From July 25, 2012 The leadership team met today and discussed what we have with the Tiered Intervention Grant (TIG) and what plans we need to implement before the start of school August 20. As in most bold endeavors, the chance for making great things happen are balanced with great danger.We can create a dynamic, effective program for at-risk students or we can fall flat on our faces with 40% of the funding we asked for. The expectations are the same while the money to pay for the time to plan and the feedback from the experts has been reduced.

The benefits possible from a deep examination of the processes we use to teach our students requires time for reflection and constructive feedback from outside sources. I have been asking for this since 2001. We should have this feedback in June for the first time. We will be observed and the results will be part of a data driven discussion that I expect will help us to evaluate what is effective and what is not so we can make revisions.

The world of work is changing and how we prepare our kids must reflect those changes. We can do this without losing our hearts and souls. The dedication and love we put into what we do is great, and it is not sufficient. The opportunity is ripe for growth. I am fervently dedicating the year to making this happen.