In ILPD 781 Seminar in Supervision, Dr.

Evans assigned us the task of creating a Vision Board

representing our values/beliefs regarding teacher evaluation. In preparation for our final night of
class, we were asked to reflect on our Vision Board by answering the following questions.

What is our Vision? How might it have changed?

What are our values? How might they change?

My leadership "Vision" and values did not change as a result of this course. They remain solidly
based in excellence with equity, individualism, growth mindset, shared relationships, and
collaboration. However, as a result of taking this course, it became clear to me that something else
was needed.
We were also tasked with looking at the newly introduced 2015 Professional Standards for
Educational Leaders to identify leadership strengths and areas of need. I trust in my ability to
implement Standard 1. (Mission, Vision, and Core Values) and Standard 3. (Equity and Cultural
Responsiveness). These are both areas of strengths that I would bring to my role as the supervisor
of a school.

For the purpose of learning more about my professional growth needs, I paid to access my full
Gallup StrengthsFinder profile. I already had access to my top five strengths which are as follows;
Restorative, Empathy, Input, Ideation, and Individualization, and Developer. These strengths make
me good at problem solving, understanding others, appreciating knowledge and ideas, and seeing
the unique qualities in others while helping them to cultivate their potential.
My least dominant strengths are Analytical, Context, Discipline, Consistency, and Strategic. These
make focused analysis, finding patterns, creating routine and structure, setting up rules and adhering
to them, and sorting through clutter to find the best route challenging for me. This leads me to
believe that on the 2015 Professional Standards for Educational Leaders Standard 9. (Operations
and Management) will be a self-identified area of growth.

According to the HCPSS website, The work of Gallup researchers (Gordon, 2013; Rath, 2007)
indicates that all human beings have natural talents that can be developed into strengths. People
working within their areas of strengths are six times more likely to be engaged in what they are
doing. Gallups research (Lopez, 2011) has shown that greater student engagement is positively
correlated with higher student achievement."

Gallups official position on strengths and weaknesses is as follows;

Without a great deal of hard work, talent alone is never enough. Without natural talent, a lot of
hard work will yield little return. Therefore, when considering where to invest one's time, energy,
and attention, Gallup research indicates that the best place to start is in an area of strength. Yet
by no means does any of our research suggest that people should ignore their weaknesses. To
do so, especially in the classroom or workplace, is reckless. In no part of our business would we
advise ignoring areas of weakness. The result would be detrimental to an organization's bottom
line -- and likely an individual's career.

With this in mind, I created a Supervision and Management Board as a visual reminder of my
leadership goals. It is my responsibility to make sure that in addition to being passionate and
engaged, I am also highly focused, consistent, and disciplined.

In addition to the Supervision and Management Board, I will utilize a variety of strategies to keep me
on task.
One such strategy comes from the book SuperVision and Instructional Leadership: a Developmental
Approach by Carl Glickman. He provides a five-step organization and focus tool to aid in problem
solving. These questions are an invaluable tool for me when it comes to assessing situations and
planning next steps. I can stop and answer the following five questions.
1. What is the Objective?
2. What actions need to be taken?
3. When will these activities be done?
4. What resources will be needed for implementation?
5. How will the success of the goal be evaluated? (p. 177)
Finally, my recent attendance at the Maryland Association of Secondary School Principals Aspiring
Leaders Workshop solidified my intent to build my organizational capacity. I was pleasantly surprised
to find that Dr. Evans was the presenter of the Aspiring Leaders Workshop. I found the book Ten
Skills for Successful School Leaders to be a potential wealth of resources. The most useful aspect
of this training was that I left with an action plan for working on my organizational ability. This action
plan includes;
1. Prioritizing a to do list by writing Today I must, and highlighting just those items that must
get done today.
2. Set up a tickler file to increase efficiency and organization.
3. Review recommended organization books - select one
Survival Skills for the Principalship - J. Blaydes
Get Organized -Buck
Time management for School Administrators Fitzwater
I know that with the use of organizational and management tools, I can more effectively use my
strengths as a leader in ways that will positively impact student and teacher growth.