New Cycle: 2

Reflect on how your school culture has shifted since you started coaching this year. What roadblocks have you hit (or are hitting now)? What strategies did you use? What support do you need from your mentor and/or your principal?

Well, I just came off a whirlwind week preparaing for and hosting Dee's visit to our school.

I loved seeing him.

I think it grounded me and redefined / reminded me of the purpose of this program, the path I'm on, and the goals we have.

The staff and students in our school were so incredibly helpful and supportive before, during, and after the visit. Dee is an important part of this DLP proess and family, and I wanted everything to be as perfect for his visit as it could be.

I invited the local newspaper to come out and interview Dee. He IS a rockstar, after all, and rockstars should be in the paper! Our district had not released information about the DLP program to our community, so I though Dee's visit was a perfect opportunity for making the announcement and explaining the importance of the program to our community. The paper was more than happy to send a reporter and a photographer, and I look forward to seeing the article. (and will post it here when it is published)

One thing I noticed about Dee, the rockstar, was EVERYONE wanted to meet him, talk to him, interact with him, and basically, glue themselves to him the entire day! I shared him with the school, because, after all, the program is theirs, not mine alone. I didn't really get any 1:1 time with Dee, but, in a way, that was the best way to use his time. For instance;

I hosted a meet and greet with a light lunch so the administration, first cycle teachers, innovation advocates, and others could pop in, meet Dee, talk a little while, ask questions, and get a real feel for the program. I watched. I listened. I soaked it all in. Let's face it, I can call Dee every day. I have access to him whenever I need it. It was very important to me to have the administration and staff experience what I get to experience during every DLP meeting. I think mingling with Dee brought our school community very much closer to the program. Comments after Dee's visit solidified this idea for me. The program just became much more personal, much more important, much more meaningful to everyone involved with the preparation and participation with Dee's visit. Even the students were all a buzz about Dee's visit to the math class: "Mrs. Engler, tell Dee we figured out his math problem. Oh, and tell him we figured out even more after he left! When are you coming in to work with our class?"
I love it!

My administration; I invited the superintendent, the high school principal, the middle school principal, the assistant middle school principal, and the director of special ed. In some way, I work with teachers under the supervision of all these individuals. I wanted each of them to know, first hand, how special this program is to me and how important Dee's visit was to our school. They all thanked me for including them and for making them feel like they were all a part of the DLP process.

Even though the visit was positive, I need the support of my mentor and my administration more now than ever. The momentum of the program needs to continue to build and grow. A roadblock I've recently experienced is complacency. My administrative support is overwhelmed with student discipline, teacher supervision, program implementation, and other administrative duties. The DLP program runs smoothly, on a daily basis, but, yet, I still require support. My administrative meetings are becoming brief, with little discussion, limited interaction. This is not a complaint, it's a reality.