Leading by Design: An Action Framework for PLC at Work™ Leaders, Jan/2012

By focusing on what students learn rather than what they are taught, schools can redefine their mission and begin the transition to a professional learning community. After interviewing and observing principals, administrators, and teachers, the authors identify seven leadership practices that effective PLC leaders share, along with the techniques that have led them to sustainable success.

1. Examine the seven leadership practices of highly effective PLC leaders.
2. Build a clear and effective leadership framework.
3. Gain insight from teachers, principals, and administrators.
4. Face the challenges of unhealthy and unproductive collaborative teams.
5. Pinpoint the specific strengths and strategies of successful leaders and teams.
6. Learn not only how to develop your own leadership, but also how to promote a culture of leadership.

About The Authors:
Cassandra Erkens is the owner of Anam Cara Consulting, Inc. She works with teachers and administrators nationally and internationally to advance the work of school improvement, leadership development, professional learning communities, and quality assessment design and use. As a consultant, she partners with Solution Tree and other education-based companies, such as the Assessment Trainers Institute.

Cassandra is a contributing author to The Collaborative Teacher, The Collaborative Administrator, The Teacher as Assessment Leader, and The Administrator as Assessment Leader anthologies. She has also authored many professional development curricula and training programs for education-based companies.

Cassandra has served as a high school English teacher, a local union president, a regional school improvement facilitator for the Minnesota Department of Education, a district-level director of staff development, and a director of educational services in the corporate culture. She currently serves as an adjunct faculty member at Hamline University in Minnesota, where she offers master of arts courses in education. Cassandra has served on the board of the Minnesota Staff Development Council and on the commissioner-appointed Statewide Staff Development Advisory Council.

Eric Twadell, PhD, has served as social studies teacher, curriculum director, and assistant superintendent for leadership and organizational development, and currently he serves as the superintendent of Adlai E. Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Illinois. Stevenson High School has been described by the United States Department of Education (USDE) as “the most recognized and celebrated school in America” and is one of only three schools to win the USDE Blue Ribbon Award on four occasions. Stevenson was one of the first comprehensive schools designated a New American High School by the USDE as a model of successful school reform. In the popular press, Stevenson High School has been repeatedly cited as one of America’s top high schools and the birthplace of Professional Learning Communities at WorkTM.

Eric has written multiple professional articles and is a contributing author to The Collaborative Administrator and The Collaborative Teacher. As a dedicated PLC practitioner, he has worked with state departments of education and local schools and districts throughout the United States to advance the successful implementation of the PLC model and achieve school improvement and reform. An accessible and articulate authority on PLC concepts, Eric brings hands-on experience to his presentations and workshops.

In addition to his teaching and leadership roles, Eric has been involved in coaching numerous athletic teams, and facilitating outdoor education and adventure travel programs. He is a member of several professional organizations, including Learning Forward and ASCD, and he earned a masters degree in Curriculum and Instruction and a doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policies Studies from Loyola University Chicago.
To learn more about Eric’s work, follow @ELT247365 on Twitter.