My thoughts on having a shared vision

 Why have a shared vision on your campus? What are some components of a shared vision? 

    A shared vision is incredibly important for conveying the principal’s direction for the school. A strong vision statement that has been collaboratively composed in tandem with community members, staff, and administration can be a powerful tool that unifies all stakeholders and drives them to accomplishing the most important goal: Furthering the education of the students on our campus, and doing what is best for them educationally, socially, and emotionally. Having a shared vision that parents and teachers truly believe helps in these ways: It attracts commitment and motivates the school community, it creates meaning in workers’ lives, establishes a high standard of excellence, bridges the present to the future, and it puts the students’ needs first.

How do we implement that vision?

       It is imperative that a school have a clear vision for the future of the school. It is difficult to move forward with any sort of improvement if the teachers, staff, and administrators all have different ideas of what that future should look like. Therefore, as the principal, I would first have a stakeholders meeting to form a vision committee. During this meeting I will be asking everyone to identify their core values and one or two goals they have for their students. We can then take that information and place those values and goals into groups and narrow down the focus. Once we do that, all stakeholders at the meeting will be able to look at those values and goals and determine which should be the focus for the vision statement. I will then ask for volunteers and/or invite some of the teachers and community members who are present at the meeting to be part of the vision development committee. From there, the committee will take the information from the stakeholders meeting and draft a new vision statement. Once we have the vision statement, I will then have the committee present the statement to the faculty in a meeting and allow staff members to read it, critique it, and offer suggestions for improvement. The committee will meet one more time if needed to review any suggestions and comments before drafting a final statement. Once the committee comes to a consensus on the new visions statement, we will add it to the school website, make signs to post all over the school, and put it in all of our handbooks. I will be sending out a letter to all of our parents, as well as appropriate community members, to share our new vision statement with them. Finally, within our PLCs, we will be discussing how well our current teaching practices are aligned with the vision, so we can make adjustments accordingly. I want everyone involved with our school to know the vision so well, that they can recall it at any time, and can think to themselves, “Does what I am teaching/doing help our kids and align with the vision of my school?” 

How do we remain good stewards of our shared vision?

    Keeping a group of people focused on a common goal can be difficult. My plan for making sure the vision is accomplished is simply to make it part of every PLC, professional development training, and budget conversation. Asking questions like, “ Does this align with our vision statement?” “How will purchasing this help us accomplish our vision for the school?” “Is what we are teaching align with the vision and is it good for our kids?”  Keeping our focus on the vision statement by including it in our daily conversations about instruction and planning, as well as what we spend our money on will help tremendously. Every committee meeting we have should include some discussion about the vision statement and how the meeting agenda aligns with it. Furthermore, when teachers are doing something in their classrooms that strongly align with the vision statement or help our school to move toward accomplishing our vision, I want to celebrate that in some way. Teachers who go above and beyond need to be recognized for their efforts. Even teachers who are consistently doing little things to keep the vision in clear focus should be recognized as well. Communicating openly about the direction of the school with teachers, students, parents and community members is also something we need to do on a daily basis.

My core beliefs:

Schools should teach students how to be moral, responsible citizens with a strong work ethic and a desire to continuously improve themselves and the communities in which they live.

A good school is one that helps students receive a well-rounded, 21st century education by providing a rich learning environment via project-based learning projects through Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math (STEAM) programs that prepares them for success in a global economy.

An effective classroom is one in which teachers and students work collaboratively toward achieving high academic goals that will help students be college-ready, as well as be successful, productive leaders in our community and in our world.

A good principal is one who has a clear vision of his/her school, works with faculty, staff, parents and community members to move the school toward achieving the campus vision, and provides professional development opportunities that will empower teachers and staff to work collaboratively with one another to tackle challenging, enriching project-based and digital learning projects for their students through STEAM and AVID programs, as well as current 21st century technology

An effective school faculty is one that knows their students well enough to address their individual learning styles and works together to help them be successful.

A quality instructional program includes 21st century technology and teaching tools that will empower students to take ownership of their learning by working collaboratively with their teachers, parents and community members to ensure their success beyond high school. 

My personal vision

Create a culture of continuous improvement by cultivating a growth mindset in my faculty, staff, and students and by fostering a rich, collaborative, professional learning environment that will prepare students be college-ready, as well as be successful, productive leaders in our community and in our world.

Why is this important?

Having a personal vision of leadership is important, because if you don’t know what you want for your school or how you plan to guide your people, then it is extremely difficult to lead them in any sort of direction. Strong leaders with a specific goal and singular, narrow vision that they are passionate about can do just about anything. When a leader is excited about the vision, others tend to follow suit and want to help see the vision come to fruition.