EDUC 524: My Travel Though Leadership

1. EDUC 524: My Travel Though Leadership University of Southern California Dr. Castruita

2. Why am I in the Ed.D. program at USC? I remember sitting at my undergraduate graduation at USC and watching the doctoral students receive their diplomas. I made it a goal that day that I would return and do the same. I chose USC because I feel that USC is the best university in southern California where I plan to live and work. The professors really prepared me for teaching and I believe I had the newest, most in-demand training in the field of education. I am ready to learn more about curriculum and development and I know that USC can prepare me and provide me the skills for my next professional endeavors.

3. Week One: What is Leadership?*Bring a backpack for a solid foundation “I think Leadership will be a great class and I look forward to using what I learn in the future.” My personal definition of leadership: “Leadership is the ability to create a positive change in a safe environment. To be a good leader, one needs to be a good listener, provide honest feedback, support, and have the essential ‘skills’ like public speaking. You have to be an advocate and speak to people in a respectful manner.” August 26, 2008 After our class discussion, my definition expanded to include: consistency, “best for kids”, humility, inspirational, has goals, integrity, thinks outside the box, set of values, visionary, big picture thinking, collaborator, problem-solver, delegates, relationships, creative solutions

4. Reflections/ What I Learned after Week One Leaders use reflection and experience to make decisions. Not everyone has leadership qualities. You have to empower your followers and transfer ownership in the organization (Belasco &Stayer, 1993). Leadership and Management are different (Bolman& Deal, 1994). Leadership is political, symbolic, structural and requires human qualities (Bolman& Deal, 1994). Leader-Manager Profile Results: 20 Communicate Organization Direction 23 Develop Key Relationships 17 Inspire Others 22 Direct Operations 22 Develop the Organization 21 Reinforce Performance TOTALS: 60 Leadership 65 Management “Where am I now?”

5. *Bring a mirror for personal reflectionWeek Two: Who Am I as a Leader? “Hmmm….Who am I as a leader? That’s a good question!” “What kinds of leaders were my principals? Who has been a leader that has influenced me? What experience do I have as a leader?” A Few Words of Advice from Dr. C: Take pieces of leadership from those that I admire and make them a part of my own leadership style. Leadership is a process of clarifying the group’s vision and uniting the group in pursuit of it. A leader also provides the stability and structure to house healthy conflict, reevaluation, and change. Always be consistent with your decision-making and leadership style.

6. Reflections/What I learned after Week Two The reflection process begins… “I CAN be a leader!” Am I Self-Actualized? Not yet! Low in many areas I thought I possessed, like ethics and creativity. Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Instrument 9 Compromising 7 Avoiding 6 Accomodating 5 Competing 3 Collaborating Learning to Lead workbook (Bennis& Goldsmith, 1997) I value communication, ongoing recognition, and participatory empowerment. At the time of this assessment, I rated diversity and ethics lower.

7. Week 3: Understanding How Organizations Work/ Reflections “I am mostly symbolic and human-resources oriented, but I need to strive to be more political.” (Leadership Orientations questionnaire) “Being political isn’t a bad thing, and an effective leader needs to use all 4 frames to be the best for the organization.” I CAN be a leader! Dr. C ism: “You don’t learn your job until you do your job.” Meyers-Briggs Personality: Kite, Light bulb, Arrow, Heart *Bring travel guides to understand how places work

8. Week 4: Navigating the Social and Political Environment “Am I headed in the right direction?” Successful leaders never let circumstances dictate outcome. Successful leaders are persistent, resilient, and have passion. Successful leaders know their strengths and weaknesses and use other’s strengths to compensate for personal weaknesses. Understand the school culture, know the key players, share the vision with your constituency, and build relationships. Know when to kill the plan and know when to back off from conflict. *Bring a language dictionary to “speak the language” of the organization.

9. Week Five: Change and Leadership “Don’t make a change for change sake.” Do you have a mandate? Evaluate the culture: Are we ready for change? Engage stakeholders in the process. Think through the strategies I will use. Can you lead the change or should you select a champion to lead? Implement and Monitor progress *Make sure you bring the change!

10. Week Six: Theories of Leadership “Just when I thought I was getting it…so much more to learn about leadership!” Bennis: creation of a shared vision, consistency, moral code, adapt to pressure to change Block: questioning, social architects, power of dialogue Collins: team effort, don’t blame others, get the right people on board, high standards Covey: Be proactive, start with the end in mind, celebrate accomplishments, relate behaviors to goals, think win-win, be a good listener, synergize, sharpen the saw Elmore: instructional leadership, distribute the responsibility

11. Week Six: Theories and Reflections Fullan: change occurs in learning communities Northouse: Trait Approach, Style Approach, Situational Approach, Contingency Theory, Path-Goal Theory, Leader-Member Exchange Theory, Transformational Leadership, Team Leadership- “I will work to be the type of leader that is transformational, that can adapt to fit the needs of the situation, promotes teams, and uses goals to drive the organization.” Keith: Leaders are servants to the organization. *Bring your map! There are many directions to your destination.

12. Week Seven: The Leader as CEO“Being proactive is better than being reactive.” When facing challenges in leadership, be resilient! How to be resilient: 1) Be positive in spite of the negative. 2) Stay focused on what you care about. 3) Remain flexible in how you get there. 4) Act rather than react. 5) Apply resilience-conserving strategies during tough times. Dr. Cism: If you know a difficult situation is coming, be proactive and do what you can to get things to go your way as a leader. *When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

13. Week Eight: Diversity and the Role of Leadership “What is diversity, anyway?”…as it relates to leadership Diversity: We can be diverse in experience, thoughts, gender, socioeconomic status, culture, ethnicity, geography Be a champion of fairness and equal access 2) Provide a climate of dignity and respect for all 3) Treat others the same Dr. Cism: When dealing with diversity, EMPOWER others. *Appreciate what others have to offer- Try the food!

14. Week Nine: The Accountable Leader “Being accountable takes a lot of work, but it is the best way to get the best results.” Strategic Planning: Mission, vision, values, environmental assessment, goals, strategic actions, tactical implementation, assessment and evaluation Baldrige school- mission statements, data, stakeholders, celebrating success, professional learning communities, goals, action plans, vision, values, continuous improvement *Don’t forget you still have to pay your credit card when you get home!

15. Week Ten: The Leader as Learner“This is sooo me!” Peter Senge: Be reflective and focus on improvement. A true learner never stops learning. *Be sure to visit the museum! Learn how to listen, reflect, and have a conversation. If your organization is an ocean liner, as a leader you are the designer of the ship. Qualities of a learning leader: independent, communicator, problem-solver, critical thinker, specialist competence, team player, self-motivator, and commitment to continuous learning. (Ramsden&Lizzio)

16. Week Eleven: The Ethical Leader“Okay..I get it now. Ethics and leadership.” Interesting idea to reflect: What you do ethically may be the wrong thing in a leadership position. “I will have to re-think my always consult the policy model.” CORE VALUES Lead by ethical values- walk your talk. Always be as honest as you can be. Care about the people that you are supervising. Respect how you treat people and make decisions. Provide service for your employees. Be a fair decision-maker. *Don’t forget your moral compass!

17. Future Journeys…. “Did I ever tell you that I was a planner?” Finish Ed.D. progam- graduate May 2011 Start a family! Begin the branch to curriculum and development Return to public school in curriculum and instruction or become the Academic Dean at a private school Consulting/Write curriculum/Author and Illustrator of children’s books Professor for pre-service teacher education at a university (USC??) or community college Remember at the beginning of the course when I said that I would use leadership in the future? I realized after the first class that leadership starts now…..

18. Thank you Dr. C!This class has given me the confidence, skills, and knowledge to begin leading now. Thank you to my awesome classmates that have shared their knowledge and experience. I value all of our discussions and all of the perspectives. Keep up the great work!