Iowa ASCD is proud to present the 14th Annual Curriculum Leadership Academy, "Students as Partners:  A Focus on Learning."  Whether you are a curriculum director, a principal, a superintendent, a teacher, or a teacher leader with curriculum responsibilities, this Academy is designed for you!! Join us on April 21 as we feature Dr. Rick Wormeli, expert on Differentiated Instruction. On April 22, Dr. Scott McLeod will present information on Personalized Learning, and school districts from across the state of Iowa will share their experiences on differentiated instruction and personalized learning.

Conference Location:  Iowa Events Center, 730 Third Street, Des Moines, IA

Cost: 

• $250 now for Iowa ASCD members ($295 after April 15)
• $295 now for non-members ($335 after April 15)  Nonmembers receive complimentary one-year membership in Iowa ASCD.
• Cost includes continental breakfast and lunch each day.

Lodging Opportunities:  (Be sure to ask for Iowa ASCD rate and reserve by March 21)

• Marriott Downtown ($125), 700 Grand Avenue, Des Moines, IA (800-228-9290 or 515-245-5500)
• Quality Inn and Suites ($109), 929 3rd Street, Des Moines, IA (515-282-5251)

Voting opens March 15 and runs through April 30 to ASCD members. Information on the candidates, including a candidate video, are available on this ASCD website.

The candidates in the general membership election are:

• Phillip Caposey, Superintendent, Meridian Community Unit School District 223, Stilman Valley, Illinois

• Ember Conley, Superintendent, Park City School District, Park City, Utah

• Lou Howell, Executive Director of Iowa ASCD, Urbandale, Iowa

• Melanie Kay-Wyatt, Principal, Fredericksburg City Schools, Fredericksburg, Va.

• Thomas Tramaglini, Superintendent, Kenilworth School District, Kenilworth, N.J

A great book you may want to consider - if not for now at least on your summer reading list - is The Multiplier Effect:  Tapping the Genius inside Our Schools by Liz Wiseman, Lois Allen, and Elise Foster.

This book takes a close look at five disciplines of multipliers, compared to diminishers.  Multipliers are . . .

• Talent Finders:  They attract talented people and use them at their highest point of contribution, compared to Gatekeepers, who hoard resources and under-utilize talent.
• Liberators:  They create an intense environment that requires people's best thinking and work, compared to Tyrants who create a tense environment that suppresses people's thinking and capability.
• Challengers:  They define an opportunity that causes people to stretch, compared to Know-It-Alls who give directives that showcase how much they know.
• Community Builders:  They drive sound decisions by constructing debate and decision-making forums, compared to Decision Makers who make centralized, abrupt decisions that confuse the organization.
• Investors:  They give other people the ownership for results and invest in their success, compared to Micro-Managers who drive results through their personal involvement.

Multipliers believer that 1)  people are  smart; 2) intelligence in dynamic, and that 3) curiosity sparks intelligence.   

 

The authors remind us that "behavior follows assumptions." Multipliers check their assumptions.  For example, they believe/assume that intelligence grows with challenge.  So they practice asking hard questions instead of giving answers.  Their staff/students must think harder and find answers and their contribution to the organization/classroom is that they give 100% of their current capability and grow in the process.

 

This is a book for every educational leader trying to navigate the resource strain of tough times.  It is a message for leaders who must accomplish more by getting more out of their people by multiplying the intelligence and capability around them.

• Multipliers are "genius makers" and bring out the intelligence in others.  They build collective, viral intelligence in the organization.
• Multipliers believe people are smart and will figure it out!
• Multipliers get 2.3 times the results compared to Diminishers.

This book is a framework to help you develop the practices of a Multiplier.  Read it now!  Develop new practices that will get a great return on your time, effort, and practices. 

 

It's hard for me, Lou Howell, to believe that this May marks my 50th year since high school graduation.  As I reflect on the time and the learning that has happened since then, I would like every educator to know "What 50 Years Gets You!"  And the simple answer is experience and wisdom.

• Experience - some came easily and some came through hard knocks.   It's important that we all realize that the experiences themselves won't be as important as what we do as a result of those experiences. 
• Wisdom - it comes from reflecting and learning from all those experiences.

• Purpose:  It's more than a goal!  more than a target!  It is meaning - and the heartbeat of your life and your work!  Purpose is what connects everything and makes every effort count!
• People:  Relationships!  Relationships!  Relationships!  Whether in your family, your schools, or other work, people are the power of any organization.  And their power is in teamwork!  And the power of the team is in its diversity.  Bottom line:  People make it happen!
• Passion:  Passion is the energy that fuels your momentum.  It is infectious - it brings meaning to your life and fuels your soul!
• Perseverance:  It's not working hard or long!  Perseverance is commitment - commitment to your purpose, commitment for the people you serve, and commitment with passion.  

• "We learn by doing IF we reflect on what we have done." John Dewey, an educator 100 years ago, shared this. I use it to celebrate my todays and guide my tomorrows.
• Thomas Jefferson said, "When it comes to style, swim with the current. When it comes to principles, stand like a rock." Know yourself - your values/who you are - and be true to those values every day.
• "Never rest, til' good be better and better best!" Mother Goose reminds us to never give up - to keep going! to keep getting better!
• Christopher Robins said to Pooh: "You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." Hang in there - everything happens for a reason - so deal with it!
• Budda said, "Do your best!" That is all we can ask of ourselves and others. Be your own "untapped genius"!

• Have been in the profession approximately 5-15 years;
• Demonstrate a passion for teaching, learning, and leadership;
• Have not previously been involved with ASCD in a leadership capacity;
• Collectively exhibit a broad range of diversity in position, location, cultural background, and perspective;
• Hold promise as leaders; and
• Are committed to ASCD's beliefs and to pursuing leadership opportunities.

•  Stefanie Wager - presently the social studies consultant at the Iowa Department of Education
• Eric Townley - presently the principal at Prairie Creek Intermediate at College Community School District
• Stacy Amling - presently professor of Spanish at Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) in Ankeny.
• Matt Townsley - presently director of instruction and technology.
• Andrea Stewart - presently the focus area consultant at Mississippi Bend AEA 9.
• Leslie Pralle Keehn - presently instruction technology consultant at Prairie Lakes AEA 8.
• Tricia Kurtt - presently instructional coach at Norwalk Community School District.
• Josh Griffith - presently Callanan Middle School vice principal in the Des Moines Public Schools.
• Jason Toenges - presently secondary principal in the Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn Community School District

 

• iNACOL is now accepting proposals for the iNACOL Blended and Online Learning Symposium, scheduled for October 25-28, 2016, in San Antonio, TX.

• Coming soon: A guide for early literacy intervention! Iowa teachers and schools soon will have a new guide to use in their work to help struggling readers get back on track.  The guide, portions of which were presented to participants attending the School Improvement Symposium in Des Moines, focuses on students in kindergarten through sixth grade whose needs go beyond universal instruction -- a general classroom approach -- and have specific challenges that could impede their progress toward literacy goals. The guide is designed to enable building-level teams "to effectively organize and implement literacy interventions while monitoring their effectiveness," said symposium presenter Greg Feldmann, who is a consultant at the Iowa Department of Education.

• Check out these ASCD archived webinars:
  • Terry Roberts: Using Discussion to Inspire Writing (February 25, 2016)
  
  
  • David Griffith and Megan Wolfe: The Every Student Succeeds Act: What You Need to Know 
    (February 2, 2016)
  
  
  • Stefani Roth: Meet ASCD myTeachSource: Personalized Professional Learning (January 28, 2016)
  
  
  • William Sterrett: Igniting Teacher Leadership: How Do I Empower My Teachers to Lead and Learn? (January 14, 2016)
  
  
  • Jackie Walsh and Beth Sattes: Questioning for Classroom Discussion: Developing Students As Thinkers and Learners (December 10, 2015)

• ASCD myTeachSource is an online professional learning platform organized around classroom-focused topic packs designed to help teachers find quick solutions to issues that interest them. Start your two-week free trial today!

• Free On-Line School Improvement Survey available to all districts.  ASCD, the global leader in developing and delivering innovative programs, products, and services that empower educators to support the success of each learner, has unveiled the free, online ASCD School Improvement Tool, which is based on a whole child approach to education.
  
  Designed for use in schools and school systems around the world, and ideal for schools developing and refining strategic plans, the online tool offers educators a comprehensive needs assessment as they embark on the new school year. Additionally, it connects administrators and teacher leaders with targeted professional development resources-books, online courses, and action tools-that can help them make the most significant schoolwide improvements and ensure all learners are healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged.
  
  Found online at http://sitool.ascd.org, this tool launches a 15-minute survey that evaluates a school's strengths and weaknesses in areas of
  • School climate and culture,
  • Curriculum and instruction,
  • Leadership,
  • Family and community engagement,
  • Professional development and staff capacity,
  • Assessment, and
  • Ability to provide and sustain a whole child approach to education across all aspects of the school

• Iowa has expanded the quality and range of work-based learning experiences for students in kindergarten through 12th grade because of a stronger connection between business and education made possible through a state network established by the Legislature, a new Iowa Department of Education report shows.

• Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST):    The nominations for 2016 focus on K-6 teachers. The 2016 Awards will honor mathematics and science (including computer science) teachers working in grades K-6. Nominations close on April 1, 2016.  Go here to nominate a K-6 teacher of math and/or science, including computer science for 2016 recognition.

• Consider an Iowa ASCD institutional membership for your building, district, or AEA.  The fee is $25 per person when you enroll at least 20 people at one time.  Great benefits!  Contact Lou Howell for more information.

• Are you a student in a graduate program?  If so, you may get a membership for three years for $45.  Contact Lou Howell for more information.

• Are you a student in a pre-service program?  If so, you may get a one-year membership for $15.  Contact Lou Howell for more information.

 
Iowa ASCD seeks to keep you informed of webinars for your learning and the learning of those with whom you work.  Check out the following! Many of these support the work in your collaborative time and definitely help with the implementation of The Core.

•  Title:  Authentic Learning Means No More Test Preparation
  • Presenters:  Maureen Connolly and Vicky Giouroukakis 
  • Provider: ASCD
  • Date and Time:  Tuesday, March 22 at 2:00 P.M. (CDT)
  •  Register Here

 

• Title: Steps to Becoming a Highly Effective Teacher
• Presenter: Jeff Marshall
• Provider:  ASCD
• Date and Time: Thursday, April 21 at 2:00 P.M. (CDT)
• Register Here

Stay current with learning! Follow Iowa ASCD on Twitter!   We would like to follow you on Twitter as well. If you are willing to share your "Twitter Handle" with us, please leave your information on this site.