Student Leadership in Action

1. Student Leadership in Action Jed Bowman, Ph.D. Dave Callan March 17, 2009

2. Agenda • Student Advisory Group (SAG) • Subend 1.5--Leadership • South Elementary • Election Process • Douglas County High School • Nourish Peace • Mountain Ridge Middle School • Student-Led Conferences (SLC) • Service Learning • ThunderRidge High School • Senior Project • Highlands Ranch High School • NASC Conference

3. Chaparral Derek Whipple Amanda Williams Lindsey Wolfgang Highlands Ranch Maddie Clark Lauren Gennaro Mackenzie Lopez Georgia Petrides Chris Tobin Mountain Vista Maddie Clark Carolyn Bavington Cedar Blazek Derek Bull Audrey Paranka Katie Peters Laura Rogers Ross Weistroffer Student Advisory Group 2008 - 2009

4. Student Advisory Group2008 - 2009 • Ponderosa • Wendy Bowling • Craig Hirokawa • Emily Wagoner • ThunderRidge • Josh Canter • Miles Dickinson • Michelle Shaffer • Faymie Westmoreland • Rock Canyon • Sarah Classen

5. Why the Student Advisory Group? In 2007-2008, the SAG wrote the regulations around the graduation requirement on community service. Various district groups continue to look at that implementation including service learning.

6. SAG—The Charge • Assist the BOE in its job of developing future written policies about the End Statement. Include expectations for student performance by providing input on leadership, leadership skills, opportunities for instruction and opportunities for students to demonstrate leadership.

7. Questions to Think About • Do all students have the potential to lead? • Can students recognize “good” leadership? • How does leadership relate to ethics? • How does a student learn to be a leader? • What opportunities do students have to lead?

8. Leadership Defined The ability to inspire, motivate and influence others to utilize their potential to reach a common goal. (SAG 2008)

9. Strands of Leadership Skills • Communication Skills • Goal Setting Skills • Organizational Skills • Thinking Skills • People Skills

10. Opportunities to Learn and Demonstrate Student Leadership

11. Student Leadership Student Leaders Skills • Traits • Honesty • Perseverance • Hard Work • Integrity

12. DC Feeder System • South Elementary • Carrie Stephenson, Principal • Election Process • Douglas County High School • Serena Patel, Trishna Patel, Nikki Look • Kelly Heo, Alice Choi, Lauren Koppel • Nourish Peace

13. DC Feeder System--Podcast • Carrie Stephenson, Principal • South Elementary Podcast

14. DC Feeder System—Nourish Peace • Students • Serena Patel • Trishna Patel • Nikki Look • Kelly Heo • Alice Choi • Lauren Koppel

15. Mountain Ridge MS • Natalie Sprigg, Teacher • Student-Led Conferences • Service Learning

16. Leadership at MRMS • Advanced classes, sports, clubs, debate, MathCounts, NJHS, Community Counts… • What DO ALL STUDENTS participate in? • Student-Led Conferences • Service Learning

17. Leadership at MRMS • 87% of parents reported that they agreed or strongly agreed with the statement, “My student has opportunities to develop leadership skills.” • 89% of the students reported the same.

18. Student-Led Conferences • Foundational core value since opening in 2001 • Several other middle schools also use SLC • Different than traditional conferences

19. Student-Led Conferences • Feedback on this format has been positive: • Students take responsibility for learning and behavior • Parents communicate with the learner about what is happening in school • Teachers facilitate the discussion between students and parents

20. SLC and ePortfolios • Students apply what they have learned. They go beyond merely knowing to using their knowledge and skills productively. (1.4) • Ellie Foust, 8th grade science teacher, implemented ePortfolios for a project in her Information and Learning Technology Masters program. • Using ePortfolios, students reflect on their performance, set goals, and make connections.

21. Students use evidence to show proficiency and reflect on learning. ePortfolios

22. ePortfolios Students plan for the future, set goals, and share feedback with teachers.

23. ePortfolios

24. ePortfolio Feedback “Good afternoon to all of you, I am Gabi Capocelli's mom and I just wanted you to know how very impressed I was with your … I am lucky enough to not only be a parent but a teacher of kids in the feeder area. I am so excited to see what the kids that I am teaching will be able to do when they get to middle school... We stress technology and to see how she has taken off with it is a huge celebration for us and especially for all of you. I am also going to try a very scaled down version of the ePortfolio with my second graders in the spring.”

25. Service Learning • Another school wide example of leadership in practice is service learning

26. Service Learning Standards • Meaningful Service • Link to curriculum • Reflection • Diversity • Youth voice • Partnerships • Progress Monitoring

27. Service Learning in Schools • Student Council provided direction (training and theme) • Students explore in RAM Time OR • Teams attend training and implement in their core curriculum

28. Service Learning • Identify a problem • Research the problem • Consider solutions • Select and make a plan • Implement a solution • Reflect and adjust • Students develop and demonstrate Leadership skills. They are influential in creating a vision of what the future can be. (1.4)

29. Service Learning Project • Starbucks Initiative

30. Service Learning Project • Starbucks Initiative

31. Project Feedback • Starbucks Initiative

32. Project Feedback • Starbucks Initiative

33. Service Learning Reflection

34. Conclusions • At the middle level, students need to develop ownership and responsibility for learning and leading. • Students demonstrate the self-motivation and resourcefulness to continue their learning. (1.3)

35. Conclusions • Student-led conferences, with an emphasis on ePortfolios, promote 21st century learners and leaders while holding kids accountable for their learning. • Service learning promotes a passion for a cause with the knowledge and resources to create change.

36. ThunderRidge HS • Denise Orsini, Teacher • Katherine Lindauer, Student • Chris Miller, Student • Senior Project

37. Senior Project Mission The ThunderRidge High School Senior Project will provide a cumulative evaluation instrument to validate a senior student’s ability to write an analytical paper, design and complete a project, and teach others about the project in a formal presentation.

38. Senior Project: Fosters growth in all students BOE Ends Statement 21st Century Skills IB Programme and AP Curriculum College Expectations Workplace Competencies

39. Senior Boards: Presentation and Celebration of Learning

40. Senior Project

41. Highlands Ranch HS • Rashaan Davis, Teacher • Chris Tobin, Student • Channing Andrews, Student • NASC Conference

42. Highlands Ranch HS—NASC

43. Highlands Ranch HS—NASC

44. Highlands Ranch HS—NASC

45. Highlands Ranch HS—NASC

46. Recommendations • Discuss the modification of the End Statement to include student voice and engagement. • Explore opportunities for students at various grade levels across the district to lead conferences around their learning and the district Ends. • Work to integrate student leadership and civic engagement. • Support understanding and opportunities for service learning K – 12. • Explore the role of middle and high school advisement as opportunities to embed service and leadership activities. • Use the work of Highlands Ranch High School around the NASC conference as a template for a leadership academy for Douglas County students. • Develop opportunities with community partners to engage students in acquiring and demonstrating leadership.

47. Questions????