Learning from a State Leader

I first heard Commissioner Bennett's name in January 2013 when one of the listervs I subscribe to  sent out an introduction video from the Florida Department of Education announcing his appointment. I watched the video and read his bio. I was hopeful that he would be a strong leader for our state. We are moving to the new teacher appraisal system and also transitioning to Common Core State Standards. These are both daunting challenges, and having the commitment to take on both of them at the same time is downright frightening.  

Fast forward to July 2013. Yesterday I got a chance to speak with the Commissioner in person, and I still look ahead with hopefulness that he can lead us forward at a very challenging time in our state. 

I requested a meeting with the Commissioner the day our first school achievement data began to arrive--sometime in May. Weeks earlier, my Superintendent had nominated me for the Commissioner's Leadership Academy. When I saw our data, I thought to myself..."If and when I see the Commissioner, I want to talk about THIS data!" But, being a person who takes action, I decided to email him right then and there. Our clever Superintendent, Bill Husfelt, always encourages us to let our legislators and decision-makers know what we think. To my surprise, when I got to the site where I was searching for a contact address, I located the option to request an appointment. By golly, I filled out that request! And.....they called me about a month later for my appointment. That was truly encouraging.

So....yesterday my husband and I drove to Tallahassee. I had prepared talking points so that I could make certain I covered everything. My husband joked that I would get through the first two and then the Commissioner would have to go to another appointment. I knew he might be right, but I hoped for the best. 

As I sat in the lobby of the Turlington Building, I was apprehensive. I knew I wanted to speak on behalf of several new leaders in my district and capture all the conversations we had shared over the course of the year. I also wanted to be the voice of the students and the families and the teachers at my own school. I wanted to provide the "in the trenches" perspective of the demands and obstacles our schools are facing. What really made me uneasy is that I am almost always Ms. Positivity. I didn't want to sound negative or defeated when I presented my concerns to the person in charge. 

I went up the 15 floors in the elevator, I was greeted by his assistant, and I got to sit in a comfy arm chair. He shook my hand, and I finally got my chance to speak. I think I just overflowed with nervous energy, and I hardly know if what I said in those first few minutes made any sense. Wisely, Mr. Bennett had invited someone else to sit in on our conversation. The Deputy Chancellor for Educator Quality joined us, and I settled into my talking points. She had a very calming demeanor, and I felt she was truly interested in what I had to say.

Mr. Bennett was so gracious. I told him to jump in at any point, and then he explained he was trying to be a good listener. I commend him; in retrospect, he was a GREAT listener. I talked  specifically and broadly about many things. I shared about working in high poverty schools, preventing the exodus from public schools to charter and private schools, improving the instructional capacity of our teachers, the irritating components of our school grading system, and the time required by leaders to create educational impact . 

I also shared how our school had been afforded some "grace" last year due to the DOE's safety net policy. According to the rules of the safety net, no school could drop lower than one school  grade. The new school I had taken over was--by points a C-- with only 9 points keeping us from earning a D. We were precariously close to a D. BUT WE EARNED a score of B due to the safety net. Then, when this year's writing data rolled out, I quickly estimated our school grade would land us in the point zone for an F. On paper, it would appear we had gone from a B to an F. That was and is a hard pill to swallow! In my mind, it would have been better to never have had the safety net OR currently beneficial to have the safety net continue.

As a good leader does, he responded by asking me thought-provoking questions and coaching me to provide him with my opinion about solutions. He talked about the challenges that his team faces in working with our state schools. I think the most meaningful things I took away from his dialogue were that it is imperative to increase rigor and make change incrementally. He also agreed that it was critical to move forward with accountability while avoiding breaking the backs of the people involved. He quoted the Superintendent from Miami-Dade a few times. I will have to look him up next as my friend Tammy says he has his "act together."

Then, he did something remarkable. He handed me two books to read. He explained the details behind both of them and recommended that I use the 8-Step Process in the book entitled Monitoring; Keeping Your Finger on the Pulse of School Improvement. I got a chance to skim the second book today, and it looks very much like the FCIM Model that we used at Bay High School several years ago to move the school from a D to a B. It is called No Excuses; Closing the Achievement Gap.

I can not even imagine the burdens he faces as he worries about 2600+ schools in our state, and I am only worried about my precious little school. Yet, he took the time to listen to my story and to try and empathize with my concerns. 

As the meeting came to an end, he explained that he has this next week to make his recommendations to the School Accountability office as it pertains to the release of school grades. I know he is listening AND thinking about all these things since he just finished taking input from a task force that made recommendations about ways to improve this process.

I got to speak with the Chancellor for Educator Quality for a while longer after my meeting with the Commissioner. I really connected with her and felt she had truly understood some of the things I was saying.

Hopefully, my voice and the voices of all those I speak for will be in his mind as he moves forward with his goals and the state's implementation of initiatives. Whatever the case, he took the time to listen, and I thank him for that.