“Leadership of Innovation, Inquiry and Transformation”

1. Leading innovation, inquiry and transformation “Leadership of Innovation, Inquiry and Transformation” Adrian Manuel, Principal Kingston High School Kingston, N.Y.

2. We all want students to have an exceptional educational experience.

4. Obstacles, Resistance, and Stagnation That’s against contract We have to improve math and ELA first We don’t have time…

6. Challenge How can we re-imagine, re-think and re-design school in the public school system? • 98% Students in Poverty • Lowest 5th performance of 400 schools • 3rd principal in 1st 4 yrs. of school opening • Highly resistant to change • Underinvestment in basic resources I would quit and find a good school

7. Three Stories to Tell Leading Innovation and Innovation for Leading Inquiry as Organizational Mindset The Work of Transformation

8. What’s Your Metaphor for Leadership • Captain • Conductor • Pit leader • Coach • Director • Bus Driver • Architect

9. Re-Thinking What if we examined the design of all organizational practices? • Investment priorities • Student schedule • Teacher schedule • Social and emotional development • Staffing, roles and responsibilities • Physical environment • Relationships with everyone and every group! • Teaching and Learning • Systems, structures and processes • Use of all resources and time

10. Re-Imagine • What would learning look like if we re-imagined school? • How would we behave if we re-imagined our professional roles and responsibilities? • What would we do if we had no constraints, limitations or “cages”? • What could relationships with students, parents, and the community look like?

11. Re-Design How do we cultivate a design thinking approach to teaching, learning and organizational practice

12. Year 1 • Difficult Conversations • Re-Framing of school story • Creating a vision • Maintaining status quo • Managing student behavior • Making sense of budget, organizational systems and bureaucracy • Gaining trust, building community and inspiring hope • Stay above water, put our fires and make necessary sacrifices Learn the Blueprints • Study the contract • Study the regulations • Study social and emotional behaviors • Identify potential partnerships • Read inside and outside of educational practice • Examine the physical space • One to one with every faculty member • Visit common and uncommon schools • Talk with others in and outside the field Adopt mindset of “organizational inquiry,” be an insider looking from the outside

13. Facing Failure & The Urgency of Transformation

14. Design, Construct and Enact Re-directing monies Changing paradigms **ex. us vs. them and the schedule/ admin. prep. Designing a schedule for teacher and student success Re-designing organizational practice for organizational learning

15. “Problem Framing” and Re-Shaping Mental Models of Professionals

16. Building Relationships and Cultivating Relational Trust

17. Organizational Inquiry • Four day teaching schedule and one day of collaborative inquiry • Lesson Study Program • Collaborative design of learning and assessment • Data study and inquiry • Inter-visitations, parent/student conferences, and sense making of new reforms • Instructional cabinet and study projects • Designing instruments for data collection • Focus groups on all design projects, pilots and initiatives • Organizational inquiry and review team • Partner schools (local and beyond)

18. Re-Shaped Professional Learning and Practice

19. Teaching and Learning • ****2 teachers in every classroom**** • Lesson studies & collaborative inquiry into practice (adaptability) • Innovation grants and projects • Standards of Excellence • One to one laptop model with extension learning • ELA re-design • Whole child block schedule design (heterogeneous classes) • Leadership Seminars with admin. • Differentiated student goals (whole child dev.) • Community action courses • Cultivate a joy of learning, power of expression, urge for wisdom and civic engagement

21. Differentiated Professional Learning, Support and Development • Instructional Support Team • Self Assessment towards a set of standards • Team assessment based on evidence • Goal Setting Conference • Individualized and customized plan of professional development and support • Coaching and conference 1x per week • Real time feedback using online portfolio (Google Groups and E-Chalk • Evidence based discussions, continuous feedback and reflective practice • Evaluation of support team

22. Can’t Afford Coaches and Consultants? Me Neither! • Bring back the vets! • Part time and online • Memorialize and warehouse resources, efforts, experiences and learning • Partner with colleagues and reach out to your idols • Develop systems for continuous learning • Departmental/individual goals & presentations • Cultivate a mindset of reflective practice

23. Professional Practice • Online communities of practice • Jump drive/hard drive of resources • Networking knowledge (internally and externally) • Evidence based culture • Adaptable, flexible, and solution oriented

24. Cultivating Trust

25. Results Happened!

26. A New Challenge and Work in Progress

27. Lead Innovation, Inquiry and Transformation Re-Think Re-Imagine Re-Design Transform

28. The rational man adapts to the world. The irrational man expects the world to adapt to him. Therefore, all progress comes from the irrational man! ~George Bernard Shaw~

29. Thank you for your time and attention! Adrian Manuelacmanuel28@gmail.com