Winny Llorens Dr.

May April 20, 2013 Competency Reflections on Experiences and Aspirations

Competency 001: Shape a college bound campus culture to instill pride in the school to improve learning: Included PTO in the tradition of Field Day by delegating the Field Day t-shirts project to them. This fundraiser for athletics is very involved and time consuming. These days are fun for the students and they look forward to them from the beginning of the year. Initiated and completed the athletic banners project, which gave a visual to the school community of the success of our athletes. Help was solicited from parents and coaches. The annual athletic banquet acknowledges the efforts of all athletes and praises each one for their contributions. Parents and all coaches worked on this project. Met with middle school HPE coaches to establish a strong Health and Physical Education Program for our students since we have them for nine years, kindergarten through eighth grade. This is an excellent opportunity to affect their lives in a positive way. The new schedule for middle school HPE is 1 hours twice a week and 45 minutes on Mondays. I recommended teaching health on Mondays and they heeded that advice. Field day is tradition for all elementary students; it brings the school community together to watch fun competitive athletic events. Middle school is hosting this event for 6th and 8th grade. Continue to work on projects to provide stimulating opportunities for GT students. An equal focus should be placed on struggling students as well as GT students. Become website literate; keep the information current about the school, with a focus on good news. Competency 002: Facilitate an involved school community: Provided all stakeholders of the school community an opportunity to participate in the Advantages and Disadvantages of Breakfast in the Classroom study. Support other programs by collaborating with elementary ancillary team, as team leader, to work together for the good of the whole child. We support the musicals, fine arts festival, and the three field days as a team by sacrificing our limited time with the students for these other programs. Solicited help from the PTO for our annual athletic banquet, giving them an opportunity to be involved. Solicit help for the business community to build relationships for involvement SDMC and financial assistance. Competency 003: Integrity, fairness, ethical, legal Model following the rules through acts of integrity; I know the UIL rules and train coaches and at times parents to follow them. Professional development on competitive greatness through Coach Woodens Pyramid of Success is an excellent guideline for personal success through character building in these areas, I recommended the program to the school. This program is used in businesses as

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well as athletics and can be applied in the classroom. I utilize this with all elementary students and middle school athletes that I coach. Continue to utilize PLC concepts that make the students our focus; this ensures that we answer all three questions, what do we want the students to learn, how are we going to get them to learn, and what will be done if they do not learn. This is a process achieved through self-reflection not blame.

Competency 004: Instructional Leader that enhances teaching and learning and promotes a variety of student assessments to measure growth. Create and review data and either implement change or spread the good news, share the success with faculty. Begin with the success from within the school. This mantra, if you will, produces better teachers and administrators. As an administrator, a priority would be to provide the technology that supports gathering data on student performance regularly. Best practices is paramount to the success of not just the school but each student. Department heads and team leaders would be responsible for using research-based literature and resources to keep abreast of new methods, techniques, content, and professional development for their respective disciplines. I model this through actively pursuing PD opportunities. Competency 005: advocate, nurture, and sustain strong instructional programs PLCs, are an excellent tool for sharing best practices. Research professional development to ensure it is significant and content specific. Encourage flexible instructional programs and provide appropriate resources for student and teacher success. Competency 006: Staff evaluation and development It is important for an administrator to model being a lifelong learner. I maintain GT certification, coaching certifications, attend annual trainings to keep abreast of best practices then incorporate new coaching techniques with athletes and HPE classes. A strong leader acknowledges different disciplines, encourages self-evaluation, and allows individualized professional development. He or she knows when to incorporate staff trainings that develop the whole child such as school-wide discipline, and multicultural, drug, and safety awareness. It is important to commit to the appraisal system as an important instrument designed to help students learn. Feedback helps the most effective teacher evaluate their systems. Assessments should be student/learning focused not teacher/teaching focused. The important question is; are the students learning what they are supposed to be learning, not is the teacher teaching what he or she is supposed to be teacher, because the latter can happen without the former. Competency 007: Applies organizational, decision-making and problem solving skills to ensure an effective learning environment.

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It is important to establish a system to handle discipline. This system initiates with the classroom teacher. Students must remain in the learning environment to learn. Every staff member must be trained with problem-solving skills to handle most discipline problems in the classroom. A communication system is imperative. Teachers must feel that the administrative team is accessible and supportive. Circular systems for monitoring, evaluating, revising then monitoring, evaluating, and revising must be clear in how this process will be done, when it will be done, and who will be responsible.

Competency 008: Effective leadership and management of the budget, personnel, resources, and technology. Simultaneously peaking academic performance through financial efficiency. A strong leader can make solid decisions about personnel and can effectively manage budgets to maximize resources. This is evident through my Athletic Fund Procedures. Competency 009: Ensures a safe and effective learning environment Students safety is a priority. This includes maintaining a clean building. Implementing highly monitored monthly fire drills, instituting at least semi-annual shelter in place drills, and installing security cameras are major systems to achieve safety for the school community. Limited access and card key entry to the building will improve safety. Training the administrative team to view video footage to research infractions or monitor situations when concerns arise will improve safety as well. A well-trained staff in first aid, AED, and security procedures is essential. AEDs must be strategically placed in case of an emergency and students must be taught the severity of false alarms.