The Modern Principal Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Leading Effective Meetings Aug 27, 2024

Show notes

Have you ever worried your staff are sending "This meeting could have been an email" memes to each other during your weekly staff meeting? In this week's episode, Karen and Christy walk you through the basics of facilitating meetings that get results!

Learn how:

- to use meetings to further your vision

- prepare meetings where work gets done

- make meetings more efficient

If you like this episode, be sure to check out our Leading Effective Meetings course with even more examples, resources, and information!

References:
How to Run a Meeting by Antony Jay, Harvard Business Review
The Economic Impact of Bad Meetings, TED
Steven Rogelberg
The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker

New Season Kick-Off! Aug 12, 2024

Show notes

Karen and Christy are BACK in action! Hear about what they've been up to over the last school year, where they're headed this year, and what you can expect from this new season of The Modern Principal Podcast!

How to Sustain Your School's Vision Apr 08, 2024

Show notes

This conversation explores the importance of sustaining a vision in education and provides practical strategies for doing so. Christy and Karen share personal anecdotes about their experiences as principals, highlighting the challenges and successes they encountered. They discuss the role of mindset and implementation in achieving a shared vision, emphasizing the need for clear roles and frequent feedback. The conversation also delves into the importance of tackling hurdles and conducting SWOT analysis to address weaknesses and threats. Additionally, the hosts explore ways to involve families and share stories to reinforce the vision. Listen to find out more about vision sessions and engaging in collective thinking to keep the vision alive!

How to Create a Vision for Your School Apr 01, 2024

Show notes

Creating a vision for a school is an important responsibility of a leader.In this episode, Karen and Christy discuss the process of creating a vision for a school. They provide steps for creating a vision, including gathering stories, identifying themes, and drafting a why statement. They also discuss the challenges of creating a vision and the need for ongoing communication and repetition.

Be sure to check out Part 2 of this series for tips on sustaining a vision!

Using Conflict to Improve Your School Culture Sep 11, 2023

Show notes

On this week's episode, Karen and Christy discuss the idea that conflict is natural - and even necessary - in a school culture.

Listen to hear more about:

- how to use personality tests to create common language and understanding
- normalizing conflict
- creating a safe environment for conflict to occur

This episode was sponsored by Just Right Reader and Peer-Driven PD.

Shared Leadership: What to Do When Staff Don’t ”Stay in Their Lane” Sep 05, 2023

Show notes

Ever had a staff member who shares lots of opinions on things that maybe don't apply to her? You probably want to acknowledge her concerns but also encourage her to "stay in your lane!" On this week's episode, Karen and Christy talk about:

- why you should feel grateful when staff bring complaints out of their "lane"

- how to use teams to improve decision-making and reduce complaints

- setting ground rules for sharing feedback

This podcast is sponsored by Just Right Reader and Peer-Driven PD.

Communicating Student Behaviors with Parents Aug 28, 2023

Show notes

It can be anxiety-inducing for a principal to relay negative information to parents but especially when their child has made a mistake or engaged in a major behavior. On this episode of the pod, Karen and Christy talk about:

- how to get on top of behavior communication before the behavior even occurs

- tips to prepare for a calm conversation

- writing communication plans into behavior plans

and more!

Check out our website at www.themodernprincipal.com and on social media @themodernprincipal.

This episode is sponsored by: Just Right Reader and Peer-Driven PD.

Impact of Physical Resources on Students and Teachers Aug 21, 2023

Show notes

In this episode, Christy and Karen interview Dr. Samantha Keppler, Assistant Professor of Technology and Operations, who studies education operations, or the management of human and material resources, in public schools.

In this episode Dr. Keppler helps principals:

- understand the current data (or lack thereof) regarding how teachers are supplementing resources in their classrooms

- the correlation of funded crowdsourcing projects and student achievement

- the correlation of funded crowdsourcing projects on teacher retention

- the complicated role of the principal in providing physical resources to staff

Samantha M. Keppler received her PhD in Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences from the Robert R. McCormick School of Engineering at Northwestern University. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Technology and Operations at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. Her research focuses on resource operations and management in public education. Before graduate school, she was a public school math teacher in New York City. Learn more about her work at www.samanthakeppler.com or email her at srmeyer@umich.edu.

Leading Math Instruction with Make Math Moments Aug 14, 2023

Show notes

On this week's pod, Karen and Christy chat with Kyle Pearce and Jon Orr, the math instructional experts behind MakeMathMoments.com.

You'll find:

- the best thing a principal can do to improve math instruction

- the importance of content knowledge

- offerings from Kyle and Jon that can help your school

Check them out here:
www.makemathmoments.com - Math Math Moments Academy, District Improvement Planning, Courses

https://makemathmoments.com/podcast/ - Make Math Moments Podcast

https://makemathmoments.com/districtassessment/ - Mathematics Program Assessment Screener for Leadership Teams

Kyle is the K-12 Mathematics Consultant with the Greater Essex County District School Board and Jon is a high school math teacher at John McGregor Secondary School in the Lambton-Kent District School Board in Ontario Canada. Together, they co-founded Make Math Moments where they develop professional development and classroom resources for K-12 educators and district leaders to spark curiosity, fuel sense making and ignite teacher moves.

Secondary Staff Collaboration and Culture Building Aug 07, 2023

Show notes

This week's pod welcomes Dr. Danielle Ricci, a high school principal and an educational leader with an expertise in cultivating collaborative cultures. Her research focuses on how school administrators lead teacher collaboration. Her background as an athlete has helped her to keep the concept of team at the heart of her work. Danielle is a wife, a mom to five, including newborn twins, and a cold-water enthusiast who swims in the Atlantic Ocean year-round to save her principal sanity! Danielle shares with us:

- scheduling strategies to optimize staff collaboration

- parent engagement solutions

- student culture considerations!