Professional Learning Community Experts

This job is a test. It is only a test. If this had been a real job you would have had:
    - Recognition for good work
    - Pay commensurate with your expertise & results
    - Promotions to greater responsibilities.  - (unknown author)

April has been a fun filled month when it comes to new experiences and professional growth for me. For this blog, I have chosen to write about my trip with several other Knox County School employees to Adlai Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Illinois.  It was a short and sweet trip, but it offered many rewards when it comes to my job as an educational leader/administrator.

To kick the month of April off, I was scheduled to visit one of the best high schools in the nation with my new colleagues in Knox County schools.  A visit to Adlai Stevenson High School  provided me and several other principals and assistant principals as well as teachers, counselors, and other central office personnel the opportunity to see researched based instruction and the structure of learning communities in action. 

I was particularly impressed with both the staff and students in this 9-12 high school of 5,000 students with its own superintendent included.  The school prides itself on promoting leadership among its students and welcoming visits by educators from across the nation.  During our particular weekend, Knox County employees were accompanied by educators from Rhode Island, Texas, Oregon, and Florida to name a few. Our visit began promptly at 7:15am in the school's smaller auditorium. 

We were scheduled for numerous sessions that included observations of teacher meetings for collaborative work on curriculum within departments, student-led tours of the facility, a question and answer session with teachers and students, a presentation by the Freshman Mentors (aka..FMPs), and in-class visits with freshman advisories.  It was truly a wonderful opportunity for our high school administrators and school personnel to observe and interact with a high school that has and is making a difference in student lives.