Administrative Entry Plan: Cougar Elementary School

Katie Wissman

Statement of Purpose:

Hello! I am thrilled to be starting as the new principal of Cougar Elementary School. I look
forward to meeting and working with the staff, students, parents, and community members my building
and district serve. While there is much to do, the purpose of this plan is to outline my goals for the first
90 days of my time with Cougar. As I become acquainted with the school, as well as the needs to the
teachers, students, and community, I will continue to revise my plan in order to best suit our building
and be as effective and meaningful as possible. We will work to continue to develop the quality
professionals within our building to enable them to create meaningful learning opportunities for their
students. My goals center on the creation and cultivation of a positive school environment in which
students feel safe and excited to learn, teachers feel supported and inspired, and parents and
community members feel welcome and involved. Through collaboration and the creation of committees
of staff and parents, we as team will work together to ensure every student’s needs are met both in and
out of the classroom.

My vision and mission as your new principal are to develop students of respectable character
that are inspired to learn, grow, and aspire in all areas of life and become competent, independent, and
contributing members of society. I will work to create a superior atmosphere of learning through
rigorous and differentiated instruction, quality educators, collaboration with parents and community
members, and meaningful educational experiences that help sponsor physical, social, and emotional
growth and enable and empower students to become life-long learners.

I believe education is one of the greatest tools a person can possess. It is endless in its depth and
once it is yours, it cannot be taken. To teach is to act as a gatekeeper to the vast wealth that is
knowledge. Through engaging, informative, and inspiring lessons, our teachers enable and encourage
students to learn more and more as they grow and aspire for greater opportunities. Every child has the
ability to learn and it is up to us to discover how to reach them. Using a myriad of differentiated lessons,
we can create experiences for students that meet their unique learning needs, abilities, and styles.
Decisions that drive these lessons should be backed by data from both formative and summative
assessments. Technology is also a valuable resource for enhancing the curriculum and making education
accessible to all. This data and technology, combined with collaboration, curriculum, and research, allow
us to make instruction meaningful and accessible for all students. A good teacher simply teaches, while
a great teacher learns. We learn from those around us as well as our own successes and failures and it is
through this reflection on our practices that we become better. Education reaches beyond the
classroom as well. The community and other stakeholders play a major role in the success of our
students. They are the backbone that supports our fundraisers, cheers us on at sporting events, and
celebrates our successes, no matter how small. A good classroom, and school district as a whole,
embraces community interactions to enrich learning opportunities for students both in and out of the
classroom.

Overall, education can be summarized as the fostering of a love of learning, the building of
character, and the commitment to success for all because in the end, students will always be the reason
we teach. I look forward to learning and working with each and every one of you as we continue the
fantastic work already occurring Cougar Elementary!

Goals:

1. Establish a positive school environment by building relationships with assistant principal,

teachers, staff, students, parents, and community members
2. Use data to initiate and drive instructional decision making
3. Encourage and increase innovation and technology usage among teachers and within
classrooms
4. Map grade level curriculum for all grades through the first and second quarters
5. Increase parental involvement with instructional content at home

Timeline:

July August September October

Pre-operational actions Goal 1 Goal 3 Goal 4
Goal 2 Goal 5

Pre-Operational Actions
Meet with school bookkeeper to review building finances, budgets, and July 2020
accounts
Meet with team leaders to discuss content area and grade level norms, July 2020
expectations, and needs
Meet with school safety and resource officers to review building safety July 2020
procedures and crisis management plan
Meet with assistant principal school counselors to discuss building schedule July 2020
and positive behavior intervention and support programs

Goal 1: Establish a positive school environment by building relationships with assistant principal,
teachers, staff, students, parents, and community members
Action Timeline Next Steps
- Home visits prior to the start of school for - Continue to be present at
all incoming 3rd graders school and community
- Welcome letter sent to the community via events throughout the
social media introducing myself and my school year
goals for the school year - Continue to administer a
- Presence in the hallways at beginning of August weekly newsletter
the year events 2020 - Post updates on school,
- Personal introductions to staff members teacher, and student
within the first week of school successes on school
sanctioned social media
 - Team building activities prior to the start of
school for all staff

Goal 2: Use data to initiate and drive instructional decision making

Action Timeline Next Steps
- Analyze previous year’s student - Establish opportunities
achievement data to determine areas of for staff collaboration
need August 2020 - Provide professional
- Meet with grade level teams and building development
specialists to identify and address areas of opportunities
student need and determine how these - Track data and monitor
areas will be targeted in the coming year progress to reevaluate
- Review Reading and Math curriculums with areas of need
grade level teams and specialists throughout the year

Goal 3: Encourage and increase innovation and technology usage among teachers and within
classrooms
Action Timeline Next Steps
- Determine teacher areas of need through - Continue to provide
conversations at team meetings and staff professional
surveys September development
- Work with the ITRT team to identify 2020 opportunities to support
different technology resources that would teacher use of
be meaningful for our students technology
- Establish professional development - Conduct walk-throughs
opportunities for teachers of classrooms to observe
how technology is being
used
- Survey teachers’ mid-
year to assess technology
progress or areas of need
Goal 4: Map grade level curriculum for all grades through the first and second quarters
Action Timeline Next Steps
- Work with grade level teams and - Establish collaborative
specialists to create curriculum maps, October times for teams to meet
gather resources, and plan integrated, 2020 throughout the school
standards-based units year
- Encourage greater cohesion between - Monitor team’s progress
content area teachers through - Conduct walk-throughs
collaborative meetings to observe lessons
- Establish a system to inform parents of - Attend team meetings to
current and up-coming material being assist as needed
covered so that they can better help their
students at home

Goal 5: Increase parental involvement with instructional content at home

Action Timeline Next Steps
- Continue with parental
- Establish a system to inform parents of communication system
current and up-coming material being - Meet with teams to
covered so that they can better help their October assess progress and areas
students at home 2020 of need
- Work with teams to create “make and take” - Establish times to bring
resources for students and families to parents in to see, make,
practice with at home and work with resources
being used in the
classroom such as a
“Make It- Take It” night