We are all neighbors with needs – Reflections of the Thompson Fire
What a week it was. Its lessons seem even more important today. What week am I talking about? I’m referring to the first week of this month, July. The day I started jotting notes for this blog was July 5th. We had just finished celebrating…
My Favorite Season is Graduation Season
I have a strong opinion that school board members have two main purposes in their role as trustees: advocate and celebrate. If you get the advocacy part correct, then the number of celebrations or those that are being celebrated goes up. And who doesn’t love…
Great partnerships lead to great conversations! Meet Mission Met!
Gather around everyone. I have some great news I’d like to share with you. Cue the spotlight and drum roll. We at Beacon Results are proud to announce our partnership with our friends at Mission Met. Cue trumpets and confetti. The crowd roars with approval…
Maybe It’s Time For Recess
I think the universe is speaking to me. And it seems to be telling me that I need to take a break. A recent article in the Washington Post by Karla L. Miller argued, “The four-day workweek gaining ground in Europe. It’s time Americans give…
Student Success is NOT All About Academics
Student success is NOT all about academics. In 2013 the California Department of Education implemented the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) and Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) which expanded the focus to include both engagement (parent, student, and school climate) and conditions of learning…
Actionable Steps for Cultural Change
How do school districts achieve Cultural Change? We know we need to but knowing how to is a different story. One model for creating cultural change is listening to the community by hosting a gathering. If you are just looking to check the “action of…
Leadership is about influence, not authority
Do a google search. It doesn’t take long after typing in the words “school board meetings gone wrong” to discover just how many school board meetings really have gone wrong over the past year. Here are just a few of the headlines from the articles,…
How to Identify and Embody Values for a Healthy Culture
It has been argued by some, that great leaders inspire action because they are clear about “why” they do what they do. Victor Frankl was a survivor of four different concentration camps during World War II. In his book, Man’s Search for Meaning, he makes…
3 Steps Boards Can Take To Lead Cultural Change
Changing the culture is not easy, though I don’t know many who joined a board to maintain the status quo. Leading cultural change requires understanding why it is important to you? What is your personal connection? Cultural change happens when there is a social commitment,…
Steps to a Healthier Culture
Welcome back to A Great Conversation. In our last conversation, I explained why having a healthy culture where you work is so important. If you have a healthy culture (where people are excited to work with each other) you will always, over time, become smarter…