Sunday, February 28, 2016

Week of February 28, 2016

It's Leap Day!

NB: This image probably means nothing to you if you're not a 30 Rock fan. Feel free to watch it (Season 6, Episode 9), read all about it, or just ignore the reference. 

Items of Note 

Notes from the Conference

If you follow my personal Twitter account, which is typically pretty inactive (save the occasional retweeted article), you might've been surprised to see me tweeting like a fiend. If you're interested in what struck conference attendees, run a search for #naisac. In lieu of my weekly reflection on MYP, I'd like to share a three insights gleaned from this year's conference. 

 First, it was apparently the Year of the Woman at NAIS. I've been to the Annual Conference 6 times, and each year I'm usually disheartened. Despite the organization's intentions ("the road to hell is paved...") and efforts toward uplifting diversity and equity as a primary concern for independent schools, the organization has failed to really diversify the face of NAIS, even symbolically, through the annual conference. This year, however, I was struck (so struck, I Tweeted about it!) by the fact that we didn't see a man on stage in the first General Session. The NAIS Board Chair, other committee members who planned the conference, a recorded story by a sitting Head of School, and the opening keynote speaker were all women. Several former colleagues and friends from different parts of the country noticed this too - we were all hopeful that this was reflecting a shift both in the symbolic ways NAIS projects its values and in the reality of who is attaining the highest levels of leadership at independent schools. 

 Second, many attendees noticed a pivot in the conversation framing the conference. While much of the dialogue in the past decade has been about sustainability (financial, not environmental), largely in reaction to the impact of the recession on independent schools, this year was framed by a much more outward-directed perspective. Keynote and featured speakers didn't focus on barriers or pressures; instead, they spoke of opportunities. Randi Zuckerberg, Ruha Benjamin, and Jaime Casap addressed the opportunities that rapid advances in technology afford, especially to women and other underrepresented groups. Marcus Buckingham, a data-hungry researcher, addressed critical skills needed for leadership in very concrete terms (not "how to be a leader," but more along the lines of "be a better boss, and here's how..."). The biggest impact was felt, however, from Bryan Stevenson. I have never heard a more powerful speaker in person. Stevenson framed his talk as reflecting his efforts to pursue his goal to change the world. Sharing stories from his personal life, his work as a defense attorney fighting for poorly defended, unjustly imprisoned, and unjustly sentenced people, Stevenson identified four things that we all need to do: maintain proximity with each other, change the narrative, maintain hope, and be willing to do uncomfortable things.

 Third, I was really proud to be representing Annie Wright. AWS has a strong reputation among independent schools (things you learn when you're wearing a name tag all day), and I was happy to hear that out of people I met from all corners. More importantly, though, through the workshops I attended, I was so happy to see where we were in relation to other schools, both in terms of program and in terms of culture. While any conference risks unevenness in the quality of workshops offered, it was a point of pride to know that anyone from our team could (and probably should) be on the roster of presenters. Next year's conference will be in Baltimore, and the theme of the conference will be "Make Your Mission Matter." Inspired yet? If you're feeling like next year will be a great opportunity to hone a presentation or workshop to submit to NAIS and to enjoy blue crabs in Charm City (or to NWAIS or any other conference), please let me know! When it's published, I'll get proposal submission information to you. 

Absences

Earlier in the year, I put out a reminder about the protocols for employee absences. Please remember to notify both me and Wade as soon as you anticipate an absence (whether it is unanticipated, like, an illness, or anticipated, like a conference). Also, please be sure to submit a completed Employee Absence Report upon returning to work. These reports are necessary both for accurately accounting for your hours (tracking personal days as well as tracking professional development) and for paying substitutes. Thanks for being attentive to this!

Talking about the Schedule

Small group discussions about potential schedule models begin on Monday at 2:10. If you haven't signed up, Clare has plugged you in to a meeting. If it doesn't work for you, please feel free to switch!

Spirit Week

Student Council is planning for Spirit Week from March 14-17. Themes will be decided this week and announced next Monday. Word on the street is that we should plan for a lot of green on the 17th. 

Special Performance on March 17

Speaking of the 17th: we will welcome a group from the Scoil Rince Slieveloughane Irish Dance on the afternoon of March 17 for a special St. Patrick's Day performance. More information to come, but please plan on being in the Great Hall to wrap up Spirit Week with a few lively reels and jigs from 2:10-3:10pm that day. 

MS Office Coordinator

In the coming week, we'll begin to clarify Tiffany's role and schedule in the MS Office. Generally, she will be in the office from 7:30-11:00am. The remainder of the day, she will be between the MS Office and other locations to take care of her other responsibilities. Tiffany will help coordinate things like the Friday Recognitions and provide support for field trips, class experiences, and any other logistics. Please don't hesitate to reach out to Tiffany directly or to me if there's any confusion about her role. 

Grade Checks, Conferences & Spring Advisor Letter

Let's plan another round of Grade Checks to be completed by Thursday, March 10. A template for messaging to families about the Grade Check can be found here. This includes updated language with the Spring Conferences in mind. 
Thursday, March 24 is designated for Conferences. As in the Fall, these are student-led conferences with parents and Advisors. Wade will be reaching out soon about scheduling parameters for the 24th (holding a time for a lunch break, accommodating other conflicts, etc.). There is no expectation that you will be available for a conference on a day other than the 24th, but if a family is unable to find a time that works for them, it's at your discretion to schedule another day. 

Our discussions after the close of First Quarter included a proposal to move the writing of the Advisor's Letter to after the Spring Conference. Let's try it! Each letter should follow this structure: 

  • 1st paragraph: common to all Advisees, briefly summarizing how Third Quarter has gone for the Grade Level and for your Advisory.
  • 2nd paragraph: unique to each Advisee, briefly summarizing how Third Quarter has gone for her/him; following up on concerns addressed in Spring Conferences; and plans for next year; if applicable, indicate an attribute of the Learner Profile for which s/he demonstrates strength or which is a challenge.
    • If the student has been performing poorly, report on progress with any plan in place. If any follow-up was required from the Spring Conference, include any findings, plans, or need for further discussion.
    • If the student is at risk of a low or failing grade at the end of the year in any course, address that subject directly and indicate a specific plan for support.
  • 3rd paragraph: common to all Advisees, briefly summarizing what's ahead for the Grade Level and/or for the Advisory and reminding families to sign up for conferences if they haven't already.

Here's a proposed schedule for Third Quarter reporting:


18 Mar 12:00pm Submit Course Summary to Course Summaries Q1 2015-2016
24 Mar Spring Conferences
8 Apr 8:00am Submit Advisor Letter to appropriate folder; Administrative Review of Advisors’ Letters
11 Apr 3:10pm Publish Q1 Progress Reports (Advisors’ Letters, Course Summaries)

 Questions, concerns, ideas? Please let me know.

Faculty Meetings and MYP

  • 2/24: Unit planning time. Use this time as needed, whether it's building units, reflecting on implementation, or sending units to our consultant for review. 
  • 3/2: Coaching Sessions: We'll break into small groups to collaborate, provide some collegial coaching, and give each other some feedback. 
  • 3/9: Coaching Sessions.
  • 3/16: TBD (depending on the progress made...)
  • 3/23 TBD

Mid-Year Meetings

Gentle reminder: if you haven't already, please sign up for a mid-year meeting with Clare and me. It would be very helpful to be able to prepare for these meetings if we could finalize the schedule this week. 

Summer Planning

It's a long way off, but please start to think about planning for summer. In addition to the camps and programs offered through Summer @ Annie Wright, there will be a variety of maintenance projects throughout the building. It'll be important to clear or secure MS or personal supplies and objects; start to think about if you think you'll need bins or boxes for summer storage. If you have specific maintenance or furniture needs or ideas, please be sure to plug them into MS Space Ideas and Requests, and as we learn more concerning any construction, renovation, or updating projects, we'll keep you updated.  

Advisory this week...

MS Space

I'll keep this doc linked in the blog for ongoing ideas about the MS space. As ideas come up, plug them in! 

MYP...

Important MYP Info

Communications...

Flash

This week's Flash will introduce the Global Contexts Fairness and Development and highlight the Math and Language Acquisition programs. Please remember to get your information into the Pushpage or to Wade on Friday mornings (or before). 

Blogs

Don't miss the latest installments of The Dish from Mrs. Dicks or Joe Romano's AWSLibrary blog! 

Religious & Cultural Observances coming up...

Upcoming at AWS...

Monday, February 29
8:00am Morning Meeting
10:00am All School Chapel
3:30pm Girls JV1 Basketball vs. Lighthouse Christian
3:45pm All School Faculty & Staff Meeting in the Great Hall
4:30pm Girls Varsity Basketball v. Lighthouse Christian

Tuesday, March 1
3:15pm 6th Grade Team Meeting
3:30pm Girls JV1 Basketball @ Carbonado
4:30pm Girls Varsity Basketball @ Carbonado
(JV1 and Varsity teams Dismissed at 1:45pm, Return to AW at 6:30pm)

Wednesday, March 2
10:00am MS Chapel
2:10pm MYP Coaching Sessions (more details to follow)

Thursday, March 3
3:30pm Girls JV1 Basketball v. Chief Leschi
3:30pm Girls Varsity Basketball v. Chief Leschi
3:30pm Ultimate Frisbee @ Heritage Christian (Return to AW at 5:00pm)

Friday, March 4
10:00am 7th Grade Share & Student Recognition
2:30pm Ultimate Frisbee @ Charles Wright

(Dismissed at 1:45pm, Return to AW at 4:00pm)

Important Links:
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