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Vision-The principal has a personal vision for the school and the knowledge,
skills, and dispositions to develop, articulate and implement a shared vision that
is supported by the larger organization and the school community.

Describes how to develop and implement a shared vision and strategic
plan for the school
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Works with staff, students and families to achieve the school’s vision

Describes how instructional objectives, curricular goals and the shared
vision relate to each other

Allows time for the achievement of goals

Identifies needs that will be targeted in the shared vision and strategic
plan

Communicates the school’s vision, mission and priorities to the
community

Understands the basic concepts of the change process

Is aware that external influences have impact upon the school

Establishes plans to accomplish goals
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Relates the vision, mission, and goals to students

Understands the effect of having a community of learners working
together

Articulates and reinforces the vision in written and spoken
communications
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An educational leader must posses a vision for learning that encompasses
the goals of schooling which psychologists and sociologists agree upon:
academic achievement, effective work habits, civic values, social behavior, selfesteem, self-reliance (Owens & Valesky, 2007, p. 20). These goals have inherent
importance in the success of learning which occurs in the school. Educational
leaders must be flexible and adaptable to the changing needs of our students,
schools, and society. Society is ever-changing through the emergence of new
knowledge regarding human existence and technological advancements.
Continually emerging knowledge impacts learning thus impacting the focus goals
of school leaders. Schools must grow and change with the community they
serve. Educational leaders must strive for a vision of the school that seeks to be
engaged in infinite process of change and development (Owens & Valesky,
2007, p. 22).
Many authors have published books on achieving a vision that will stand
the test of time. With this vision, leaders must address methods for developing
values, beliefs, and principles to guide them into the future instead of merely
developing responses to urgencies often termed “putting out fires”. Two books
that have been particularly helpful to me are 7 Habits of Highly Successful
People by Stephen Covey (artifact #2) and Good to Great by Jim Collins (artifact
#1). The first two habits discussed in Covey’s book address visioning. When
developing a vision, leaders must “Be Proactive”. Good leaders do not simply put
out fires all day. They must have insight into potential problems and have a plan
in place. Educational leaders must always look to the future realizing what would
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be best for the school; Covey terms this method “Begin with the End in Mind”.
Collins advices a leader whom is designing a vision to “face the brutal facts” and
analyze what they are best at in the world. Through my professional readings, I
internalized these concepts when I participated in school’s visioning process.
For two years, I have assisted in writing our school improvement plan
(SIP), termed Student Success Plan (SSP) in Charlotte County (artifact #4). This
process is tedious but significant to the funding of our school; therefore we use a
participative leadership method when writing the plan. Teachers and parents
from all avenues of the school are part of the team. This team approach is
commensurate with System 4 of Likert’s Management Systems Theory (Owens &
Valesky, 2007, p. 122). The format of our plan focuses on being proactive. We
establish our “Big Rocks” for the year then determine the methods for achieving
them (Covey, 1989). Our Big Rocks were focused on the end result. Through this
process, we established our school’s strengths and its weaknesses. Our team
had to face the brutal facts surrounding test scores, parental involvement, parent
and student climate surveys, and various other data presented. All these
concepts were essential to the successful first year of our plan. The second year
began and ended much of the same way. The difference lay in the visioning for
the next five years. With our first plan, we were unsure of our success; however
the second year we were able to determine our strengths and build on them in
years to come. The knowledge I gained by reading School Leadership that
Works (artifact #8) contributed to my participation on the SSP team (Marzano,
2005). According to Marzano, at this level our school is undergoing a second-
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order change. School leaders at this level must focus on seven of twenty-one
responsibilities: knowledge of curriculum, instruction, and assessment; optimizer;
intellectual stimulation; change agent; monitoring/evaluating; flexibility;
ideals/beliefs (2005). Recognizing our focus for the upcoming year, we left the
room with a plan which addressed where we are and where we are going.
Another major visioning accomplishment was during my practicum
experience as administrator of the Summer Reading Academy (SRA). This
program was four weeks in length with the intent to remediate reading skills in all
participants. The vision of SRA was to remediate students’ reading deficiencies.
My vision encompassed not only meeting their reading needs but in addition
building their self-esteem and involving their parents in their learning. Through
the guidance of my mentoring administrator, I realized the essentiality of
establishing a student handbook (artifact #5) and planner (artifact #6) for SRA.
The student handbook outlined expectations and procedures for the entire
program. The planner required a parental commitment to SRA. We asked that
each student read for thirty minutes a night and a parent signature was required
to prove it was completed. Students had daily access to the school library as well
as the Title One Reading Room where each student received a free book for
their personal library when they checked out books. The SRA handbook and
planner served as a valuable tool for outlining the vision of SRA.
One cannot speak about a principal’s vision for a school without
discussing the school’s organizational health. As stated in a recent study,
“healthy schools adapt themselves to the environment successfully and promote
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common values in their staff (Korkmaz, 2006). Matthew Miles listed specific
indicators of organizational health: goal focus, communication adequacy, optimal
power equalization, human resources utilization, cohesiveness, morale,
innovativeness, autonomy, adaptation, and problem-solving adequacy (Owens &
Valesky, 2007, p. 246). These indicators are impacted by the leadership of the
school. The school leader must portray the shared vision not a personal vision to
achieve a robust school vision (Korkmaz, 2006). A school leader’s personal
vision has to be an ethical one placing students above personal gain, being
willing to cooperate for the good of the organization. Recent research on the
relationship between organizational health and a robust school vision supports a
positive relationship between teacher’s perception of organizational health and
their perception of a robust school vision. Collegial leadership and academic
emphasis have a direct correlation to the robust vision. (Korkmaz, 2006) This
research affects my visioning and causes my leadership style to significantly
impact the organizational health. A healthy school must have a healthy vision
statement which includes participation from all the members and a buy-in that is
appreciated by all members.
Both of my practicum experiences were vastly different in relation to
organizational health. My home school has a positive organizational health. Thus
it is easy to see how all the school leaders, including myself, contribute to the
school vision. In contrast, Summer Reading Academy is a compilation of
teachers from across the district thrust together for four weeks. It was essential to
me to establish a shared vision right from the start. On our first day together, we
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began with an icebreaker activity which served a two-fold purpose: introducing
each member of the team and creating an atmosphere of teamwork (artifact # 9).
The leadership team shared the expectations for teachers and students through
a PowerPoint presentation (artifact #10) at our one and only faculty meeting. This
communication was vital for establishing the relationship of trust and respect that
must be present for the team to achieve the vision of Summer Reading
Academy. The meeting took a bit longer than expected but it was worth every
minute. Many issues that generally arise during these compilations of different
staff members were not present during SRA. I whole heartedly believe it was
because we created a vision, achieved buy-in from the staff, and adhered to the
vision through all our actions.
One of the pivotal activities of a school leader is to continually state where
we are and where we are going (Owens & Valesky, 2007, p. 283). The approach
in which a leader goes about this task should be shared leadership, involving all
members of the organization. School Based Management (SBM) is one method I
have seen produce positive results. The School Based Management Team
represents the entire organization thus their mission is to support the school
vision. As principal, I would rely heavily on the Team to exemplify the school
vision through reflective practices. I recognize that I must develop a deliberate
direction for the school which I convincingly demonstrate to the school. I aspire to
be a transformational leader by engaging in the common vision for the school.
One productive method for being a transformational leader is the Total Quality
Management (TQM) Method. William Glasser emphasizes that leaders manage
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things while they lead people (1998). Things such as finances and inventories
can be managed but people need to be led. My foundation in TQM became
apparent to me during an analysis of a new administrator in one of my classes
(artifact #7). My beliefs are firmly rooted in leading by example. As a school
leader, I must believe unequivocally in the school vision and accordingly
demonstrate my belief through my words and actions. Through such methods as
TQM, I can transform to the highest level of leadership, moral leadership (Owens
& Valesky, 2007, p. 282).
As a school leader, I will maintain a personal vision for my school through
such theories as 7 Habits of Highly Successful People and Good to Great. My
vision for a school will illuminate a feasible picture of what the school can
become in the future based on the current needs of the school. I will further my
knowledge, skills, and dispositions in order to develop, articulate and implement
a shared vision that is supported by the larger organization and the school
community through such methods as Total Quality Management and SchoolBased Management. I will continue my professional development and readings to
stay current with research to ensure I evolve as a leader as our society changes
and grows.
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References
Collins, J (2001). Good to great: Why some companies make the leap... and
others don't. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.
Covey, S (1989). The 7 habits of highly successful people. New York, NY:
Simon and Schuster.
Glasser, W (1998). The quality school - managing students without coercion.
New York, NY: HarperCollins Pubishers, Inc.
Korkmaz, M (2006). The relationship between organizational health and robust
school vision in elementary schools. Educational Research Quarterly, 30,
Retrieved June 24, 2007, from
http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1137712031&clientId=8631&RQT=3
09&VNMW=PQD
Marzano, R., Waters, T., & McNulty, B. (2005). School leadership that works:
from research to results. Aurora: Mid-Continent Research for Education
and Learning.
Owens, R. G. & Valesky, T. C. (2007). Organizational behavior in education:
Adaptive leadership and school reform (9th ed). Needham Heights, MA:
Allyn and Bacon.