Week 1

On my first day I was not expecting to jump right into assignments. However, looking back I feel
that I should be able to perform certain assignments being at the graduate level. After being
introduced to the staff I attended meetings all day. The first meeting was a bit intimidating
because my supervisor was prepping the Executive Director for his meeting for a conference. My
supervisors responsibilities was to research some material and provide her ideas on the topics
for the conference. The meeting to follow were more relaxed for all the attendees except me. I
was expected to give input on the presentations which was a little uncomfortable being as though
I was not familiar with the content. However, I settled down and adapted and learned as the day
continued.
Thus far I have only attended one day at my internship. I dont have much to go on but at this
point I feel pretty confident in my ability to perform my duties on the site. Although I currently
work with a different population providing different services its all human services and
objective is serving the clients. My skills and knowledge of understanding people will help me at
this internship. To excel at Innovative Schools I will have to do my homework and study the
extent of education and educators throughout the state and Delaware. Part of my duties is to
understand how to provide supervision, conduct meetings, and be proficient, objective, and
knowledgeable of the material.
I plan to research and study material on Innovative Schools to improve myself. During meetings
and supervision I will take notes and study from everything that is suggested and discussed.
Something else I can try is identify weekly goals for myself. However, because my
responsibilities will vary week to week I will be better equipped to identify weekly goals after

Im introduced to all of my responsibilities. I plan to ask questions not only when unsure of
myself but to verify that I am completing the assignments to the expectations of the organization.
Week 2
This past week I have to say I learned a little more about Innovative Schools and the
organizations purpose. Every morning at 830 there is a check-in with all the staff. During the
check-in an administrator contacts the operator via telephone. At this time any personal may join
the conversion by calling the assigned number. All staff reports their agenda for the day during
the meeting/check-in. Because there are several meetings occurring throughout the day at
different locations the check-in coordinates any events with other staff that may have that same
affairs scheduled.
Thus far I have been involved in the process of preparing aspiring principles in the education
field. These individuals are part of the Delaware Leadership Program with Innovative Schools
for 12 months. These individuals are considered to be in their residency period of the program.
During their residency period they are assigned to specific school for an assigned period of time
as an intern principal. This coming week the individuals in the residency program will be
entering whats call their switch month. Switch month is where the aspiring principals will be
assigned to another school and implementing new ideas. My supervisor and I will be meeting to
schedule my new assignments being as though things will be changing. My hopes are that I will
be shadowing the interns in their respective schools to observe firsthand how leaders practice
implementing their leadership qualities with new staff in a new environment.
Innovative Schools prides themselves on striving for excellence. One method for achieving
success is serving teachers/educators through its Delaware Leadership Program (DLP)

innovative methods to educating our youth. I plan to use the same idea to continue my journey to
a leadership position. Attending trainings to keep up with up-to-date information and remain
current in my practice will be an approach that I plan to follow to increase my opportunities to
success in a leadership role.
Week 3
Week 3 has been more of learning environment for me compared to the previous two weeks. I
had the opportunity to attend the residences Comp presentation. In attendance were the
principals from each residence respective schools. I also had the opportunity to attend a training
that presented information to leaders in the community that are involved in the selection process
or the Delaware Leadership Program (DLP). During this meeting I gained valuable insight on
how resumes are selected for potential interviewees. Leaders in the hiring process look or
honesty in a resume, not so much of accolades and accomplishments. Also numbers are god in a
resume because numbers pop. In a resume its important to know your audience or the job in
which youre applying for to cater the resume and cover letter the specific job.
What I will take from this week is that I definitely need to work on improving my resume, avoid
using jargon and repeating the same information in my resume. I also need to work on
communicating. A part of me believes that I should be opening up and talking more during the
meetings. However I dont want to overstep my boundaries and I also would like to use the time
to observe how other established leaders perform. I am not sure how I will proceed but I plan to
speak to my site supervisor about my concern.
Over the previous week I was able to engage with other staff and learned that the position of
Operations focuses on policy and procedure, different kinds of insurance for the organization,

and managing the organizations budget. I was invited to inquire about any aspect of the position
and given some ideas as to what I need to consider for my learning contract. I was given the
opportunity to brainstorm this weekend on what it is I wish to receive from my intern experience
and narrow down the list to whats most important to me. I will present my list of goals to the
supervisor this upcoming week and discuss how I plan to use my internship to help me grow into
an effective high quality leader.
Week 4
This week has been by far the most stressful for myself. This week was the perfect opportunity
for me to practice my identified self soothing, de-stressing techniques from the assignment from
two weeks ago. My internship experience was productive. However, I feel like I wasnt able to
gain the full benefit because of everything else happening around me. My full-time job has a
great deal of incidences occurring all at once. At the same time I have been feeling a little off
kilter emotionally and physically.
My site supervisor was not in the office during the time I was due to her being out in the field. I
was not aware of this until daily check-in when everyone was going over the schedule for the
day. At the start of the day I was assigned to complete a spreadsheet for future students applying
for the MET program. After I completed this task I took the initiative to inquire about attending a
meeting that involved the CEO (Matt), the Chief of Operations (Ricardo), and the Fundraiser and
grant writing manager (Lesley). The meeting involved conversion regarding a grant that
Innovative Schools will be submitting in the next two weeks to a major vendor. The discussion
was in depth and difficult to follow. However, Lesley took the time to help me understand certain
details of the conversion. Following this meeting there was a second meeting to follow that I was
invited to attend. The second meeting of the day was an informative meeting about the Delaware

Leadership Program (DLP). In attendance was myself, Matt, and Lesley. I was more involved
during this meeting and asked a couple of question that I feel impressed both Matt and Lesley. In
fact afterwards I was offered to attend a training on grant writing next week.
This week I have learned that it is beneficial to engage during the meetings. Increasing my
involvement during these meetings allows others to see my potential and capabilities along with
my interest to learn while interning with this organization. Lesley has seemed to take an interest
in helping me progress and here at Innovative Schools through offering me information
regarding grants and the financial aspect of the non-profit organization. I plan to continue to
make forward steps in this process while learning to balance every aspect of my life to remain
healthy.
Week 5
This week I didnt have the opportunity to attend any meetings or training. I was informed that I
wasnt able to attend the grant writing training due to the limit amount of seats. Each
organization was allotted only two seats and Innovative Schools already appointed its personnel
to attend. This week my Supervisor was out in the field which resulted in me completing
assignments for the MET program.
MET schools is a program for children where school age kids are given the opportunity to attend
a charter school. There are a limited amount of these schools. However, children from all over
the state of Delaware are eligible to attend. The acceptance process includes an application and
selection process. The population targeted are the children that are less fortunate. The schools
purpose is to afford children from all socioeconomic background quality education. MET schools
help children with remaining motivated with their studies while preparing them for college.

My task for this week was to contact busing companies in hopes of finding transportation for the
children entering the MET program starting fall 2015. I also labeled envelops to send acceptance
letters to the children for the 2015 fall school year. When give these assignments to carry out I
was given limited instructions on how to complete the tasks. When contacting these busing
companies I was asked questions that I was not prepared for which created some concern for me.
I like to be proactive as well as prepared. Needless to say I was neither for these phone
conversions. After speaking to one of the operations manager I found that communication is not
the strong suit in the office. I also witnessed a supervisor speaking to one of his subordinates and
becoming frustrated because she wasnt understanding what he was asking of her.
After reading the material on communication I have learned that its not the sole responsibility of
the listener to hear what is being conveyed but both parties to be actively involved in the
communicating process. I witnessed the supervisor not being aware of himself or his audience.
The nonverbal presented during the conversion were unhealthy which resulted in his subordinate
timid to ask question to clarify the instructions. As leader it is imperative that I am self-aware in
my communication strengths and weaknesses. What I observed this week was definitely a
learning curve. I have to be more observant within my own skills and make sure that I ask
questions to stay true to myself by remaining proactive.
Week 6
The majority of week 6 was spent researching information to complete the agency report
assignment for class. Due to inclement of weather I was not able to attend my schedule day with
Innovative Schools. The time that I would have spent completing expected responsibilities and
duties I choose to utilize the time to research information that I wasnt able to discuss with the
supervisor and other personnel at Innovative Schools. Although it feels that Ive missed a great

deal of time at my internship I plan to make up missed hours throughout the semester. On the
other hand, I feel that I have gained a great deal information on the agency as a whole. This past
week has almost been as rewarding as previous weeks. I was able to educate myself and gain my
own perspective of how the organization operates. It was almost as if I was able to connect the
dots. The task that I have been assigned and the meeting that I have attended now serve a
purpose. I study the mission and described it in my own words as part of the agency report
assignment now Im able to recognize and appreciate each departments purpose. When looking
at each departments objective it comes together to serve as one goal which is accomplishing the
organizations mission.
Other things that I learned was the Governance of an organizations structure. Prior to this
assignment I was not familiar with the term governance of organization structure. Overall the
term looks at how the organization operates on a large scale to a smaller intricate view. Also, the
role of the intern. I understand my responsibilities when Im on the job. However, writing the
role of the intern open a different perspective for me after completing the agency report
assignment. Overall, I feel that this assignment was beneficial for me in an educational and
informative manner. However, Im highly anticipating being in attendance at Innovative Schools
for week 7.
Week 7
This past week I was assigned task from both the MET program and the Delaware Leadership
Program (DLP). After completed a couple spreadsheet I contacted potential bus companies to
transport the students. This task involved me developing a speech with information regarding the
program, locations, and the number of children with specific times. I feel that I was not given the

proper instructions and information to be prepared to answer questions. I also printed out the
presentation for an upcoming training that will occur for Delaware Leadership Program.
Week 8
This week I returned to my regular duties of shadowing the DLP Director. The week prior the
residents of the program completed their switch month. Switch month is when the residents
perform their assistant principal duties in another school. The objective was to allow the cohort
observe how another school operates and how they incorporate modern approaches into their
curriculum.
The agenda for the day was to reflect on switch months respectively, identify how change affects
the human race, and to identify how to prepare for the future. To begin the day reflections was
completed and the cohort presented with their experiences, comparing and contrasting their
occurrences. During this time the residents were instructed to role play difficult conversions to
help them prepare for confronting uncomfortable situations. During the role playing I learned
that building healthy boundaries between colleagues, subordinates, and supervisors are me and
how I present myself. Both nonverbal and verbal presentations effect how relationships develop.
An interesting topic formed from discussing boundaries and relationship building. One person
expressed that being in a leadership position she feels that she doesnt have to change who she is,
meaning present more of her personality and being less political correct. I really never received a
clear response on whether one should be themselves at all times or adapt to their surrounding and
present accordingly. However, it is something I plan to discuss further when the opportunity
presents itself. On the other hand, just going on personal experience I feel that it is imperative to
allow your personality to be a part of your position. Our personality is what keeps us unique and
sets us apart from one another. We also discussed change and the natural response to change.

This part of the discussion involved a little of personal experiences and prior knowledge. Quotes
were read from a reading by Robert Evans. We discussed change and dealing with change. One
of the topics involved resistance and how to communicate through resistance. Because one of the
models of the program is to get schools to and educators to buy into what the DLP offers a major
factor was presenting data to help substantiate the information the modern approaches. I learn
from this discussion that research is powerful and the more evidence and information the
smoother the transition for change.
Week 9
Week 9 I was assigned tasks from the MET program. It the time of year where the MET Schools
program needs to gather all documents from the potential students for the upcoming fall school
year. For the first part of the day I had to contact the parents of the potential students to verify if
their child was still planning to attend and to request a specific document that is needed to
finalize the student enrollment roster. To my surprise there was another intern working with
Innovative Schools. He was from Wilmington University as well but the undergrad programs.
This intern was animated and was really taking charge in the office. At first I thought he was an
employee of the organization the way he conducted himself and commanding attention. Im not
sure what his responsibilities are within the organization. However, his personality was one that
definitely differs from my own. During the day I was a little thrown back from his mannerisms
only because his approach in the intern position was so outgoing. After comparing how I present
myself and the discussion from the previous week on whether or not it is appropriate for a person
in a leadership position should hold back on their personality traits, there was some positives that
came from this week. I have learned that I will have to work with my identified strengths as an
effective leader. However, I feel that I need to present myself is something I will learn as I move

forward in my career. Thus far being reserved and quiet as worked for me in my current and
previous positions. I understand that there will be times where it will be expected of me to
assertive. However, I have been informed from different supervisors that Im a person that
commands respect and viewed as a quiet storm in the work place. I feel that a leader will be the
most effective if one stays true to self while allowing self to grow with experiences. I
acknowledge that there will be some qualities that I need to strengthen and that I will have to be
extroverted from time to time to lead a team to production. However, I also believe that
sometimes saying nothing speaks volumes.
Week 11
This week I had an opportunity to have a conversion with the assistant to the DLP Director. I
inquired about certain interview questions and how people in leadership positions stay
fundamentally grounded. The suggestion that I received was research organizations with values
that are similar to mine. This way the passion for what I do would not decrease or become an
afterthought. This sounds simple writing it. However, the truth I never thought of it in this way
before. I am a person where I am not able to perform well if I dont believe in what I am doing.
In other words, if an organizations mission or vision is not aligned with my values than my work
performance will probably be poor. Someone once told me an interview is not solely to impress
the employer. However, as the interviewee I should be looking for the employer to impress me as
well. I never understood what that meant until now. I now feel that it is imperative that I ask
questions during an interview concerning the mission and the vision of the program, whereas
before I always declined to asked questions. We also discussed how to answer the interview
question: If hired for the supervisors position, you may be faced with some resistance from the
staff how deal or manage this resistance? I know how to handle resistance. However, I never

know how to answer this question. I understand that as the newcomer I need to establish
professional boundaries, be respectful and include the staff after all they are the front line
workers. What learned was that my views work. However, I need to practice interviewing and
elaborate more. It was also suggested to offer to make myself available to the staff and show the
staff that as the supervisor I too am willing to perform duties outside of the job description. I feel
like this is my work ethic now. The way I perform at my place of employment is the way I would
like others to perform at my level when I become supervisor. However, I also try to stay
grounded because I fear that the position will run me verses my running the position. In other
words, I dont want to lose sight of the hard work that it took to get the position, I want to be able
to continue to work hard and be mindful of what I look for in a supervisor to be able to lead a
team effectively.
Week 12
This week I would have to say Ive learned some new things about myself. While working
toward completing the culture immersion assignment I had the opportunity to speak with a very
interesting individual. Initially I believed that I was talking to someone with a similar
background. However, thru further conversion I found that she was in fact from a different
culture. Both her parents were not from the states and she speaks about 3-4 languages. This
woman was not what initially assumed. I saw brown skin and heard no accent. I was absolutely
judging this person from their outer looks. I found that this person has a whole different way of
life than myself or any that I am familiar with. She is Haitian and Jamaican and practices
Catholicism. This will sound really ignorant but, I had no idea that there were people of color
that were Catholics. I found it interesting learning about the Haitian culture, the culture that she

identifies with. We plan to continue conversing over the next few days with hopes of me
understanding the culture and the roles within the culture to lessen my ignorance.
Week 13
This week I had the opportunity to shadow a resident in DLP at their assigned school. Little did I
know this resident was actually offered and accepted the position of the Family Foundation
Charter School Principal. During the site visit an overview of the schools history and mission of
the school were presented. We were then broken down into separate parts to observe the
educators to view for effectiveness of teaching methods. We were then asked to meet with the
teachers that were observed, individually to provide suggestions on more effective
teaching/communicating strategies for their respective grade levels. Because I didnt feel
qualified enough in the educational career field I opted to use the opportunity to inquire about
challenges, obstacles, and successes experienced since transitioning in a new leader (Principal)
of the school. I found that the lack of communication with the previous leader was a big issues
with certain staff members. The previous leader hardly ever made herself available which made
it difficult for school to act as a solid unit. Also, it has been challenging with the new appointed
leader, only because the current leader has high expectations for the staff and students, has been
introducing different models to structure lessons around, and is holding people accountable. At
the same time, the current leader has an open door policy, frequents the hallways, and
communicates openly with the staff. The most difficult question during an interview is, How
would handle any resistance or conflicts with the staff coming in as the new Supervisor? I
believe hearing from another person state how important availability and communication are to
building healthy rapport youre your staff is preferred. I feel practicing this and now being to
answer this question further prepares me for a leadership role.

Week 14
The final week of my internship. I didnt think it would be a feeling of loss. I didnt realize that I
had develop meaningful relationships with the people at Innovative Schools. I got the
opportunity to have sort of an exit meeting with one staff member outside of the Delaware
Leadership Program. I received positive feedback and nothing but blessings for me in the future.
We even exchanged numbers with hopes of keeping in contact. It was offered to me to stop by
the office anytime in the near future just to give an update of how things are going. I have to say
I really appreciate the opportunity I received in working alongside of great leaders. Looking
back, I had my doubts about completing my internship with this particular organization. The
education field is a bit outside of my scope of practice. However, the leadership and guidance
that I received from the entire staff at Innovative Schools eased my anxieties as well as any
doubts that I had talked myself into. Now, that its over I am proud of myself for stepping outside
of my comfort zone and along the way valuable relationships were established.