the comments, I realized that many people liked the intern plan I had posted. The comments were very positive. One comment read” What I like about your internship plan is how organized it looked on your wiki.”   However, I looked a little deeper into the comments that were posted from the vita and the intern plan and felt that I had not gone far enough. After looking at someone’s comment about special populations I decided to change one activity from attending an ARD meeting to attending a 504 meeting. This population is often overlooked and I felt it was in my interest to see how this program is currently being implemented.

 The next revision I made was to include the review of three teacher screeners. I had originally planned on interviewing the Executive Director of Personnel but after looking at some comments decided a change was in order. Our district is currently investigating the use of Teacher screeners prior to interviewing candidates. I felt that it was important to include this in my intern plan.

The next change I made was to the activity regarding strategic planning. I changed it from participate in the process to lead the process. I serve as the internal coordinator of strategic planning within our school district. I thought it was important to denote this.

The last change that I made was to delete the interview with the Director of Maintenance. One of the comments that were made forced me to reflect on whether or not I was actually stepping out of my comfort zone. Upon reviewing my internship plan, I felt that I needed to push a little further in regards to facilities. Therefore I will conduct a capacity study of the district’s facilities in order to ascertain when we need to consider adding additional facilities. This is a process we completed approximately six years ago and it now needs to be revisited.

In order to allow my Site Supervisor the opportunity to view the internship plan, I emailed her a link to the wiki where she may view it and make comments prior to our meeting.  I thought about just emailing it to them, but thought if we have the technology why not use it. I followed up by phone with her to verify that she had received the invitation to my wiki and she confirmed she had. I also gave her a hard copy when I met with her later in the week.  My Internship Plan may be viewed at :  http://jrwebster.wikispaces.com/Internship+Plan

Welcome to Sheldon (2009)

Just a short video that we put together in our district. We use it for recruiting. It is a great thing to hand out on a CD alongside pertinent district information to potential candidates .

Superintendent Interview

Dr. Vickey M. Giles, Superintendent of Schools

Sheldon I. S.D.

As I reflect on my interview with our Superintendent, Dr. Vickey Giles, I am reminded of the importance of the superintendent position.  The impact that this position has on a school district is beyond measure. I have worked under seven different superintendents during my years in education. In the right hands a district can make amazing growth in student achievement. It can also develop long-lasting positive relationships with its stakeholders. As I spoke with our Superintendent a few themes came to the surface. The importance of communication and placing the right people in the right places were two of the greatest discussion points.

When asked about her definition of leadership she had no hesitation stating that a good leader places competent people in the right positions and lets them do their job.  She monitors their progress by being on the campuses and through our roundtable discussions.  This is our Superintendent’s fifth year in the position and she has always been very visible throughout the district.

As we continued our interview, we discussed both the positive and the difficult aspects of being a Superintendent. Dr. Giles smiled as she talked about the positive impact on student learning that she can have in her position. Her commitment to increased student achievement is easily identified anytime one talks with her. Dr. Giles also is well aware that being a Superintendent does not come without challenges. She discussed with me that dealing with the little things can keep you from focusing on what is important if you let it.  It is a challenge for the Superintendent to stay focused if they are not “out in the field” monitoring what is happening. During this discussion, I was reminded of a recent conversation in which she reminded us that Central Office’s role is to serve the campuses. We are to be servant leaders just as we expect our principals to practice servant leadership on the campus.

The next question focused on the attributes of a good superintendent. As we sat at her conference table she shared her experience. Dr. Giles stressed the importance of the superintendent being a good communicator. A good superintendent has a vision of where the district can go and is able to communicate why it should go there. A strong work ethic is also paramount to the success of a superintendent. The hours are long and the reward is not always immediate. The last thing that Dr. Giles shared with me was not expected. She said a good superintendent needs to be able to laugh. With everything that happens on a daily basis it would be easy to get overwhelmed. Sometimes being able to laugh might be the best medicine.

Our district has embarked on the development of a new strategic plan. With this in mind, I was looking forward to discussing how a leader develops a shared vision. I thought she would discuss the process of the strategic planning in answering this question. However, she went further. She discussed not only strategic planning but reiterated the importance of communication. It is not enough to have a vision it must be communicated. Dr. Giles said that it is important that the students and parents know her and understand that she is willing to listen to them. Whether it is a student in the hall on a campus or a community member at a football game she is ready to spend time listening what they have to say.

Although I asked many other questions, one other answer stood out. When asked about building a good working relationship with the Board of Trustees, Dr. Giles emphasized the importance of building a one on one relationship with each member of the board. Although the Board is a group, it is important that the superintendent understand the personality and vision of each member of the Board.  These individuals dedicate their time to the school district and it is imperative that a superintendent be willing to listen to each person.

I really enjoyed this assignment. It was beneficial to my own professional development to sit and discuss these questions and hear the answers from someone who has the experience that she has. As I continue on this journey it will be important to stop and listen to those who have trod the road before me.  Their knowledge is a resource that should not be squandered.

My Vita

James R. Webster

12218 Carriage Oak Circle, Humble, Texas

(W) 281-727-2015 (H) 281-852-4528 (C) 832-250-3812

webj1@comcast.net

Education/ Certification

M.Ed.                          Education Leadership, Prairie View A & M University Prairie View, Texas, 1995

B.S.                             Education, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois, 1991

Mid-Management

Certificate                   Texas

Teacher Certificate      Elementary Education (1-6 self-contained)

                                    Early Childhood

Administrative and Leadership

Experience

Coordinator of Student Services

Sheldon I.S.D.

Houston, TX 2010-present

·         Served as the internal coordinator of Strategic Planning, ensuring that goals and action steps were developed and timelines for their implementation.

·         Coordinated the homebound program to ensure appropriate instruction was delivered in accordance with the Student Attendance Accounting Handbook.

·         Served as the district’s grievance officer ensuring objective decisions were made based on legal and ethical responsibilities.

·         Coordinated student registration including a centralized district registration process.

·         Supervised the counseling program of the district resulting in the implementation of a consistent counseling curriculum.

·         Coordinated the Reach Out to Dropouts Walk resulting in the return of students who had quit school.

·         Organized summer school for all campuses and grade levels in the district.

·         Coordinated the district’s Fine Arts program.

Principal, Carroll Elementary,

Sheldon Independent School District

Houston, TX, 2008-2010

Recognized Campus 2009-2010

·         Facilitated the opening of a new building through the hiring of staff, purchasing of supplies and overseeing the bid process on capital outlay purchases.

·         Implemented the CHAMPS program across the campus to improve classroom management and increase time on task.

·         Implemented the CSCOPE curriculum to align grade level instruction resulting in a Recognized rating.

 

 

Principal, Royalwood Elementary,

Sheldon Independent School District

Houston, Texas 2003- 2008      

      Recognized Campus 2004-2005, 2005-2006

·         Focused on researched based curriculum, implementation and delivery resulting in significant increases on T.A.K.S. scores in all areas, including a 52 percentage point gain in Writing.

·         Reduced the percentage of Special Education students from 12.2% to 5.8% by providing focused interventions prior to referral.

·         Implemented a three tiered model of intervention for struggling students that consistently resulted in higher academic achievement.

·         Implemented the “Be Part of the Pride” program which resulted in decreased school discipline referrals.

·         Dramatically closed achievement gap between subgroups.

Assistant Principal, Cravens Early Childhood Academy,

Sheldon Independent School District

Houston, Texas 2003- 2008      

Ÿ  Opened a new school building, which entailed the ordering of all furniture and supplies for the entire building under strict timelines.

Ÿ  Merged three different staffs into one academically focused team.

Ÿ  Developed a writing continuum, correlated to reading skills, which focused on the developmental levels of students.

Assistant Principal, Thurgood Marshall Elementary

North Forest Independent School District

Houston, Texas 1997-2002   

Ÿ  Actively pursued parent/ community relations which included the development of a “Fast on Facts” video that was shown on the Houston Public Access station.

Ÿ  Demonstrated effective time management and delegation skills while serving as the only Assistant Principal on a campus of 1200 students.

Ÿ  Coordinated all Language Proficiency Assessment Committee meetings and consistently met deadlines for a Bilingual/ESL program with over 300 students.

Teaching Experience

Kindergarten Teacher, Thurgood Marshall Elementary,

North Forest Independent School District

Houston, Texas 1991-1997

Ÿ  Managed a team of eight teachers while serving as Grade Chairperson.

Ÿ  Served on the District Site Based Decision Making Committee for six years and participated in two T.E.A. monitoring visits to the district.

Ÿ  Served on the Campus Site Based Decision Making Committee to develop campus procedures that positively impacted student achievement.

Ÿ  Mentored new teachers by providing support in the areas of instructional delivery and classroom management.

Professional Development

Ÿ  Dyslexia and 504

Ÿ  Region 4 Legal Summit

Ÿ  Grievance Training

Ÿ  EEOC Training

Ÿ  Professional readings including Teach Like a Champion, The Fluent Reader, The Art of Teaching Reading, In the Company of Children and many others.

Ÿ  Professional Development Appraisal System (PDAS)

Ÿ  LPAC training

Ÿ  Margaret Kilgo workshops

Ÿ  Training in Guided Reading and  6+1 Writing Traits

Ÿ  Gifted and Talented workshops

Ÿ  Phonemic Awareness and Reading Assessment Training

Presentation Experience

Ÿ  Webster, J.(August 2011) PDAS for New Teachers. Presentation at the 2011 New Teacher Inservice.

Ÿ  Webster, J. (August 2011) Documentation and Discipline Coding. Presentation at 2011 Assistant Principal Boot Camp, Sheldon I.S.D.

Ÿ  Webster, J. (August 2011) 504 Requirements and the ADAA.  Presentation to school district counselors and dyslexia teachers, Sheldon I.S.D.

Ÿ  Webster, J. (August 2010) How to Handle A Grievance. Presentation at 2010 Assistant Principal Boot Camp, Sheldon I.S.D.

Ÿ  Webster, J. (April 2010) Data Disaggregation.  Presentation at Carroll Elementary, Sheldon I.S.D.

Ÿ  Webster, J. (August 2010) Sexual Harassment in the Workplace. Presentation at Carroll Elementary, Sheldon I.S.D.

Ÿ  Webster, J. (August 2009) TEKS /TAKS Alignment. Presentation at Sheldon Elementary, Sheldon I.S.D.

Honors & Awards

Ÿ  Leader of the Year, Carroll Elementary 2008-2009

Ÿ  Texas Regular Educator of the Year 2006-2007 -Texas Coalition of Administrators of Special Education.

Ÿ  Gulf Coast Regular Educator of the Year 2006-2007  -Gulf Coast Coalition of Administrators of Special Education

Ÿ  Educator of the Month - North Channel Rotary Club

Ÿ  Leader of the Year, Royalwood Elementary, 2006-2007

Ÿ  Principal of the Year, Sheldon I.S.D., 2006-2007

                   

References

1)      Dr. Vickey M. Giles, Superintendent of Schools, Sheldon I.S.D.

      11411 C.E. King Parkway

      Houston, Texas, 77044           (281) 727-2006

2)      Dr. Joan Bowman, Asst. Superintendent of Instructional Services, Sheldon I.S.D.

      11411 C.E. King Parkway

      Houston, Texas, 77044           (281) 727-2046

3)      Larry Pfeifer, Asst. Superintendent of Administrative Services, Sheldon I.S.D.

      11411 C.E. King Parkway

      Houston, Texas, 77044           (281) 727-2011

Blogs in Education

Blogs can be used in a variety of ways in education. Principals or superintendents can use blogs to show what is happening in their building or across a school district. Just add a few pictures and a small description and you have an online newsletter that can be linked to your district website for parents and students to access. Feedback can also be collected on an ongoing basis using this tool. It is important to note that when posting pictures of students that permission for publication of a student's image is on file. This is also a great tool for the classroom that can easily be accessed from home.

Action Research

  

   Action Research is vital to a district’s continued improvement. It allows individuals and groups to work collaboratively in order to find solutions to both simple and complex problems. Action research can be used by a group of teachers within professional learning communities to investigate and develop solutions to student’s lack of academic achievement. It could also be used by a Strategic Planning Committee to explore current statistics and develop action steps to solve them. Consider a track coach who looks at the times of a student running the 100 yard dash. If the coach simply looked at the times of the runner he may resolve himself to saying that the student needs to run faster. However, by utilizing action research at the time of the event he may realize that his student is the fastest runner but is the last athlete off the blocks. This would allow him to focus his training on the start and thereby improve his participant’s time.

I am currently serving as the internal coordinator for Strategic Planning for our district. This experience has allowed me to see first-hand the importance of Action Research. Action teams were formed and were given one of five goals that had been developed by a committee of 25 stakeholders representative of the district. The teams were given the task of developing action steps that would ensure the success of each goal. These committees utilize action research to allow them to come together as a group of professionals and collaboratively analyze a problem by investigating numerous forms of data. This investigation allows them to generate multiple viable options and solutions. For further reading check out the link below.