Being an educator is a calling.  Unless you raised your hand to dedicate your life to education, it may not make sense.  Here in Oakwood, we have teachers who are not only phenomenal in connecting with students and building lessons to expose and engage students, they also go above and beyond in coaching, mentoring, and advising students before, during, and after school.  

A new program at OHS, Lumberjack Leadership Series, is an example of two of our staff members going above and beyond to provide exceptional opportunities to all of our students. 

Matt Deters and Alex Brouhard conceived the Series last spring as a way to engage alumni, community members and staff members with students.  The two high school teachers set out to  expose students to a diverse range of speakers, allowing our students to apply their learning to the real world and see applications for what they are studying in school. Their goal of the Series is to inspire and motivate students by bringing accomplished professionals and engaging speakers to our school to share their expertise, experience and insights.  The lectures, which occur during the lunch hour, are open to all high school students.  

I was honored to be the inaugural speaker, sharing my experiences with “Creating Your Circle By Being a Connected Leader.” During the opening, I shared, with students and staff who spent their lunch hour with me, my journey in understanding the true power of relationships and teamwork.  Through story-telling, I shared my misguided notion of leadership by trying to know all the answers, doing all the work by myself and using my status to make a name for myself.  

As I shared with the audience, it wasn’t until I had an interaction with my Ashland University doctoral advisor Dr. Harold Wilson, I began to truly shift my thinking to being a connected leader. 

A connected leader is someone who cares for others, has the ability to inspire a shared vision, and empowers others to embrace and implement positive change. 

I discovered a profound quote that has become a hallmark of my leadership journey and one of the three hopes for our staff, “Go Farther Together.”

Through my leadership journey, I found themes to help me transform my leadership approach as a connected educator.  As I continue to understand the importance in leveraging the voice, talents and experiences from others, I’ve personally witnessed outcomes that have been more lasting and significant than work done in isolation.  Here are the four key themes to creating a circle as a connected leader:

1. Pursue Lifelong Learning and Connect.  I remember my mom calling me when I was in college asking me if I had done my homework.  I always answered with the same response - I could never be done studying.  Fast forward to my 26th year as an educator, I still find myself hungry to learn from others.  While it may sound simple, a foundational truth to being a connected educator is constantly seeking out others who are leaders or experts.  I tend to go one step further in my research on books, articles or podcasts.  I try to actually search out the person who wrote or talked about it!   Then, I look for ways to connect with them through social media, arranging a Zoom meet-up or trying to meet them in person to build a relationship.  This technique has had extreme rewards, connecting with experts on a variety of topics.  For example, I read work Dr. Douglas Reeves created in my first year of teaching.  Now, the two of us have cultivated a relationship in which I not only still learn from him but I call him a friend.

2. Search for Others Who Challenge Your Thinking.  There’s a great quote from an unknown author, “If you are the smartest in the room, you are in the wrong place.”  While there can be differing opinions on what it means to be the smartest person, the foundational concept is that a team’s strength is based on the perspectives, experiences and insights each person brings into the room.  If people don’t feel comfortable to share, there could be problems along the way.  Dr. Reeves wrote a book called Fearless Schools, referencing Amy Edmund’s work on psychological safety.  I go to social media to challenge my thinking.  Sometimes, when I think it can’t be done and I’ve talked to everyone in Ohio, I find out someone is actually doing it in Iowa!  So, regardless of whether someone is across the country or across the room, it is crucial to look for ways to create an environment for everyone to share and also push the group’s thinking.

3. Use Social Media to Leverage Learning.  My two boys and wife tell me repeatedly, I am on social media all the time!  Early in my leadership journey, I found social media wasn’t  just a place to watch cooking videos (I love to cook!) and do-it-yourself projects (I don’t always do the project, but I like watching the videos).  I created my Twitter Profile and began following anyone and everyone in the “Twitter-verse.”  Educators create weekly Twitter chats, participating in virtual, live forums around various topics.  As I shared earlier, not only have I learned from others across the country, I have also befriended many of them.  Leveraging the power of crowdsourcing and my professional learning network, I once put out a question to gather grant proposals from others around an educational initiative.  Not only was I able to learn, curate and submit my own proposal, I did it within 24 hours - and I did get it awarded!  

4. Nurture a Critical Friends Group.  A mentor once told me to find leaders who not only inspire and encourage me, but also serve as trusted friends to give me critical feedback, even when I might not like hearing it.  Often, we have people in our lives who are friendly and will also back us up when we are feeling pushed in a corner.  We definitely need people like that.  But it is also important to have a few others who can provide  supportive, straight and honest words with a proper balance of empathy and critical feedback.  My critical friends are Paul and Jeff who I’ve known for more than 10 years through social media.  We communicate regularly, know about each other's school districts and families, and even rib each other about football teams!  Paul lives in Kansas and Jeff lives in Texas.  We’ve only met each other in person two times. It’s not the distance or even the exact same experiences that can be the ingredients to a critical friend group, it’s having the same core values and beliefs to do what’s best for students - no matter what!

With the last 10 minutes remaining of my time with the students, I was able to answer questions from the audience ranging from whether I have any pets, my process on whether or not to call snow days and even my favorite Disney princess!  I was happy to provide a response to someone who asked what might be ways for a 9th or 10th grade student to approach a senior with questions or help.  

First, I reminded them the senior was once a freshman and in the same shoes, so they would have empathy.  I also explained it’s important to let them know what you appreciate about them as an opening to the conversation.  Finally, I gave a call of action to the seniors in the auditorium to not just wait for the underclassmen to approach them but go to them with a mindset of mentoring and coaching.  

I hope our Oakwood students will continue on their leadership journey, supporting one another along the way to go "farther together."

#OneOakwood