Principal Announcements

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But what I'm talking about is different-pulling TEACHERS from the classroom and slowly but surely nurturing them into leadership. According to the bios of most Fellows, they've been out of the classroom, some already in AP positions.

I'm saying just ease that teacher into dept chair, mentor for new teachers, person who leads PD. of course if the teacher says 'Nah. Just got the leadership degree because I was bored and it was free. I'll never leave the classroom." F

This makes no sense. How long should they be in the classroom before being pulled out? How long does it take to "slowly, but surely" create administrators? What would keep them from fleeing to the highly competitive DMV 'burbs and beyond?

DCPS is a small school district of less than 50,000 students and getting smaller by the year. The highest achieving teachers and leaders are clustered and, aside from former Janney prinicipal, are making no efforts to move to high-need schools.

The bottom line is that being a good teacher does not mean you have the potential to be a great school leader. Just like a surgeon may be incredibly skilled, but that doesn't mean you would put them in charge of an entire hospital.

Offering 3-year principal contracts might be the best recruitment and retention tool DCPS can offer to compete for unique talent locally and nationally.

Is there a city of DC's size doing things DCPS is not trying?

Clearly you honed in on that one part then jumped the gun.

1. The focus is on classroom teachers WITH DEGREES IN LEADERSHIP. Not just pulling out random teachers at whim. I'm talking about teachers who've taken it upon themselves to hone LEADERSHIP skills.
2. First step is to HAVE A CONVERSATION with those teachers. Find out if they're even interested in leadership. Some may not be. Their bios are so impressive I'm certain they could've moved in that direction if they wanted to. Then again, is the school too small. Maybe no opportunities to grow exist for them in the current setting.
3. Refuse to develop leaders because they may flee to the burbs???? A. They could do that now. B. That's a risk that you take. But most of those teachers have been in DC schools for years. Without growing. Which is sad. C. Do you suggest disbanding the Patterson Fellows for the same reason?
4. Offering 3 year contracts is good, but first you have to attract talent to give it to them. And this current round of principal hirings proves that DC is no longer attractive to the best, brightest and most experienced. Furthermore, I disagree it's the best tool. It helps but it's not enough to make a tried and true, highly skilled, experienced leader gamble his career and family's stability to move to DC.
5. No other city has trouble attracting great candidates. They don't have the horrible reputation for firing and mistreating its people. Name one other school system that hired 500 new teachers in August and had over 100 (of that 500 new to DC hires) leave by October 1st. Does.Not.Happen.Unheard of. More new hires left as the year progressed. A lot of the dysfunction in DCPS is unique to this system.

Are you recounting personal experience as a TEACHER with LEADERSHIP skills and a LOVE OF ALL CAPS who feels they have not been "slowly but surely" nurtured?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But what I'm talking about is different-pulling TEACHERS from the classroom and slowly but surely nurturing them into leadership. According to the bios of most Fellows, they've been out of the classroom, some already in AP positions.

I'm saying just ease that teacher into dept chair, mentor for new teachers, person who leads PD. of course if the teacher says 'Nah. Just got the leadership degree because I was bored and it was free. I'll never leave the classroom." F

This makes no sense. How long should they be in the classroom before being pulled out? How long does it take to "slowly, but surely" create administrators? What would keep them from fleeing to the highly competitive DMV 'burbs and beyond?

DCPS is a small school district of less than 50,000 students and getting smaller by the year. The highest achieving teachers and leaders are clustered and, aside from former Janney prinicipal, are making no efforts to move to high-need schools.

The bottom line is that being a good teacher does not mean you have the potential to be a great school leader. Just like a surgeon may be incredibly skilled, but that doesn't mean you would put them in charge of an entire hospital.

Offering 3-year principal contracts might be the best recruitment and retention tool DCPS can offer to compete for unique talent locally and nationally.

Is there a city of DC's size doing things DCPS is not trying?

Clearly you honed in on that one part then jumped the gun.

1. The focus is on classroom teachers WITH DEGREES IN LEADERSHIP. Not just pulling out random teachers at whim. I'm talking about teachers who've taken it upon themselves to hone LEADERSHIP skills.
2. First step is to HAVE A CONVERSATION with those teachers. Find out if they're even interested in leadership. Some may not be. Their bios are so impressive I'm certain they could've moved in that direction if they wanted to. Then again, is the school too small. Maybe no opportunities to grow exist for them in the current setting.
3. Refuse to develop leaders because they may flee to the burbs???? A. They could do that now. B. That's a risk that you take. But most of those teachers have been in DC schools for years. Without growing. Which is sad. C. Do you suggest disbanding the Patterson Fellows for the same reason?
4. Offering 3 year contracts is good, but first you have to attract talent to give it to them. And this current round of principal hirings proves that DC is no longer attractive to the best, brightest and most experienced. Furthermore, I disagree it's the best tool. It helps but it's not enough to make a tried and true, highly skilled, experienced leader gamble his career and family's stability to move to DC.
5. No other city has trouble attracting great candidates. They don't have the horrible reputation for firing and mistreating its people. Name one other school system that hired 500 new teachers in August and had over 100 (of that 500 new to DC hires) leave by October 1st. Does.Not.Happen.Unheard of. More new hires left as the year progressed. A lot of the dysfunction in DCPS is unique to this system.

Are you recounting personal experience as a TEACHER with LEADERSHIP skills and a LOVE OF ALL CAPS who feels they have not been "slowly but surely" nurtured?

Nah, I'm looking at DC's obvious problem with attracting principal talent and suggesting a SOLUTION.

I've also suggested looking more closely at their FOREIGN LANGUAGE and bilingual teachers (of which I am not) as clearly theres's also a shortage of much needed bilingual candidates as well.

Some people are solution-oriented instead of just crying about the problem.

Some, like you, are clearly too immature to have such a mentality. You'd rather go for assumptions and snark.

PS: You DO realize there's a difference between ALL CAPS and emphasis, don't you?

[Anonymous]

Principal Announcement-

Takoma Education Campus- Loren Brody

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Principal Announcement-

Takoma Education Campus- Loren Brody

Uh-oh. Let us have it. Though I'd hate to be a new DC principal having my bio dissected on here before I had a chance to even move into my new office.

[Anonymous]

Looks like the AP from Hardy MS. Without knowing anything else about her bio, I say "Yaaaaay! Looks like DC's got one right!" She's 'in house', knows the system and they're growing their own.

Gooooo DCPS!

[Anonymous]

Just read up on HIM a bit more...former Montgomery Co & DCPS teacher. Seems like a great appointment. More than 14 years of experience in education, current DC AP.

Congrats, Tacoma!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just read up on HIM a bit more...former Montgomery Co & DCPS teacher. Seems like a great appointment. More than 14 years of experience in education, current DC AP.

Congrats, Tacoma!

Takoma

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just read up on HIM a bit more...former Montgomery Co & DCPS teacher. Seems like a great appointment. More than 14 years of experience in education, current DC AP.

Congrats, Tacoma!

Takoma

Mr. Brody seems to be a good and well-equipped choice as a leader for Takoma as it continues to improve. That said, Ms. Taylor was stellar and she will be missed!

Here is an excerpt from the text of the official DCPS letter, which they asked to be shared further online, so I hope this is ok to post:


Loren Brody began his career in education in 2001 as an English teacher at Paul Public Charter School,

where he taught for four years. In 2005, Mr. Brody became a reading teacher and literacy coach at

Gaithersburg High School. Mr. Brody then transitioned to Montgomery Village Middle School in 2007

and spent three years as a literacy specialist and staff development teacher. In 2010, Mr. Brody joined

DCPS as an assistant principal at Hardy Middle School where he remained until 2014. He was then

selected as a member of the Mary Jane Patterson Fellowship, a rigorous, 30-month program designed to

prepare DCPS's highest performing leaders for the principalship. As a fellow, Mr. Brody has served as a

resident principal at Whittier Education Campus and Truesdell Education Campus. He holds a bachelor’s

degree from Yale University and a master’s degree from Trinity University.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just read up on HIM a bit more...former Montgomery Co & DCPS teacher. Seems like a great appointment. More than 14 years of experience in education, current DC AP.

Congrats, Tacoma!

Takoma

Mr. Brody seems to be a good and well-equipped choice as a leader for Takoma as it continues to improve. That said, Ms. Taylor was stellar and she will be missed!

Here is an excerpt from the text of the official DCPS letter, which they asked to be shared further online, so I hope this is ok to post:


Loren Brody began his career in education in 2001 as an English teacher at Paul Public Charter School,

where he taught for four years. In 2005, Mr. Brody became a reading teacher and literacy coach at

Gaithersburg High School. Mr. Brody then transitioned to Montgomery Village Middle School in 2007

and spent three years as a literacy specialist and staff development teacher. In 2010, Mr. Brody joined

DCPS as an assistant principal at Hardy Middle School where he remained until 2014. He was then

selected as a member of the Mary Jane Patterson Fellowship, a rigorous, 30-month program designed to

prepare DCPS's highest performing leaders for the principalship. As a fellow, Mr. Brody has served as a

resident principal at Whittier Education Campus and Truesdell Education Campus. He holds a bachelor’s

degree from Yale University and a master’s degree from Trinity University.

Sounds awesome!

DCPS made a great choice. And they didn't have to do a national search to find this gem.

THIS is the kind of appointment we should be hearing about!

[Anonymous]

Any more announcements?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just read up on HIM a bit more...former Montgomery Co & DCPS teacher. Seems like a great appointment. More than 14 years of experience in education, current DC AP.

Congrats, Tacoma!

Takoma

Mr. Brody seems to be a good and well-equipped choice as a leader for Takoma as it continues to improve. That said, Ms. Taylor was stellar and she will be missed!

Here is an excerpt from the text of the official DCPS letter, which they asked to be shared further online, so I hope this is ok to post:


Loren Brody began his career in education in 2001 as an English teacher at Paul Public Charter School,

where he taught for four years. In 2005, Mr. Brody became a reading teacher and literacy coach at

Gaithersburg High School. Mr. Brody then transitioned to Montgomery Village Middle School in 2007

and spent three years as a literacy specialist and staff development teacher. In 2010, Mr. Brody joined

DCPS as an assistant principal at Hardy Middle School where he remained until 2014. He was then

selected as a member of the Mary Jane Patterson Fellowship, a rigorous, 30-month program designed to

prepare DCPS's highest performing leaders for the principalship. As a fellow, Mr. Brody has served as a

resident principal at Whittier Education Campus and Truesdell Education Campus. He holds a bachelor’s

degree from Yale University and a master’s degree from Trinity University.

Sounds awesome!

DCPS made a great choice. And they didn't have to do a national search to find this gem.

THIS is the kind of appointment we should be hearing about!

Definitely sounds like a logical career move. The Education Campus model is challenging to begin with and there is a lot more competition for middle school from the charters. Someone with this background sounds like they can hit the ground running with their eyes wide open about the challenges in DC and not just DCPS.

This is the type of leader I assumed would be coming out of the MJP fellowship. Any more?

[Anonymous]

We (I work for DCPS) have former MJPs at Hearst, Turner, Anacostia, now Shepherd, now Takoma, now Bunker Hill, now Kramer, Hart, now Kelly Miller, and I forget which others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We (I work for DCPS) have former MJPs at Hearst, Turner, Anacostia, now Shepherd, now Takoma, now Bunker Hill, now Kramer, Hart, now Kelly Miller, and I forget which others.

Marie Reed has one

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We (I work for DCPS) have former MJPs at Hearst, Turner, Anacostia, now Shepherd, now Takoma, now Bunker Hill, now Kramer, Hart, now Kelly Miller, and I forget which others.

Marie Reed has one

HD Cooke does too.

[Anonymous]

Were there any MJP principals on this year's hit list? DCPS hires them, but do they KEEP them? Will they be axed before year three? Principalships are short term in DCPS.