|
|
 Welcome to the November edition of our Executive Leader Alert newsletter!
GLISI's high-performing districts continue to earn state and national recognition. Read highlights below for the details. Remember that GLISI offers performance strategies and sessions to help your district achieve desired results. GLISI also offers expert Performance Consultants who are available to listen carefully and address your needs.
As the holiday season nears, we wish everyone a wonderful time and safe travels. We look forward to working with each of you in the coming year to continue making gains in education leadership in Georgia and across the nation. Your work is critical to our success, so thanks for your support. |
|
|
|
| GLISI Schools & Districts Recognized for Gains in Achievement |
GLISI is proud of the work its districts achieve and celebrates the recognition these districts deserve.
Jasper County Primary, a 2008-2009 GLISI school, was named a 2009 Georgia School of Excellence for greatest gains. Twenty-seven schools were chosen this year as those that have shown the greatest improvement or highest achievement across the state and several districts across the state were represented. Schools are chosen from two categories based on criteria:
1. "Top 10%: Schools that are in the top 10 percent in Georgia as measured by assessments in reading and mathematics.
2. Greatest Gains: Schools that demonstrated greatest continuous gains in student achievement for the past five years as measured by assessments in reading and mathematics" (GaDOE, 2009).
Districts create conditions for high-achieving schools to flourish and 17 GLISI districts have 2009 Schools of Excellence: Appling, Atlanta Public Schools, Decatur City, Dougherty, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Hall, Houston, Jasper, Lowndes, Oconee, Oglethorpe, Pike, Rockdale, and Ware. Congrats to all these schools and districts. To read the full GaDOE press release, click here.
All four of the 2009 Title I Distinguished Districts are GLISI districts: Henry County, Marietta City, Brooks County, and Chattahoochee County. This award is for districts that have closed the achievement gaps the most between economically disadvantaged students and those who are not. The districts receive $50,000 each from federal funds. Henry County and Chattahoochee County have also participated in GLISI's Rising Stars Program. To read more and see the other awarded districts and schools, click here. |
| Nine GLISI Districts Honored as National Top-Ranking Digital Districts |
 The Digital School Districts Survey recognizes schools and districts that use digital technology to interface with students, parents, and communities, to govern, and to better operations. Congrats to GLISI districts Clayton, Forsyth, Richmond, Fayette, Jones, Jefferson City, Marietta City, Chickamauga City, and Charlton for their top-ten rankings in their respective size categories. To read the full story, click here. |
| Update on GLISI Base Camp and Leadership Summit 2009-2010 |
Got School Improvement? Two hundred eighty-five (285) leaders across twenty-six (26) districts participated in Cohorts 26 and 27 of GLISI's foundational training, Base Camp and Leadership Summit. These leadership teams, led by the Superintendent or Superintendent-designee include principals, assistant principals, district and teacher leaders. Participants left Stone Mountain equipped with performance tools and enhanced skills to lead district and school-based teams to achieve data-driven, targeted goals aimed at addressing identified needs in school improvement. An additional one hundred twenty-two (122) leaders from twelve (12) districts will be participating in Cohort 28 (January 11-13, 2010 and February 8-10, 2010).
Base Camp and Leadership Summit, the cornerstone of GLISI's leadership development experience, provide a systemic process that accelerates progress toward your district mission by engaging key stakeholders in team-based improvement. This process, when applied to your current and emerging improvement strategies, builds leader skills and commitment, develops a common language, and strengthens collaboration to meet and exceed identified goals. Participants consistently tell us that Base Camp and Leadership Summit represent the best professional training they have ever attended. Participants recommend GLISI's Core Training Process at a score of 3.77 on a 4-point scale. See GLISI's Success Cases to see sample results from GLISI Cohort districts. |
| Want to give your opinion about statewide education reform? |
| Georgia is applying for a Race to the Top (RT3) grant from the USDOE and your input is needed! RT3 is a $4 billion Federal fund that provides competitive grants to States to implement ambitious plans in four education reform areas:
a. great teachers and leaders
b. turning around the lowest-achieving schools
c. common standards and assessments
d. data systems to support instruction
Georgia's RT3 planning process, led by the Governor's Office, is an ongoing dialogue with all those invested in education. Please take time to complete the stakeholder surveys to provide input to the final proposal. The K-12 educator survey can be accessed here; the stakeholder survey, for all others, can be accessed here. Both surveys will be available until December 8, 2009.
For complete information, please visit Georgia's RT3 website, hosted by the Governor's Office of Student Achievementhere, here, or the USDOE website, here. Georgia's application is due January 19, 2010 and awards will be announced in April 2010. |
| GLISI Success Case: Polk School District and Leadership POLK |
 With the help of GLISI's breakthrough processes, programs, and consulting, districts all over the state are improving student achievement and organizational effectiveness. GLISI Performance Consultants are documenting these results through the Success Case Methodology.
Have you ever worried how you will fill the next leadership vacancy with a quality candidate? Have you considered growing your own leaders? Are you engaging all all key stakeholder groups to invest in the development of aspiring leaders for your district's future? If so, you will find the Polk County Success Case well worth your investment of time. Click here to discover how Superintendent Marvin Williams and his team addressed these issues, expanding ownership and leadership among its stakeholders in the process. Contact Gale Hulme, gale.hulme@glisi.org, or your GLISI Performance Consultant if you have documented results of your district's full implementation of GLISI training and would be interested in telling your success story.
Read more GLISI Success Cases on our Web site on the "Results" page. |
| Performance Tip: Use the Balanced Scorecard to support District SACS Accreditation |
 The SACS review process helps districts and schools earn and maintain accreditation by providing external checks, support, and feedback (AdvancED 2007). When preparing for SACS review, you can save a great deal of time and effort by leveraging your district's current Balanced Scorecard. With a few modifications, your Balanced Scorecard can serve as evidence for meeting the SACS standards. Moreover, the Balanced Scorecard facilitates ongoing self-assessment and continuous improvement and the documentation of improvement efforts, both of which are critical to SACS Accreditation.
To assist schools and districts looking to engage in the SACS process, GLISI has created a two performance-based modules as a part of its Balanced Performance Improvement Series. These modules assist school and district leaders to use their Balanced Scorecards to make a positive impact on all areas of school and district performance. If your district or school does not have a Balanced Scorecard these and other Balanced Performance Improvement modules will support your efforts to create one to support your accreditation efforts. For more information on using the Balanced Scorecard to support SACS Accreditation using GLISI Performance-based Modules contact Scott Cowart at scott.cowart@glisi.org. |
| Questions? Contact us. |
 Gale HulmeGLISI
Executive Director
 Scott Cowart
GLISI
Contact Gale Hulme, Scott Cowart, or your GLISI Performance Consultant if we can help you shape your 2009-2010 professional development plans. |
|
Georgia Leadership Institute for School Improvement
760 Spring Street, Room 217
Atlanta, Georgia 30308
Phone: (404) 385-4090
Fax: (404) 385-4151 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
