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One week Later: Thoughts on ISBE's Guidance on Returning to School

Last week in Suburban Life I weighed in on the ISBE Guidance on returning to school immediately after processing it and building this summary overview . Now one week later, after being interviewed by John Williams on AM 720 on these topics and having more time to think about it - I have put together what I believe regarding these guidelines as of today - July 2nd - with about 6 weeks left to develop a plan to return to school. The pandemic has impacted everyone in the world and we are all struggling to figure out how to navigate our new situation. Please know that I truly appreciate the work of the Illinois State Board of Education and the task force that developed the guidance . I always try to presume good intentions and I believe all of those working on the ISBE Guidance have the best of intentions for students and families. My biggest concern is that the ISBE Guidance should have been released as DRAFT guidance weeks ago and shared with others to provide feed...
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Understanding the Superintendency - The District’s Symbiotic Relationship with the Taxpayer

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In our District the majority for school funding comes from local property taxes . This fact creates a natural symbiotic relationship between property owners and schools. The top factor that influences home values in our state is the quality of local schools. On some level, this is one of the reasons why people support their local schools and want them to succeed - the result is higher property values. Schools have a responsibility in this symbiotic relationship to help raise the value of their community’s property. One way to do this (the way tied closest to our mission) is by doing a great job: helping students to be successful, creating opportunities for a positive learning experience, and connecting students to their community so they want to come back here to live (and hopefully buy a home). Another key method is by sharing the success of our students and promoting both our schools and communities in the process. A way we help facilitate this each year is by meeting with local re...
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Understanding the Superintendency - The Role of the School Board: A Basic Overview

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In recognition of School Board Member Appreciation Day last week, here is a primer on what it means to be a school board member. As a superintendent I have a single supervisor that consists of 7 people. These 7 volunteers are elected to serve as representatives of the community. As community members indicate they are interested in serving as Board members, before they run for a 4-year term, I share this document with them: “ What it Means to Serve on the Board ” that serves as an introduction to the role. I also meet with them and share my experiences as a superintendent, but also as a former board member. Most of this information I provide is from the Illinois Association of School Boards , the professional organization that supports school board members in Illinois. The IASB outlines 6 main responsibilities of a school board: Clarifies the district's purpose Connects with the community Employs a superintendent Delegates authority Monitors performance Takes respons...
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Understanding the Superintendency: Snow/Cold Day Process

I am returning to my blog to begin a periodic narrative of what a superintendent actually does and some of the decision making that goes into this role. Since we are already into snow season here is a quick description of what goes into calling off school for cold or snow in my role. It usually begins with a series of conference calls in the day or days before a potential emergency weather event  with DuPage County and the Office of Emergency Management. At the same time, I am discussing what we are learning with our local elementary school districts and other high school districts in DuPage County. There are several calls or emails between these groups and this continues throughout the day leading up to an emergency event. We follow our processes outlined on the District’s Emergency Closing Information page .  If we can make a call the night before, we try to before 9PM. Otherwise superintendents across DuPage County are monitoring the situation all night. We are in ...
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Find the Good Points on the Way to Yes

As school leaders, we often have those around us approach us with requests that are difficult to meet. Many times, the first instinctive response we reach for in those difficult situations brought to us by a student, parent, or colleague is: “no.” That answer is safe, easy,  and  doesn’t require us to extend beyond our comfort zone. I heard once that the secret to helping others is by trying to get to “yes.” That doesn’t mean that the answer will be “yes,” but the trick is to figure out what it would take to get there  and  be open to walking down that path. Once you open the conversation up, you must listen carefully  and  find the good points. In nearly every difficult conversation, even those where you strongly disagree, there is usually some good idea. Looking for good points could get you closer to “yes.” It might not be what was asked for at the start, but working to “yes” gets you further than ending with “no.”
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Summer is the Time to Grow - By Using a Rubber Duck

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Almost everyone is done for the summer, or soon will be, and I believe this is your best time to grow through reflection because you actually have some time you can dedicate to the process. I have long practiced “ Currere ” as a method for structured reflection on a project or a school year. Here is a quick way to break down a school year using Currere by asking four simple questions: What was my experience last year? What do I want to do next year? How am I feeling about current abilities and skills? What is my path forward to a successful year next year? The trick to taking action on what you learn from reflection is verbalizing what you are going to do next year. Speak your plans out loud and listen to what you are saying. As told in the recent “ Rationally Speaking ” podcast, you don’t have to explain your plans to anyone but yourself, but you do have to say them out loud - even if you just speak to a rubber duck . You will then help yourself build a better plan. The r...
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The Actual Cost of Cursive in Illinois

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Last week the Illinois House passed new legislation that would mandate that cursive is taught in schools across Illinois. This comes during the same time that they cannot pass a budget, for two years running . This got me thinking of the question "at what cost does cursive come at?" So I have attempted to estimate and cost it out. The two major variables for hard costs are materials and professional development. Handwritten cursive requires consumable workbooks. A common set of materials for teaching cursive, which typically occurs in 3rd grade, is the  Zaner-Bloser Handwriting series , which comes at a cost of $11.69 per student. According to the Illinois Report Card  we have averaged 152,545 third graders each year over the past five years. This gives you a cost of student materials of $1,783,246 for the first year,   and for every year after that . Many schools haven't been teaching cursive for a while, so we would have to coach up our teachers, modify dail...
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