Sunday Nov 8

I’ve been included in our district’s hiring process and have seen several good interviews and some really poor ones. A strong applicant stands out! Everything about that person seems top notch: attire, hygiene, the way he or she walks in the room, the confidence that is observed when answering questions even that person’s follow up questions are strong. In addition to interviewing, we should also go through a pile of resumes and cover letters and see if we could pick out top notch people to interview. This activity makes me wonder if spotting an exceptional staff member is as easy to do when all you have is a resume?

Saturday Nov 7

The Brave New World activity was a good way to demonstrate consensus. There were times when I really wanted to tell someone to hush and just agree, it’s really not that big of a deal. I sometimes tell my para-pros to choose their battles, this one’s not worth fighting for, so let it go. This consensus activity made me rethink others “feelings”. Unfortunately, this is an area of weakness for me. I must admit though, majority rules and we’ll probably never get consensus on new initiatives within a school district, I’ll be happy with 80%! But, I will consider how others feel about topics and try a little harder to motivate those who don’t agree.

Administrator induction

I really enjoyed the mock interview experience. One idea that kept crossing my mind was the topic of administrative induction. I would be hesitant to accept a job from a district lacking an induction/mentoring program for administrators. The analogy that comes to mind is handing over the keys of an 18 wheeler to a teenager who just completed driver education. No matter how well you are prepared for administration “academically”, there are always the “unknowns” or the real life experiences that creep up and throw you for a loop. For me, the ideal first administrative position will be in a building with an administrative team. I really enjoyed my shadowing experiences and my sub experiences in my school’s main office because of the novel situations encountered and the expert support that was readily available. It was an empowering experience to be a member on an administrative team providing perspective and receiving perspective. The actual experiences foster professional growth but the teaming allows you to grow from a meta-cognitive standpoint. This is critical. Even if the team is not located in the same building, it would be helpful if a district mentor was assigned, at least during the first year as a new administrator.

J. Curtis Last Sunday

I like the others thought the interviewing was good experience for myself to be put in the role of an administrator or someone asking the questions. That was my first time being on the other end of it and it definately is different than being the one interviewed. I thought our group put together some quality questions that would give us a very good idea of what kind of candidate we had. Nicole looked to be a little nervous, but was willing to learn and had some very good answers on how to handle parents and disciplining students in a manner that is beneficial.

Interviews

It was nice to take the administrative role in the interview process. After all of our discussions in this class as well as other classes you can really start to pick up on red flags that would have maybe skipped your attention before. I was glad the 4 came in as it was good practice for us but will benefit them as well. I can see how, depending on the school you are in, the hiring process could be a daunting task.

Third Sunday

I really enjoyed today's activities. I had been part of the interview process before but not in developing the questions or as part of an entire team. I felt that our group worked well together. The interview team discussions after the actual interview were also valuable. For some of the questions, we all had different reactions to the interviewee's responses.

Higbee-Last Sunday

The handout today regarding the old paradigm/new paragdigm contrast was of interest where the consensus from the class was that most of us have experienced the "sit and get" PD. Kudos to those in the class and their respective schools if you believe your PD would fall into the new paradigm model. Although the new paradigm model would appear in most cases to require more time and money, obviously the payoff (school improvement) in the long run is so much greater that the typical old paradigm methods that these greater costs make it well worth it. With all the discussion today about the mentoring/induction programs in our school, I feel one of the most important aspects of these programs is the accountability/responsibility on the part of the mentor. Also, give credit to those four who came in today for mock interviews. I would have enjoyed interviewing at least two people (even better if there were two vying for the same position). Finally, I'll second the motion for mock interviews for principal candidates during the internship seminars.