041 - Build Structures to Meet Needs

Jan 17, 2022

Christopher Dodge is the Lead Learner of the Orange Elementary Schools, a PreK-6 school district in central/western Massachusetts. Christopher has served the community of Orange for 7 years. In that time, the schools have worked to create collaborative structures and systems that bring stakeholder voice into school level decision making, as well as strategies that promote student success and achievement. Orange Elementary utilizes these systems to promote a vision of serving the whole child, ensuring that students social emotional and academic needs are being met. Aside from his role as principal, Christopher serves on DESE's Principal/Teacher Advisory Cabinet. He is passionate about supporting and mentoring leaders and educators, serving as a consultant with Seaside Educational Consultants and as an adjunct instructor at Assumption University in Worcester, MA.

Key Takeaways:

• Realize you don't have to do things the same way you have seen them done.
• Be who you really are instead of who you are expected to be.
• Focus on learning instead of the game.
• Support teachers in pursuing their passions.
• Teachers need permission to experiment.
• Passion projects as goals for evaluation.
• Create an environment for risk taking by by changing the structure instead of the expectations.
• It's important to remember we can't do anything without partnering with parents.
• Principles need to shield teachers from being overworked by prioritizing what is valued in education.

Contact:

Twitter: @PrincipalDodge1

Instagram: @PrincipalDodge1

--- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app