March 24th Newsletter

This week’s edition of Catholic School Matters is full of great articles.  The Top 5:

1. Underneath the American Catholic News section is a little section I included entitled “Leadership Dilemmas.” I’ve included links to articles about a coach dismissed from a Catholic school due to her marital status, another article focusing on Archbishop Naumann’s response to the controversy in the Archdiocese of KC, and the new developments in West Virginia.  It’s important for all us to stay abreast of controversies and dilemmas.
2. In the Leadership Links, the first article entitled “Why Feedback Rarely Does What What It’s Meant To” is a great reflection to read at this time of the year. Many of us are embarking on or wrapping up evaluations and this articles will inform your approach.
3. In the Teaching & Learning section, the first article is focused on “Stress-free Training” and posits that a different learning environment might be more effective for emerging surgeons. I often hear coaches (like Saban) or teachers espouse the value of making the learning environment stressful so that learning can be more effective.  This article challenges that hypothesis, and like the article in #2 above, supports the notion that learning is often consolidated on what they already know—as opposed to lying outside of current neural pathways.
4. In the Miscellaneous section, the absolutely best article I read last week is “How to Make Friends, Build a Community, and Create the Life You Want” is fantastic. Challenged to make sense of the sudden loss of a loved one, the author realizes that community and connections are the most valuable.
5. The next article is a link to Roy Petitfils’ new book, Helping Teens with Stress, Anxiety, and Depression: A Field Guide for Catholic Parents, Pastors, and Youth Leaders (2019).  Roy is currently at the LA Congress and will be a speaker at the NCEA Convention.  I’ve heard him speak about these topics and know that his community-based approach (see #4 above) is valuable for all Catholic school educators.

March 10th Newsletter

This week’s newsletter lands right in the middle of National Catholic Sisters Week (March 8-14)!  Here is the website.  I certainly encourage all school leaders to honor sisters working in your schools and reach out to sisters/orders who once staffed your schools.  I’ve heard of schools asking their students to send cards or bringing in sisters for an All-School Mass and tour.

This week in honor of Lent, I’m blogging about prayer and leadership.

The Top 5 Links:

1. In the Catholic news section, NCR published a great article about how to create a Vatican II parish. I suggest you read it and replace “parish” with “school” and see what ideas emerge.
2. In the Leadership section, the absolute best article of the week is from Education Week. “The Hidden Logic of American Underachievement” challenges how we educate.  I’ve often said that you can’t rely on parent or student feedback about teacher effectiveness.  Sometimes the teachers who challenge students and expect excellent effort are the ones who receive the most complaints.  Whereas the teacher who doesn’t challenge students, gives each student top scores, and avoids any conflicts does not receive complaints from students or parents.  This article might force you to reexamine your approach.
3. The next article from Jennifer Gonzalez asks principals “Are you Brave Enough to Ask for Staff Feedback?”
4. In the Teaching & Learning section, there is a great article on “in the ear” instructional coaching. We have great new technology tools (video, Huddl, etc) but I’m not sure we’ve integrated them into our professional practice.  And instructional coaching is certainly one area where we can all improve.
5. In the Miscellany section, The Atlantic published a thoughtful piece on our workaholic natures, “The Religion of Workism is Making Americans Miserable.”

Click here for this week’s newsletter.  The Top 5:

1. If you ever wonder how to describe, articulate, or portray the beauty that is Catholic schools, look no further than this blog post from Rose Pillay of Vancouver or this great little article highlighting a graduate from Mercy High School in Omaha. Both articles capture the essence of Catholic schools AND model how we should all be working to spread the good news of our schools.  Read them both!
2. In the Leadership section, this great blog post by Jeff Zoul entitled “ Learn. Lead. Repeat” captures the essence of effective school leadership.
3. In the Teaching & Learning section, I present another thought-provoking blog from “The Great Handshake” entitled “Schools Should be More Like Trader Joe’s”. It’s an homage to the little things we need to do to build excitement and engagement in our schools.
4. In the Miscellaneous section, David Brooks is back at it this week with his “A Nation of Weavers” which is an essay extolling the virtues of those who build community. Why can’t your Catholic school weave together our community and thus serve the common good?
5. The next article is a thought-provoking piece from Rahm Emmanuel in the Atlantic entitled “Policy Makers Need a New Path to Education Reform.”

Catholic Schools Week Newsletter

Here is a link to the newsletter.

Top 5 Links:

1. The first article by Betsy Shirley in America magazine examines the parish school: “The Era of the Parochial School is Over.” The article examines new governance and leadership models.  Only 60% of Catholic elementary schools are still parish schools so it’s important to recognize this growing trend and best practices.
2. The second article is a reflection by Bishop Barron entitled “The Internet and Satan’s Game.” He discusses the Covington Catholic HS controversy and the reaction, fallout, etc.  He encourages us all to post out of love, not out of vindictiveness.
3. The third article is an announcement of a new Institute for Catholic School Leadership at St. Paul Seminary led by one of the giants in our field, Dr. Mimi Schuttloffel. Congrats, Mimi!
4. The next article is a great reflection in America magazine on inclusion by the Catholic comedian Jeremy McLellan. He discusses the discomfort of those with diverse needs and their call to all of us to inclusion.
5. The fifth article is a story about Dr. Massimo Faggioli’s reflections on the current crisis in the Church: “Church Historian Says Sex Abuse Poses the Biggest Threat to the Church in 500 Years.” Faggioli is trying to give us perspective of the challenges facing the Church today.

School Choice Issue

In this week’s Catholic School Matters newsletter I’m presenting a collection of articles and links on School Choice.  It’s an opportunity to connect your work and interests to this growing movement for students.  The Top 5:

1. Catholic Education Partners (you really should get to know this group if you haven’t already) published a great article in NCEA’s Momentum “The Impact of Education Choice on Catholic Education”
2. EdChoice published a great compilation “The ABCs of School Choice 2018 Edition” for the all the latest news and information.
3. The Atlantic’s “Support for School Choice and Vouchers is on the Rise” is a great summary of the education landscape
4. Forbes produced a great summary “Charter Schools, Vouchers, and ESAs: The Three Flavors of School Choice” although they leave out tax credit scholarships in the title.
5. It’s always a great idea to read what your opponents are saying. NPR’s “Why It’s So Hard to Know Whether School Choice is Working” does just that.

Jan 13th Newsletter

As we build toward Catholic Schools Week, this week’s issue is focused on building your school’s story.  As I say in the blog, I’m not an accomplished story-teller so I challenge us all to identify stories about our schools that testify to our school’s culture.  I offer 12 story prompts to get you thinking.

Top 5:

1. In the Leadership section, the HBR article “How Retail Changes When Algorithms Curate Everything We Buy” challenges us to rethink how education is going to change as we incorporate personalized learning through technology.
2. In the Teaching & Learning section, John Spencer had a great blog post for teachers entitled “The Power of a Mid-Year Reboot” full of great suggestions for teachers.
3. There are three great articles on classroom management. It seems like classroom management problems really start to manifest during this time so these are great resources for teachers: Larry Ferlazzo’s “Classroom Management—Redirecting Without Escalating,” Vicki Davis’s “Never Yell and Other Classroom Management Secrets from a Pro Teacher,” and “To Help Students Learn, Engage the Emotions” from Jessica Lahey.  (an aside—did you know that when Jess Lahey is travelling she will go into bookstores and surreptitiously sign copies of her books with inspirational messages?  How cool is that?)
4. In the Miscellany section, “Inside One of America’s First Catholic-to-Charter Conversions” is the story of one Washington, DC charter school (which used to be Catholic). Though you might disagree with the decision, it never hurts to read the story.
5. “Deconstructing the Wall” from the New York Times is full of great lesson suggestions for teachers to talk about the wall. Students are talking about it and I think we’re all looking for constructive ways to capitalize on the conversation.

January 6th newsletter

Here is the link to the January 6th newsletter

The Top 5:

1. In the American Catholic News section, I have a special section on legal concerns. There’s quite a few articles which raise issues such as church-state relations, employment contracts, pregnancy, embezzlement, past abuse, etc.  We need to read these articles and imagine how we would respond if faced with the same dilemmas.
2. In the Leadership section, “Schools as Places of Joy” is a reminder of what makes every school excellent—joy. We can’t leave out the joy in pursuit of excellence.
3. In the same section, the article from the Wharton School on “Does Fear Motivate Workers—or Make Things Worse?” is thought-provoking. We often try to move students away from extrinsic rewards toward the intrinsic motivators but are we doing the same for our staffs?
4. In the Miscellaneous section, the “Relentlessness of Modern Parenting” from the New York Times points out the reasons behind the anxiety epidemic. Parents are often the ones afraid of missing out!
5. Small classes and personal attention have become aspirational for all schools. But they weren’t always such high priorities.  A Libertarian entrepreneur has been building low-cost charter schools with a different approach.  While you might not agree with his approach or his assumptions, it’s worth watching this video in order to clarify your own assumptions.

Dec 2nd Newsletter

Here is the link to the Dec 2nd Newsletter.  This week, I blog about the need for dialogue in our schools in order to foster stronger faith communities.  We need healing and we need to lead through dialogue, not condemnation.

My top 5 of this week:

1. In the American Catholic News section, I lead off with two good news stories. The first is a story about the Berks Catholic HS student diagnosed with brain cancer.  The community has rallied around Anthony Meyers (who had successful surgery last week) and illustrates a high-functioning Catholic school community.  The second article was the offer by the Diocese of Sacramento for free tuition for all students displaced by the devastating fires.  Well done!
2. In the leadership section the first article by Jack Peterson of Managing for Mission is a great reflection on the President-Principal relationship. Notice the word “relationship.”  When we talk about intentionally building community, it’s important to put our organizational charts in terms of relationships.
3. In the Teaching & Learning section, the first article by Jessica Lander “Why School Counselors Matter” is a great piece. When schools look to cut costs, the school counselor position often comes up.  Lander provides a good argument against this.
4. The next article about personalized learning from Mind/Shift is a great reflection on the different meanings and controversies surrounding personalized learning.
5. In the Miscellaneous section, the first article addresses the polarization in the Church right now.