Leadership Academy helping participants develop vision for schools

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(Pictured from left to right) Brad Joyner, 17, Darrius Brown, 9, Jacqueline Dickens, 12, and Shawndrea Gunter, 11, all Edgecombe County Public Schools students, came up with a list of characteristics that they would like their teachers to exhibit at a Leadership Academy at Pattillo Elementary School Wednesday afternoon.
(Pictured from left to right) Wanda O'Neal and Dawn Winstead, teachers at G.W. Carver School, and William Ellis, principal of G.W. Carver School, discussed strategies to improve student achievement at a Leadership Academy this week at Pattillo Elementary School.

August 16, 2012

Leadership Academy helping participants develop vision for schools

Staff Writer MIRANDA BAINES The Daily Southerner Thu Aug 16, 2012, 04:06 PM EDT

TARBORO — A Leadership Academy this week at Pattillo Elementary School brings together 150 school administrators, teachers, parents and students for the goal of creating a new mission and vision for Edgecombe County’s public schools.

“Our No. 1 job is to raise student achievement, so that’s at the heart of what we’re trying to do in these plans,” said ECPS Supt. John Farrelly. Student achievement is the first initiative of the Leadership Academy; others are continuous improvement and building leadership capacity.

“I think it’s a wonderful process and one that is greatly needed with the many leadership changes that we’ve had throughout the years,” said G.W. Carver principal William Ellis,. “It creates a focus and it creates camaraderie among the district. This is something we’ve been needing for a long time.”

Ellis said he sees “a lot of excitement” in his staff about the upcoming school year, which begins August 27.

The district holds a Leadership Academy every year, but this is the first time the process has brought parents and students to the table.

“I’m trying to get the students to see that their roles as leaders in the school system are just as important [as the adults’ roles,]” said Stacie Friebel, who led facilitated student team-building activities at the academy. “I think that they have appreciated the chance to be heard, to share their thoughts.”

Jacqueline Dickens, 12, a rising student at Martin Middle School, worked with three other students Wednesday afternoon to come up with a list of characteristics she would like her teachers to display.

“We would like our teachers to be more fun and up-to-date,” said Dickens. “We want our teachers to be inspiring and understanding.”

“It’s been highly successful having parents and students working hand-in-hand with us,” said Farrelly. “The board has been involved in the work as well.”

Board member Olga Dickens described the academy as “inspiring.”

“I see the positive direction in which Edgecombe County Public Schools is going. Bringing us together is moving in the right direction,” said Dickens. “I see the issues. We have the problems, but the solutions are in here … We’re creating a dialogue now and we’re all on the same page. Student success is going to be the final outcome.”

“It is good that all stakeholders can come together for the common cause of putting this [vision] together as one,” said Dannie Williams, principal of North Edgecombe High School. “When we’re done with it, we can own it.”

Breaking down communication barriers through collaborative efforts was one of Farrelly’s intended outcomes of the process. Visibility and transparency are two of his goals as ECPS’ leader.

“I want to be visible in all communities and in all schools,” he said. He also said he will ensure that central office staff are visible in schools and classrooms throughout the county. Farrelly began working on his goal of transparency by making data pertaining to the schools accessible to community members in the academy. The data included test scores, disciplinary statistics and information, a survey about teacher working conditions, and a needs assessment of each school conducted by the Department of Public Instruction.

“The data speaks for itself,” said Pattillo principal Ronda Sortino. “We want to increase our student achievement. We want them [students] to come to school and be excited about their education.”

Sortino went on to say the academy will “help us more appropriately and more effectively create a plan that will undoubtedly benefit all of our students.”

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