Interview with Scott Niven

I had the opportunity to interview Scott Niven, the Superintendent of my district, Red Oak ISD. Mr. Niven has been in Red Oak for the past 7 years during a time of community growth and change. I was so appreciative of the laid-back approach he took in answering my questions, and of the advice and insight he gave. The following responses stood out to me:

·       How does a Superintendent build a good working relationship with the School Board? Mr. Niven emphasized that a good relationship would only be built when trust was established. This means you have to tell the complete truth all of the time, even when it is unpleasant to do so. He advised that it is also important to get to know what a particular Board wants. Different School Boards have personalities of their own, and individual members contribute to that. Some will want to know all the details, and others will want the bottom line. Getting to know what they will need to feel they have the information they desire is important to helping them feel they can trust the Superintendent because their questions will be answered. I appreciated this because I have witnessed first-hand the difficulties that can be encountered when there is a mistrust and/or difficult relationship between the School Board and the Superintendent.

·       How should a superintendent evaluate the effectiveness of communication strategies in the school district and encourage the engagement of the community to benefit all students? Mr. Niven stated that evaluating communication is one of the most nebulous areas of the superintendency because there are not clear benchmarks for success. “No one told me,” will also be the first complaint of anyone with an issue with the school. To combat this problem, you need to have a good communication plan that incorporates a wide variety of methods so that different people who communicate in different ways will have the opportunity to receive it. This would include phonecalls, postal mail, Facebook, Twitter, teacher blogs, websites, etc. Then there is also the internal communication piece that must happen: the staff of the district also need to know what is going on, because the feeling of isolation will kill morale faster than anything.

·       How should Superintendents manage everything from budgets to technology applications? Mr. Niven emphasized repeatedly the importance of building a team that has areas of strength to compensate for the superintendent’s areas of weakness. He said that no superintendent is really good at every aspect of managing a district, and if someone says they are good at it all, they are probably a very insecure person or selling something. For areas that you feel weak in, find someone with experience and then develop and use benchmarks of success to know that things are moving in the right direction rather than feeling the need to manage it yourself.

·       How does a Superintendent promote and sustain a district culture that emphasizes student learning and professional development? Mr. Niven said that developing the culture of a district is something that is easier said than done. That is because in order to really sustain the culture, the goals of the School Board, district leadership, and campus leadership must all move in the same direction. When this does not happen, the result is a need to confront individuals and have difficult conversations about the direction that things will move.

·       What is your definition of leadership? Mr. Niven said that in short, good leaders “find good people, put them in the right job, and support them.” He said that being a good leader is not so much about what you know yourself, but about being able to build a team that is strong, and then setting direction for the team so that your influence is felt and everyone is clear about what direction to go.

Professional Vita

As part of the current course, I have created a professional vita. Although I had a current resume, this was a time-consuming process to build presentation pieces and professional development records into this expanded document.

I welcome your feedback!

Rachel E. Jones 999 No-name Drive, Red Oak, TX 75154 Work: 972-617-2941; Email: rachel_e_jones@yahoo.com Education and Certifications MEd- Educational Leadership Dallas Baptist University: 2010 PhD candidate - Cell and Molecular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX: 1998-2000 BS-  Biology and Psychology: University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, Belton, TX: 1998 Certification- Principal: Texas Certification- PDAS appraiser: Texas Certification- Teacher: Science 4-8 and Life Sciences 8-12: Texas Administrative, Supervisory, and Leadership Experience Director of Curriculum and Instruction, Red Oak ISD, Red Oak, TX 2012-current Revise and redefine the roles of Instructional Coaches on K-12 campuses. Coordinate and provide relevant and appropriate staff development Directly lead the analysis, revision, and delivery of curriculum and district assessments Provide leadership in the restructuring and redistribution of projects within the Curriculum Department Supervise two Facilitators and jointly supervise nine Instructional Coaches; serve as a second appraisers as needed for teachers Manage budgets and instructional resources to ensure student, teacher, and staff needs are met Director of Curriculum and Instruction, Cedar Hill ISD, Cedar Hill, TX 2011-2012 Managed the curriculum delivery and flow of information for issues pertaining to curriculum, instruction, professional development, and NCLB programs. Developed a Federal, State and Special Funds Procedures Manual in collaboration with the Business Office Oversaw the Teacher Induction Program for Success Facilitated summer school programs, planning committees, and budgets Coordinated and facilitated virtual school options Supervised Bilingual/ESL Coordinator and Administrative Assistant; served as second appraiser upon request Instructional Coordinator, Cedar Hill ISD, Cedar Hill, TX 2010-2011 Worked closely with Principals at five campuses to provide coordinated curriculum support, instructional materials and resources, and intervention activities for science teachers Wrote and compiled district assessments to assist in monitoring student mastery of the science curriculum Developed and/or coordinated professional development offerings using student achievement data and teacher feedback Served as the district point-person for new managed curriculum implementation Provided support and interventions for new and struggling teachers; provided support activities to teachers on formal growth plans Served as second appraiser for teachers upon request Assistant Principal, Life School Oak Cliff Elementary, Dallas, TX 2008-2010 Appraised assigned teachers and designed intervention plans as needed Provided meaningful staff development Facilitated and negotiated communication between parents, teachers, students, and staff regarding both academic and discipline issues Planned and supervised schedules and procedures for special programs, dismissal, lunchroom, playground, and safety drills Managed textbook and curricular materials inventories Directly supervised, managed, and trained instructional paraprofessionals Director, Travis Oaks Baptist Preschool and Mother’s Day Out, Lago Vista, TX 2006-2007 Voted as one of the “best of” North Lake Travis area childcare options by the North Lake Travis LOG in 2007 Created systems for teacher evaluation Balanced a budget in crisis Selected curriculum to lead to character development and kindergarten readiness Worked with a Board of Trustees to lead systemic change K-12 Science Coordinator, Life Schools, Dallas, TX 2003-2004 Facilitated vertical  alignment in science curriculum Procured TEKS-required equipment for all grade levels of science as a new campus was opened Collaborated on designs for a new high school science lab Provided K-6th grade teacher in-service training in science Teaching Experience Middle School /High School Science Teacher, Life School Oak Cliff, Dallas, TX: 2000-2004, 2007-2008 Taught classes in Biology, Integrated Physics and Chemistry, Chemistry, 7th grade Science, and 8th grade Science Teacher of the Year award, 2003-2004 Led the development of a departmental readiness plan for state testing Pre-school Teacher, Travis Oaks Baptist Preschool and Mother’s Day Out, Lago Vista, TX 2005-2006 Developed age-appropriate lessons and activities Ensured the safety and appropriateness of the learning environment. Additional Trainings and Professional Develoment: “CSCOPE Fusion Power,” Region 10 ESC, Mesquite, TX, August 2012  “Data, Decision-Making, Development,” Lead4Ward, Austin, TX, July 2012 “ESEA Management Institute,” Texas Education Agency, Austin, TX, June 2012  “Developing Quality Local Assessments,” Lead4Ward, Austin, TX, June 2012 “Dual Language Program Administrator Overview,” Gomez and Gomez, Grand Prairie, TX, June 2012 Multiple face-to-face and virtual trainings- Texas Virtual School Network, 2012-2013 “Working on the Work,” Schlechty Center, Charlotte, NC, March 2012 “Design Team Conference,” Schlechty Center, Austin, TX, January 2012 “Conf. for the Advancement of Science Teaching,” Science Teachers Assoc. of TX, Houston, TX, November 2010 Presentations Jones, R. (2012, August). Teacher Induction Program Overview. Presentation for Cedar Hill ISD new teacher week, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. (2012, August). Campus Improvement Plans. Workshop at the Cedar Hill ISD Summer Administrative Workshop, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. and Alexander, C. (2012, August). Federal Programs Procedures Training. Presentation at the Cedar Hill ISD Summer Administrative Workshop, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. (2012, June). Engaging Students. Book synopsis and discussion facilitation for Instructional Coordinators and Directors, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. and Alexander, C. (2012, February). Federal Programs Initial Training. Workshop for Cedar Hill ISD Administrators on staff development day, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. (2012, January). STAAR Basics. Presentation and structured discussion for Cedar Hill ISD Assistant Principals staff development day, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. (2011, December). Beyond STAAR-ready. Presentation at Cedar Hill ISD Principals’ Meeting, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. (2011, October). NCLB Waiver Update and Impact. Presentation for Cedar Hill ISD Principals’ Meeting, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. and Lowe, T. (2011, September). Walkthrough Training. Workshop for Cedar Hill ISD Directors and Instructional Coordinators, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. (2011, August). District Data Presentation. Presentation for multiple teacher groups during Cedar Hill ISD in-service activities, Cedar Hill, TX Jones, R. and Sullivan, J. (2011, March). STAAR Information Session. Presentation for the Cedar Hill ISD School Board, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. (2011, February). Strategies for Building Meaningful Scientific Vocabulary. Workshop for Cedar Hill High School science teachers during staff development day, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. (2010, December). LOL: Learn out-loud. Workshop for Cedar Hill ISD secondary science teachers during staff development day, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. (2010, August). “Labs” is not a four-letter word. Workshop for Bessie Coleman and Permenter Middle Schools’ science teachers in-service, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. and Smith, S. (2010, August). Connecting Teachers, Students, and Standards Book Review. Presentation for Cedar Hill ISD secondary science teachers during in-service, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. and Lowe, T. (2010, August). PDAS Basics for new teachers. Presentation for Cedar Hill ISD New Teacher week, Cedar Hill, TX. Jones, R. and Ward, B. (2010, August). CSCOPE Foundations. Presentation for Cedar Hill ISD New Teacher week, Cedar Hill, TX. Additional presentations prior to 2010-2011 are available upon request. Professional Affliliations Texas Association of School Administrators, 2012-current Texas Computer Education Association, 2012-current Association for Supervisors of Curriculum Development, 2010-current South Dallas-Ellis County Curriculum Directors, 2010-current Science Teachers Association of Texas, 2010-2012 National Science Teachers Association, 2010-2012 Texas Elementary Principals and Supervisors Association, 2008-2010 Professional references and letters of recommendation available upon request.

Action Research can be reality

   Action Research is something that sounds intimidating to many, but is really no more than a structured framework to use to examine the results of changes in practices and/or programs. It is important to structure this work so that the desired success measures can be thought about and planned for in advance of the beginning work. It is this important planning step that frequently makes the difference in an educator simply "trying something new" versus a true action research endeavor. Many teacher teams and professional learning communities do action research without realizing it, but many do not plan the outcome measurement in advance, therefore never being able to clearly identify how changes may or may not have made a difference.

   Choosing something to study involves first learning what has been done in the field in the prior work of others, then thinking about how that work may apply in one's actual setting (classroom or campus) given the people, resources, and history available. Then a course of action is chosen, while attempting to control variables as possible, and methods of measuring effect(s) must be determined and planned for. These measures may be highly quantitative in nature, such as assessment scores, or highly qualitative in nature such as interviews. Many outcomes lie somewhere between these absolutes with elements of both present. Once the change or new endeavor begins, data is gathered according to the plan. Examining these data should either give some indication about the effectiveness of the change, or it could lead to further questions that can drive changes to the plan for the action research project to continue.