A Principal's Reflections

JULY 9, 2014

Today is the day that I formally announce my decision to step down as New Milford High School Principal, a decision that has been most difficult to make. Image credit: [link] Almost ten years ago, I was presented with an opportunity to begin my educational leadership career at NMHS. My last day will be September 3.

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Leadership K-12 High School Cultures 419

A Principal's Reflections

FEBRUARY 27, 2022

When it comes to leadership, there is no one right way or quick fix. From a learning standpoint, this requires a focus on pedagogical leadership , something I learned over time when I was a principal, which required taking a critical lens to my practice if I was going to help my staff do the same.

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A Principal's Reflections

JANUARY 27, 2019

A good deal of the strategies presented came from what we successfully implemented at New Milford High School where I was the former principal. Through the lens of an instructional and leadership coach, I have been able to see firsthand how schools across the country and world are implementing innovative change with this goal in mind.

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A Principal's Reflections

JANUARY 30, 2022

One of the most powerful teaching and leadership strategies is the act of modeling. Below is a quick list: I Do, We Do, You Do Think Alouds Explicit Modeling In terms of leadership, example is everything when it comes to empowering people to change. While the "why" might initially motivate, the "how" empowers others to take action.

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A Principal's Reflections

JUNE 8, 2014

For many years New Milford High School was just like virtually every other public school in this country defined solely by traditional indicators of success such as standardized test scores, graduation rates, and acceptances to four year colleges. Online courses through the Virtual High School implemented in 2010.

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A Principal's Reflections

NOVEMBER 2, 2014

Watching the video above is a painful reminder of my lack of leadership at one point. During the early years as a high school principal I worked terribly hard to sustain practices that had been ingrained into the school learning culture. Change Digital Leadership educational leadership Opinion Seth Godin'

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A Principal's Reflections

APRIL 19, 2020

In the end, flexibility will lead to success and is a hallmark of empathetic leadership. By embracing digital leadership, you can connect with others near and far to find out what has been successful in other districts or schools and also veer away from roadblocks that others have encountered.

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A Principal's Reflections

JANUARY 26, 2014

It really puts into perspective why we make many of the decisions that we do at New Milford High School as to why we decided to implement a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiative and don''t mandate the use of one specific tool to support learning. His tweet contained this message, "Don''t let the device drive instruction.

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Artifacts Pedagogy Educational Technology Leadership 403

A Principal's Reflections

OCTOBER 24, 2021

Innovative Environment and Pedagogy Provision of an effective and supportive learning environment that enables participating at-promise learners to improve their academic performance to attain applicable performance standards and graduate from high school. Family engagement is an essential component of any alternative learning program.

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A Principal's Reflections

FEBRUARY 23, 2014

Over the past couple of months, the staff at New Milford High School has been diligently creating our own unique learning environments for our students. Laura is also working on bringing the campus of New Milford High School into the cloud. Stay tuned as we continue our transformation!

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A Principal's Reflections

JUNE 21, 2015

This was a natural connection to my work as a high school principal as you will not find an effective leader who is not an effective communicator. So there I was churning out tweets about everything going on at New Milford High School. and a commitment to the community.

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The Hechinger Report

APRIL 6, 2025

A recent poll suggests that nearly half of Americas school districts are led by a superintendent who is considering stepping down in the next two to three years; one in five principals leaves the job each year. We have a crisis in K-12 educational leadership one that receives little attention. Sign up for Hechingers weekly newsletter.

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A Principal's Reflections

AUGUST 19, 2018

Growing up as a child I played numerous sports recreationally and in high school. Upon entering high school I was not the best athlete by any means, but football was one sport where I excelled more than others, and this led to some time playing in college.

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Leadership Professional Development Pedagogy High School 365

Passion for Social Studies

JANUARY 11, 2025

Students learn about such a wide range of politics in high school history classes. For example, teaching Nixon is a crucial aspect of American history due to his leadership, insights, and evolution of politics. While some courses are about foreign countries, others focus on what is happening in the United States.

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A Principal's Reflections

JUNE 22, 2014

It goes without saying that education, schools, and professional practice need to change in order to provide learners with the necessary skill sets to succeed in today’s ever-growing digital world. This is no easy feat, something that I experience each day of my professional life as a high school principal.

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A Principal's Reflections

NOVEMBER 29, 2020

It was at this point about four years ago, where I began to embrace and model the very same strategies that were being used at my high school when I was a principal. Engagement was amplified with a focus on the how, exemplars from all types of schools, and the use of digital tools to provide everyone with an opportunity to respond.

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A Principal's Reflections

NOVEMBER 10, 2013

I am very excited about my upcoming book titled “ Digital Leadership: Changing Paradigms for Changing Times ” which will be published by Corwin Press. The entire book looks at leadership through the lens of practitioners in the digital age. I think it is important to first look at the concept of leadership in general.

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A Principal's Reflections

APRIL 24, 2014

Image credit: [link] Even if they might see some value they are still convinced that it cannot be used safely in schools as it is a violation of the Child Internet Protection Act (CIPA), goes against the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), promote cheating, and are a catalyst for cyberbullying. Case in point.

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A Principal's Reflections

OCTOBER 8, 2023

During a recent coaching visit as part of ongoing work with Quest Academy Junior High School, I witnessed a co-taught experience that was implemented exceptionally well. Change typically only occurs with effective leadership.

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A Principal's Reflections

MARCH 16, 2014

His work really made me critically reflect upon my leadership practices. The power of social media then connected the both of us leading to him Skyping with the students at New Milford High School, a personal dialogue over the years, and his endorsement of my new book on Digital Leadership.

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A Principal's Reflections

APRIL 7, 2019

To provide more learning opportunities for our students, the Academies @ New Milford High School were launched during my tenure as principal. Think of it as a school within a school. OIive High School in New Jersey has done in this area. Olive Middle School in New Jersey. Be sure to check out what Mt.

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The Hechinger Report

AUGUST 13, 2024

Like many high school chemistry teachers, Angie Hackman instructs students on atoms, matter and, she says, how they “influence the world around us.” Yet, by the time students graduate, he said, the goal at the secondary school is that they have “reading levels ready for college.”

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A Principal's Reflections

FEBRUARY 2, 2020

One of the best parts about job-embedded, on-going work with school districts is facilitating a variety of professional learning opportunities. They have utilized me as a keynoter, coach (leadership and teaching), and workshop presenter.

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A Principal's Reflections

SEPTEMBER 28, 2014

The summer of 2013 was probably one of the most important hiring years during my seven-year tenure as a high school principal. The hiring process can make or break a school culture. In my opinion great leaders surround themselves by great people.

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A Principal's Reflections

SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

education educational leadership Inspiration New Milford High School Opinion Sarah Almeda' Not for money, perks, or fame, but to positively impact kids because it is what we were meant to do. ALL OF YOU ARE HAVING AN IMPACT!

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A Principal's Reflections

AUGUST 20, 2023

It can also be stated emphatically that I was not looking to leave New Milford High School or was forced out. In short, we vehemently focused on improving teaching, learning, and leadership through a shared vision, clarity of purpose, innovative practices, and clear evidence of impact.

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A Principal's Reflections

DECEMBER 28, 2014

The year began like so many others had in the past with me as Principal of New Milford High School. Here are some professional highlights from 2014: Digital Leadership was published by Corwin on January 14, 2014. On July 9, 2014, I officially announced my decision to step down as Principal of New Milford High School.

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The Hechinger Report

DECEMBER 2, 2024

In 2022, the most recent year for which data is available, fewer than 40 percent of students ages 18 to 24 enroll, and fewer than one-third enroll in a four-year school. There is no one roadmap for success after high school, and schools should consider structuring curriculum and career services to reflect that.

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A Principal's Reflections

AUGUST 21, 2022

A meta-analysis of 213 school-based, universal social and emotional learning (SEL) programs involving 270,034 kindergarten through high school students showed promising results. At the International Center for Leadership in Education (ICLE), we developed a relationships model in partnership with Dr.

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The Hechinger Report

FEBRUARY 4, 2025

Theres a half-billion-dollar federal program that is supposed to help students with disabilities get into the workforce when they leave high school, but most parents and even some school officials dont know it exists. I just wish we could have gotten help while he was still in high school. But he never got that.

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A Principal's Reflections

SEPTEMBER 29, 2019

The bottom line is that all educators yearn for quality professional learning as opposed to development that leads to sustained improvements in teaching, learning, and leadership. Over the years, I have been blessed to be a part of several long-term professional learning projects in schools and districts across the United States.

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A Principal's Reflections

APRIL 9, 2017

A hallmark of great leadership is creating the conditions to arrive at consensus when major decisions will impact the entire school or district. During my time as a high school principal this seemed to be more the norm than the exception. So what do you do when faced with juggling numerous issues at a time?

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A Principal's Reflections

AUGUST 15, 2014

This post is my contribution to Leadership Day 2014. As many people know I stepped down as Principal at New Milford High School this past July and my last day will be on September 3. During my tenure I not only worked to improve every facet of the school, but I also became a connected educator in 2009.

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A Principal's Reflections

JUNE 21, 2020

The image below begins to visualize what this could look like as schools begin to transform teaching, learning, and leadership. Face-to-face It’s not a matter if, but when kids return to school. My hope is that schools take it. Block scheduling: A catalyst for change in high schools. Canady, R.

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Dangerously Irrelevant

JULY 26, 2021

[To celebrate our upcoming book, Leadership for Deeper Learning , I am publishing an excerpt each day for a week before its release. We interviewed leaders at 30 different ‘deeper learning’ schools around the world in 2019 and 2020. Also, every main chapter concludes with Key Leadership Behaviors and Support Structures.

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Leadership Tradition High School Teaching 121

A Principal's Reflections

FEBRUARY 16, 2020

The stage was set over the summer for me to work six days in each of their three schools to assist with teaching, learning, and leadership associated with their 1:1 implementation. During my first visit to the high school in August, I spent the entire day visiting classrooms and then providing feedback to the admin team.

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A Principal's Reflections

MARCH 26, 2015

Inspired by the popular EdCamp movement, and facilitated by Jimmy Casas , Principal of Bettendorf High School in Iowa and Jim Warford , of the International Center for Leadership in Education , this strand makes it possible for any participant to take the stage and present on an education-related passion. Hope to see you there!

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