Four Professional Development Coordinators, Brooke Kavan, Mark Brady, Ernie Valentine, and Amy Richards presented the Professional Development Spotlight on Principals Supports to the board. Brooke Kavan and Mark Brady have been with ESU 7 for eight years. Ernie Valentine and Amy Richards have been with ESU 7 for close to one year. Each board member present was given an ESU 7 Principals Supports 2023-24 handout as illustrated in the attached slides.
Ernie Valentine facilitates that New Principal Cohort. This academic year is the pilot program year for the New Principal Cohort. Six of the eight principals who participated were first year principals. Mark Brady and Brooke Kavan facilitate Principal Coaching. In the 2023-2024 academic year, there were a total of 25 participants for a total of 89 hours. Brooke Kavan and Professional Development Director are the Leadership Learning Rounds (LLR) leads. This program was piloted in the academic year 2021-2022 with year one being in 2022-2023. In the 2023-2024 academic year, there were a total of nine participants for a total of 97 hours. Brooke Kavan and Mark Brady also facilitate the Principal Collab Zoom. The zoom is held five times per year. In the academic year 2023-2024, there were a total of 13 participants for a total of five hours. Principal Cluster had a total of 36 participants in the 2023-2024 academic year and Principal PD Day had a total of 11 participants.
Questions from the board:
- How many total principals are in the ESU 7 area? 65
- Are there any principals who do not participate in any of the services? Yes, 8 of the 65.
- What is the common obstacle most principals discuss? How to move forward and improve while considering everything their staff have to do on a daily basis.
- Is 'Principal Support' the only thing each of you focus on? No, this is just a slice of what each of them do.
- What does Select Invitation only mean for LLR? First year principals are not invited because it is very time-intensive. During a principal's first year, there is a lot of learning which takes place in their home district.
- Are surveys done at the end of these meetings? Yes
- What kind of training do you need to have in order to facilitate these meetings with the principals? They have been through eight full days of Cognitive Coaching training. There is advanced Cognitive Coaching training as well.
- Can you explain your educational background? Brooke Kavan, Ernie Valentine, Mark Brady, and Amy Richards explained their educational backgrounds.
