What If........

What if... you embarked on each day with the same enthusiasm and excitement as the first day of school?

What if... you "disrupted" education and didn't follow the status quo?

What if... you asked the students what they are interested in and designed the learning experiences around their interests?

What if... you repurposed your classroom to fit the needs of the students?

What if... you learned a new tool for the classroom and committed to mastering it before trying another one?

Do you have the courage it takes to commit and do it? I posted a Tweet this weekend about repurposing and remaking spaces on campus to fit the needs of the learner. I received a Tweet back stating, "Try it." And you know what? It is that simple. We need to "disrupt" what has been conventional. Not to be rebels, but because we need to adjust to the learners of today. We cannot continue to teach and function the way we did 30-50 years ago. If we don't "try it" then we will never know the possibilities.

At the CUE Rockstar Admin Conference this weekend the theme was The Hero's Journey. It is so important to start with a spark and then let the learners begin the Call to Adventure. I had the pleasure of hearing from a teacher in San Francisco, Ramsey Musallum. The idea of having a "spark" is so basic and yet can be so transformational in the classroom. Take a look at his TED talk and think about what you can do in your own classroom to offer a "spark" to ignite the learning.

Our ONE goal: To graduate every Fairfield High Student and to ensure that they leave FHS college and career ready!!! 

Inspire, Engage, Excite, Lead, Foster, Create, Empower!!

Many more great things are in store for Fairfield High!

Continue to be innovative, creative, and a model of excellence!

HAVE A GREAT WEEK

Shared Leadership.... A Fundamental Key to Sustainability

In order to move a company, school, or entity forward with sustainability there needs to be a sense of shared leadership. For positive change to take hold there cannot be a top down approach. For when that leader leaves, the momentum leaves too, causing a shock to the system and a restart to take place. Successful and sustained change happens when a vision is shared by all and leadership takes on roles in many different facets.

I see Fairfield High as a microcosm of shared leadership. We have the traditional leadership roles of Principal, Assistant Principals, and Department Chairs but that is just the beginning. This year our department chairs have taken on an additional role as instructional coaches. Many teachers have volunteered to be colleague to colleague mentors. And recently, teachers that are neither department chairs or mentors have volunteered their time to help support classrooms that have substitutes so that the instruction delivered is rigorous and on track for the students. It doesn't stop at the adults on campus. This is the key to our systematic and sustained change, the students! The students at FHS are continually taking on more and more leadership roles because they see they can impact change.

We have SO many student leaders on campus. Our Leadership class and Associated Student Body representatives take on a structured role of leadership with the guidance of advisors. Our AFJROTC has tiers of leadership from the Lt. Colonel and Master Sergeant to the cadets taking on specialized focus areas and squads of their own.  Our athletes are stepping up to take on leadership roles to help support students by ensuring they are accepted, making academic progress and are becoming a part of the FHS family. Strong student scholars are volunteering their time to be peer tutors in math and English, dedicating their lunch and after school time to support their peers academically. It doesn't stop at the walls of FHS. Our student and staff leaders continue to strive to make the community a better place for everyone as they engage in community service projects through out the year.

Our school is building a systematic web; a web of support and strength. The stronger this web becomes the easier it will be for people to bounce back if they fall along the way. Let's continue to empower each other to build capacity amongst all those that are current Falcons, past Falcons, and future Falcons.

As Mahatma Gandhi once said, "Be the change you wish to see in the world." 

Our ONE goal: To graduate every Fairfield High Student and to ensure that they leave FHS college and career ready!!! 

Inspire, Engage, Excite, Lead, Foster, Create, Empower!!

Many more great things are in store for Fairfield High!

Continue to be innovative, creative, and a model of excellence!

HAVE A GREAT WEEK

What Defines Who We Are???

What is it that defines who we are? One might ask why we even need to define ourselves.  However, in order to navigate through life we tend to surround ourselves by things that make us more comfortable. Others look at us and begin to make judgments and then decisions on how to interact with us based on those judgments. Whether that is right or wrong is not the question. We send messages even when we are not intending to do so. The message of who we are and what we stand for is sent with every action we make and every word that we speak. What message are you sending? What message are we sending as a school?

Fairfield High is defined by the students and staff.  Our school has a strong soul. Many have said that once you become a Falcon you will forever be a Falcon. I don't deny that being true. There is a spirit of family and compassion that unites FHS. As a school we send the message of acceptance and growth. We pull together to ensure students are enjoying life and becoming prepared to move on to life after high school.  The minutes and days spent on the FHS campus are pivotal in helping define the next chapter for each student.

The past two weeks have been a shining example of who we are; Fairfield High. 

Our ONE goal: To graduate every Fairfield High Student and to ensure that they leave FHS college and career ready!!! 

Inspire, Engage, Excite, Lead, Foster, Create, Empower!!

Many more great things are in store for Fairfield High!

Continue to be innovative, creative, and a model of excellence! 

HAVE A GREAT WEEK

Taking Time to Pause...

Do you ever feel that you are constantly rushing? Do you ever feel under pressure to get things done, look at the calendar, and realize you still have more time? I ask these questions because I at times find myself feeling this way. Feeling rushed or pressured is not conducive to being productive at what we do. It is so necessary to hit the "pause" button every once in a while.

Our jobs in education can be demanding. It is a reality that we need to be very prepared going into each and every day of the week. Our students, staff, and parents are counting on us to deliver a quality educational experience. However, if we are unfocused or we rush on our preparation then our delivery is going to be less than stellar. We have all heard the saying in many different ways.... if you try to do too many things you won't do anything well.

The Leadership Team recognizes the importance of having a solid focus that the entire site can dedicate to. The Leadership Team recognizes that we can take on a roll of support to help guide implementation. We met last week and determined that for the months of September and October we are going to focus, site wide, on the following portion of our WASC Action Plan:

As you plan your lessons make time to focus on your objective and key academic vocabulary. As a site we will continue to share and collaborate on instructional best practices. We started a shared Google folder a few weeks back titled "FHS Killer Ideas" that you can visit to review and add resources to at any time. Here is a link to that folder in a "view only" format: https://goo.gl/9sOQMv
Each FHS teacher has an editable version in his/her Google Drive.

Our ONE goal: To graduate every Fairfield High Student and to ensure that they leave FHS college and career ready!!! 

Inspire, Engage, Excite, Lead, Foster, Create, Empower!!

Many more great things are in store for Fairfield High!

Continue to be innovative, creative, and a model of excellence! 

HAVE A GREAT WEEK