Atlanta in April!

My birthday was last Saturday, April 2, 2016 and I was fortunate to be able to check an item off of my "bucket list."  I was able to speak/present at a National Education Conference.

Several months ago, when I was still Principal at Speedway High School, I submitted a proposal to speak at the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) annual national conference, on the topic of our Professional Learning Community (PLC) that we developed and refined over the last seven (7) years that I was at Speedway.  I found out this winter that my proposal had been accepted and my chosen date to present (the conference was April 2-4) was on my birthday!  To make it even better, the conference was in Atlanta, GA

The PLC is something I'm very passionate about at the high school level. Over eight years ago, two of my veteran teachers came to me with the idea of trying to put a PLC together.  We developed a proposal and gave it to our Superintendent and he approved of the idea.  So, for the last seven years as Principal, our staff met every Monday morning, from 7:50-8:40 am in our HS Library to make a commitment to excellence, focus on the process of teaching and learning, and create the best environment for our students to learn in.

I feel like the presentation went very well.  I presented not only the system that we used but also specific programs and improvements that came out of our collaborative time as well as specific data to show the positive impact our PLC had on our learning community over the seven year period.  I received a lot of positive feedback from the participants plus several requests for more information in the form of emails afterward.  It was a flattering and humbling experience and one I'm glad I was able to participate in.

So, one more item checked off and many, many more to go!

If you know me at all, you know I'm a huge fan of Abraham Lincoln.  I've taken the 5 quotes below from a young author, Kevin Choong (MotivationK).

5 Lessons You Can Learn From the Quotes of Abraham Lincoln

1.  Develop a Positive Mindset:  "Most Folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be."
2.  Prepare Yourself:  "I will prepare and some day my chance will come."
3.  It is okay to be slow, just keep moving forward:  "I'm a slow walker, but I never walk back."
4.  Don't wait for your dreams to happen, make it happen:  "The best way to predict your future is to create it."
5.  Be a generous person:  "Whatever you are, be a good one."

http://addicted2success.com/success-advice/5-lessons-you-can-learn-from-the-quotes-of-abraham-lincoln/

Five Great Quotes From Coaches

I'll apologize up front, I have a background in athletics.  Sorry.  That being said, some of the greatest influences on me have come from things I've seen, heard or been a part of through athletics.  Here are five of the best quotes I've taken from coaches:

1.  "Focus on the process, not the results"  John Wooden, legendary basketball coach from UCLA.
2.  "The difference between who you are today and who you will be in five years will be as a result of the books you read and the people you listen to."  Lou Holtz, football coach.
3.  "The harder you work, the harder it is to surrender." Vince Lombardi, NFL Football Coach
4.  "Leadership, like coaching, is fighting for the hearts and souls of men and getting them to believe in you." Eddie Robinson, legendary football coach from Grambling.
5.  "Leadership is getting someone to do what they don't want to do, to achieve what they want to achieve." Tom Landry, NFL Football Coach