NCSA Today Magazine, Winter 2011

NCSA TODAYNCSA TODAYA PUBLICATION OF THE NEBRASKA COUNCIL OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS

Nebraska Councilof School Administrators

January 2011 www.NCSA.org

The New Session:SenatorAdamsdiscusses educationalchallenges

Newest Members of theNebraska Legislature

Senator Dave Bloomfield

SenatorTyson Larson

Senator Lydia Brasch

Senator Paul Schumacher

Senator Burke Harr

Senator Jim Smith

We help educators keep their eyes on the prizeIt would be nice if every financial decision you had to make were an easy A. Let us help you create a plan to reach your insurance and retirement goals.

Contact your local representative or visit horacemann.com for more information.

JANUARY 2011 NCSA TODAY 1

FEATURES

NCSA MissionThe mission of the Nebraska Council of School Administrators (NCSA) is to be an effec-tive leader for quality education and to enhance the professionalism of its members.

NCSA Today is a benefit of membership in the Nebraska Council of School Administrators, 455 South 11thStreet, Suite A, Lincoln, NE 68508. Telephone 402.476.8055 or 800.793.6272. Fax 402.476.7740. An-nual membership dues are $325 (active members), $100 (associate members), or $30 (student members).NCSA Today is published quarterly. Send address changes to NCSA, Membership, 455 South 11th Street,Suite A, Lincoln, NE 68508. Copyright ©2010 by NCSA. All rights reserved.

NCSA EXECUTIVE BOARD2010-2011

Chair . . . . . . . . . . . .Sarah WilliamsVice Chair . . . . . . . . . .Bill MowinkelPast Chair . . . . . . . . . . . Matt Fisher

NASA RepresentativesPresident . . . . . . . . . . . .Jack MolesPresident-elect . . . . . . .Greg BarnesPast President . . . . . . .Bill Mowinkel

NASBO RepresentativesPresident . . . . . . . . .Robin HoffmanPresident-elect . . . . . . .Dave KaslonPast President . . . . . . . . Rick Feauto

NAESP RepresentativesPresident . . . . . . . . . .Midge MougeyPresident-elect . . . . . . .David KrausPast President . . . . . .Sarah Williams

NASES RepresentativesPresident . . . . . . . . .Peggy RomshekPresident-elect . . . . . . . .Stuart ClarkPast President . . . . . . . . .Jane Byers

NSASSP RepresentativesPresident . . . . . . . .Randy SchleuterPresident-elect . . Mitch BartholomewPast President . . . . .Kenton McLellan

NARSA RepresentativePresident . . . . . . . . . . . .Ron Joekel

NCSA STAFF

Dr. Michael S. DulaneyExecutive Director/Lobbyist

Dr. Dan E. ErnstAssociate Executive Director/Lobbyist

Kelly Coash-JohnsonTraining and Development Director

Amy PoggenklassFinance and Membership Coordinator

Angie CarmanExecutive Administrative Assistant

Carol YoungAdministrative Assistant

Elisabeth ReinkordtStaff Correspondent

The opinions expressed in NCSA Todayor by its authors do not necessarilyreflect the positions of the NebraskaCouncil of School Administrators.

Senator GregAdamsAddresses EducationIssuesAffecting 2011 Unicameral SessionBY ELISABETH REINKORDT

Bipartisanship Needed to Solve Stateand Federal Budget ProblemsBY SENATOR BEN NELSON

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When Change Happens:Make LemonadeBY DR. MIDGE MOUGEY

The Power of Words: Vocabulary Strategies thatSupportAdministrators in their Daily RoutineBY RANDY SCHLEUTER

Planning and UsingTechnology EffectivelyBY MITCH KUBICEK

“LearningTogether” in Papillion-LaVistaBY JANE BYERS

Technology Boot Camp forAdministratorsNCSA and ESUTechnology Affiliate CollaborationBY JACKIE EDIGER

Learning Networks – Connecting Nebraska SchoolswithAccountability and SupportBY ANGELA ZABAWA

NASES New SpEdAdministrator of theYear

NAESP New Principal of theYearWinnerAnnounced

NAESP National Distinguished Principal for 2011

Nebraska StateAssociation of Secondary School PrincipalsAnnounces 2010Award Winners

NCSA Report – Communication Never More ImportantBY DR. MIKE DULANEY and DR. DAN ERNST

The Black andWhite of GreenBY DAVE RAYMOND and DENNY VAN HORN

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

2 NCSA TODAY JANUARY 2011

NEBRASKA LEGISLATURE

(continued on next page)

“The challenge,” according to the chair ofthe Education Committee, Senator GregAdams of York, “will be funding, fund-

ing, funding.” As Nebraskans gear up to watch the 2011Legislative session unfold during this time of economicuncertainty, this news should come as no surprise. Onthe day before the session began, the Senator made clearthat while education funding will certainly be at theforefront of the Unicameral’s budget discussions, his goalis to remind stakeholders and his fellow senators that

maintaining balance is key.As he noted, “Kids show upevery day, whether there is arecession or not.”

Indeed. So what canschool administrators expectas the “financial gray cloud”Senator Adams describes in-fluences this Legislative ses-sion?

First and foremost, the Education Com-mittee will be grappling with a substantialmodification to TEEOSA, the Tax Equity andEducational Opportunities Support Act. Thestate is facing a $986 million shortfall inthe biennium budget, and with educationamounting to slightly over 49 percent of thegeneral fund appropriations, Senator Adamsmade clear that there is an expectation onthe part of [his] colleagues — not just onthe committee but throughout the entireLegislature “that we have this huge prob-lem we have to fix and education has gotto be a big part of the fix.” Thus, Adamsfeels, that the Education Committee’s “pri-mary job of this session will be to presentproposals, both with TEEOSA as well as withsome of our 542 recommendations, that willhelp the overall budget of this state.”

The 542 process, or LR 542 Listing of Op-tions, refers to the report released in De-

cember 2010 by an ad hoc committee of theLegislature, chaired by Speaker Mike Flood

and comprised of the chairs of the Legislature’s fourteenstanding committees, that introduces options for ad-dressing shortfalls in the biennium budget. Enacted inApril 2010, the committee was charged with examiningpossible cuts in the members’ respective jurisdictionsgenerally amounting to ten percent of general fund ap-propriations to each agency. Among cuts to programs atthe University of Nebraska, state colleges, and the Post-secondary Coordination Commission, as well as in edu-cational television and educational lands and funds, alsolisted by the committee were cuts both at the Depart-ment of Education and – most importantly for districts –a proposed $134,401,628 modification in State Aidthrough TEEOSA.

Prior to the October economic forecast, SenatorAdams and his committee prepared and modeled the planfrom the 542 process with the modification to TEEOSA.However, after the October forecast and the LegislativeSymposium, Senator Adams realized he would have toput together a second proposal with even deeper cuts in

Sen.GregAdamsAddresses EducationIssues Affecting 2011 Unicameral SessionBY ELISABETH REINKORDT, Staff Correspondent

“Kids show up everyday,whether there isa recession or not.”– SenatorAdams


STATEWIDE

both Year 1 and Year 2. Now that the Legislature is in session, hesaid, “The [Education] Committee will wrestle with both of thoseproposals and try to take something to the floor that is workablefor schools but is also workable for this budget problem that wehave.” Adams stressed, “We don’t want [to] do damage toschools, to do damage to education at the higher ed level or K-12…we have an obligation here in Education to help at thestatewide level.”

Senator Adams returned to the idea of balance many times,emphasizing that legislating is all about balances, between“urban and rural, achievement gaps, big schools and smallschools, good education policy and not-so-good education pol-icy, new senators and veteran senators, statesmanship and poli-tics.” One of the biggest challenges with state aid, he said, isthat because all districts are different, it can be hard to predictthe myriad effects that changes may have across the state. “If[districts] were all cookie cutter…we could more easily manipu-

late here and know howit’s going to affect[schools]. But there are253 different situationsout there.” With that inmind, Adams stressedthat all of the senatorswill be listening to theirconstituents – includingtheir district’s school ad-ministrators – whenmaking decisions.

Senator Adams does-n’t foresee any otherbills coming from theEducation Committeethis session, but he’s notruling it out, either. “It’s been an unusual year,” he said. “A yearago at this time, I had met with several different groups of folksabout a variety of educational issues, from recreating unified sys-tems to funding of Rule 18 schools to Kindergarten eligibil-ity…this year, almost no one’s been here.” It seems as thoughthe feeling that budget issues will be eclipsing all others haspermeated the sentiments of education stakeholders throughoutthe state, forcing many to set aside broader goals and plans asthey prepare for shrinking funds. He noted, however, that theremay be some unanticipated bills appearing in the first ten daysof bill introduction during the session.

When asked what advice he would give to school administra-tors, he said: “Plan your budget. Get ready.” Unfortunately, headded, many of the decisions impacting administrators aren’tgoing to be made until May. “I wish I could say to them, ‘Hey,first bill out is going to be state aid, we’re going get it resolvedin February,’” but that because of economic forecasts anticipatedin both February and April, the complexion of the overall budgetis subject to change. Though he acknowledged the difficult po-sition that administrators are in as they make hiring decisions be-cause of the timing of school finance calculations, he emphasizedthat at this time, changing that timetable was not an option.

As the session progresses and Adams enters his second andfinal term in office, he hopes that “wherever we arrive on June8th is the best that we can do in light of this environment.” �

2011 Legislative Session… (continued from page 2)

“We don’t want [to]do damage to schools,to do damage toeducation at thehigher ed level orK-12…we have anobligation here inEducation to help atthe statewide level.”

Kris Valentin, Research Analyst, Education Committee, meets withSenator Adams.


FEDERAL PERSPECTIVE

Two years ago, voters sent a clear message thatthey wanted change. Last fall, they sent thatmessage again and we’re going to see another

shift in Washington in 2011. It will have an impact onstates, local governments, and our schools. Their mes-sage was that people around the country want Washing-ton to put politics aside and work together for the bestof the country. Some who were elected and some whohave been in Washington awhile, however, may still wantgridlock. Although I expect they will be vocal, I can’timagine they’ll get far with continuing an agenda we’veseen the last two years of delay, filibuster, and stale-mate.

For my part, I’ve always been able to work with peo-ple on both sides of the political aisle. And while thebalance in Congress changes, it won’t change me. I’ll al-ways look to bring people together for solutions that cre-ate jobs, improve education, foster economic growth andopportunity, and deal with federal spending and thedebt. One of the biggest challenges will be to get ourfiscal house back in order. States will be doing the same.But we need to make sure that isn’t at the expense of ed-ucating our children.

As we go forward, it seems to me, it’s not unreason-able for local school districts to at least ask for fiscalhelp from those in state government. Today, the realityis that local governments are not only being denied help.They’re told that the state will balance its budget on theback of local governments and property taxes. It’s inter-esting that those in state government who want to bal-ance the state budget on the back of schools and localgovernments are the same ones that are calling for thefederal government to reduce the national debt--whileat the same time demanding that they not do it on thebacks of the states.

Let’s review some of the facts. The 2009 Recovery Actcreated and saved hundreds of jobs in Nebraska, and italso eased burdens on local governments. Local schooldistricts were saved from making big cuts to their budg-ets through the use of more than $425 million in Recov-ery Act funds. That kept teachers on the job teachingchildren at the high level they deserve—and need.

The Recovery Act also bailed out the state budget,chiefly through several hundred million dollars of addi-

tional funding for Medicaid costs. Some in state govern-ment criticized the Recovery Act and then turned aroundand asked for its funding to be extended so the statewould get even more money to cover Medicaid costs.

Last summer, Washington approved an Education Jobsbill that sent additional aid to teachers and to bail outthe states. After some hesitancy, Lincoln took the money,about $59 million more for education funding and an-other $69 million for Medicaid costs.

I was wary of another bailout for the states. But I alsowas concerned that if we didn’t help states, the mostconvenient step would be to cut aid to local communi-ties, including schools. That could lead to a forced risein property taxes or teacher layoffs or both.

Today, the state faces a nearly $1 billion budget short-fall, huge by any standard and one that will force verytough decisions in Lincoln during the next few months.State government shouldn’t look to the federal govern-ment for more bailouts. There just isn’t the money, nor isthere the will for Washington to spend more of what itdoesn’t have.

My own agenda will be to focus heavily on findingways to create jobs and economic growth so we can getour economy firing again on all pistons. I also want tocut federal spending and to get started on serious debtreduction needed in order for America to continue to bea strong leader of the free world.

In 2011, the makeup of Congress will be much differ-ent from the last two years, and it’s my hope the changewill mean more bipartisan action on such issues as jobs,energy, deficit reduction and paying down the federaldebt.

After the 2008 elections, an unfortunate pattern setin. Members of the House passed bills that more or lessshut out the minority and had little chance of winningapproval in the Senate. The Senate’s 60/40 split, ornearly 60/40 split, between Democrats and Republicansput unhelpful pressure on both sides. Some Democratssaid they didn’t need Republican backing on bills if allDemocrats stuck together, and some Republicans saidtheir only means of making sure their views were con-sidered was to block whatever the Democrats proposed.Far too often, neither side worked together to achieve

Bipartisanship Needed to Solve State andFederal Budget ProblemsBY SENATOR BEN NELSON

Nelson

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AFFILIATE LEADERSHIP

Just prior to my son leaving for college at the UnitedStates Military Academy at West Point in 2003, Itook the opportunity to read a then newly publishedbook about the West Point experience. The book, Ab-

solutely American, was written by David Lipsky, a writerfor Rolling Stone Magazine. The particular draw of thebook for me was that, as a mother, I was hungry for in-formation about this almost mythical place and experi-ence to/on which my son was embarking.

While I was intrigued by the history of Lipsky’s ef-forts to write the book in the first place I was continu-ally drawn back to the book in an almost Pavlovian waybecause of the rich dialogue and description of thecadets’ view of life. One particular quote from a youngcadet resonated with me at the first reading and in sub-sequent readings. The gist was, “In order to find happi-ness in life you must live the life you are in as if it werethe one you had planned.” At first blush this looks likea bit of pabulum and yet as one mines the quote, a depthof understanding about the real essence of life is appar-ent in this young man’s words.

“Stuff happens” to all of us. Some of it we can con-trol but more and more there seems to be fewer thingsthat we can control in this culture of educational uncer-tainty we find ourselves immersed in today. The very realchallenges of budget cuts (and the ever anticipated “CliffEffect”), staff reductions, doing more with less, and in-creased unfunded mandates cast a shadow over our in-tended focus on students and learning. It addsunprecedented challenges to our work and exacerbatesthe environment of uncertainty in which we alreadyexist. This sum of the parts adds up to an enormous bur-den for those leading the educational charge in Ne-braska, and, I suspect other states, as well. It also

changes the gamein ways that wemay be unpre-pared for at thisjuncture of ourcareer.

After 12 yearsat a three-track,high povertyschool I was reas-signed this year

to two one-track buildings in the most affluent area ofour town. The dynamics of the families I serve are verydifferent and bring new challenges. At first I struggledwith this situation. I grieved for the families I had con-nected with and served passionately for many years. Iprivately railed against the change and saw it only in anegative light and wondered if it was a punitive gesture.I once again went to the “well” and re-examined the,now, very familiar quote that had initially drawn me backto David Lipsky’s book.

It was after reconsidering the quote that I made aconscious decision to become very cerebral about thesituation in which I now found myself. I begin to exam-ine the ramifications of the change, I talked to trustedcolleagues and friends, I whined to my family, I re-searched my new schools, I questioned past and presentteachers at the schools, and I started making “lists” formyself. Most importantly I made the overt decision to“get happy” about things. That is, after all, the real de-cision…our state of mind…and ultimately, one of thefew things over which we really do have control.

While I am wrestling the alligators of change in mycorner of Nebraska I daily remind myself of the youngcadet’s words, “In order to find happiness in life youmust live the life you are in as if it were the one youhad planned.” I made an active choice to change thelens I was looking through and start to see this changeas if it were of my choosing. Amazingly, the change ofattitude made all the difference in the world.

I am pleased (but not surprised given what I knowabout attitudes, views on life, and myself) to report thatI am having the time of my life!! The life I had planned(many years ago) as a building principal included: beingable to personally greet students each morning, to getinto EVERY classroom EVERY day, to visit with studentsabout their learning, to model reading stamina for upperlevel readers, to connect with kids on the playgroundand in the cafeteria, to enjoy getting to know all the“good kids,” and to personally put children in cars eachnight as they drive out of my life for the day. That is thelife I had planned…and amazingly, it is the life I amnow living. I continue to live by another platitude: Neverdrink the kool-aid!! I do, however, find that lemonadehas always been my drink of choice!! �

When Change Happens:Make LemonadeBY DR. MIDGE MOUGEY, President, Nebraska Association of Elementary School Principals; Principal, North Platte Public Schools

Mougey

“In order to find happiness inlife you must live the life youare in as if it were the one youhad planned.” – Dr.Mougey


AFFILIATE LEADERSHIP

Dr. Hal Urban spoke about the importance ofwords at the recent NASSP/NAESP State Con-vention. During his presentations, he de-

scribed how words could be nourishing or toxic betweenthe person sending the message and the person receiv-ing the message. Administrators should encourage pro-fessional performance within their schools by focusingon the nourishing words that will sustain their staff.

Two learning strategies that come to mind to help ad-ministrators focus on nourishing words are teach/re-teach and word walls. As professionals, we are all familiarwith words that are essential to our profession. Unlesswe continue to remind (re-teach) ourselves of the wordsand their importance, we are vulnerable to crossing theline from nourishing words to toxic words. Word wallsbecome a visible reminder of these encouraging wordsthat are important to us in our daily routine. Take thetime to “decorate” your office, halls, lounge, classroomwith the words that you feel are key to maintaining apositive atmosphere within your building.

During my years in education, I have collected someof the key words that are most often used during pro-fessional conversations that are vital to a successfulschool system. The list is not all-inclusive, nearly a por-tion of the key words that we need. Each word is fol-lowed by the definition and the significance of each inan educational environment.

On two occasions, Dr. Mike Dulaney has said, “keepyour eye on the prize,” as he has addressed members ofthe NCSA. The purpose of the Dr. Dulaney’s comment wasto remind administrators why they became educators,and not allow them to become caught up in the testing,

politics, and budget. Wheneducators know the “why,”then “what to do” becomesan easier task for the learn-ing community.

In the book Fierce Conver-sations, Susan Scott statesthat “a simple and effectiveshift you can make is to re-move the word but from yourvocabulary and substitute theword and.” When you modify

your language and replace the word but with the wordand, you avoid blame. Communication should be de-signed to reduce barriers between people, not buildthem.

In 2005, Beatrice Middle School created our schoolmission statement making sure we used words to helpsupport our professional educators. The staff membersdeveloped their personal definition of what learning isand how to help guide us through our decision-makingprocess. The BMS definition of learning is “a process ofacquisition and application of knowledge.” The vision oflearning is one that applies to both students and staffmembers. Our staffs’ goal is to encourage both studentsand teachers to make daily learning a priority in theirprofessional and personal life.

Two methods of building a positive working relation-ship with students and staff members is “meet andgreet” and “I noticed.” Acknowledging students and staffmembers when they enter the building or classroom letsthem know that they have value and worth within theschool. The “I noticed” strategy is used to build self-es-teem when you make a comment to a student or staffmember. By using this positive statement about the stu-dent or staff member it helps to build and develop pos-itive relationship.

In order to create a positive learning environment,your staff and students should know what to expect fromyou each day. You need to be consistent. This will cre-ate a safe learning environment for everyone, and theywill be more likely to succeed. The professionals that wework with can adapt to a planned change; however, theywill dislike an environment in which the rules are con-stantly being altered. Staff members are also lookingfor follow-through after the administration has made apublic statement about policy.

A quote that we should all live by is: “On their deathbed, nobody has ever wished they had spent more timein their office.” It is important for administrators to in-teract with staff and students throughout the course ofthe school day. Being visible allows the principal to havea working knowledge of how the designed curriculum isbeing implemented within the classroom.

Laughter has the ability to heal the spirit. During the

The Power of Words:Vocabulary Strategies that Support Administrators in their Daily RoutineBY RANDY SCHLEUTER, President, Nebraska State Association of Secondary School Principals; Principal, Beatrice Middle School

In order to create apositive learningenvironment, your staffand students shouldknow what to expectfrom you each day.

Schleuter



well-balanced legislation that had the best interests of the en-tire country at heart.

In 2011, the Senate will be closer to a 50/50 split, whichshould be a recipe for more bipartisan legislation. Neither sidewill be able to sit on the sidelines. Both will have an obligationto offer realistic plans providing job growth, economic expan-sion and improvements in education so Americans will be ableto compete and lead the world in the second decade of the 21stCentury. After the fall elections, I saw a poll showing that 80percent of Americans want people to work together more to getthings done. Well, we saw that in action in December’s lameduck session and polls showed strong support for the results.

In December, the president bypassed the Democrats andworked with Republicans. It reminded me of when I was firstelected governor of Nebraska in 1990. Everyone knew the Leg-islature was non-partisan but everyone’s party affiliations alsowere known. Some Democrats were so used to battling my pred-ecessor, who was a Republican, they continued that practicewhen I arrived. So, I went to the Republicans and worked withthem on our agenda for Nebraska. Next year, Democrats werestanding in line asking how they could help; we had more bi-partisan work and successes thereafter, and at the end of mysecond term the state was on sound footing.

Sometimes jumping over the political divide can be helpfulbecause it sends the message that working together and put-ting aside partisan politics can deliver results. That is what thePresident did on extending the expiring Bush era tax cuts andunemployment benefits, on the New Strategic Arms ReductionTreaty and other measures. He received criticism from those ateither ends of the political spectrum, but he showed he waswilling to talk to anybody to get the job done and makeprogress for the country.

While some complained about all that was done in the lameduck, the only reason that happened was because months ofobstruction and delaying tactics left a lot of unfinished work tothe end of the 111th Congress.

It’s my hope that the two-year 112th Congress starting inJanuary will be marked with more honest debate, more consen-sus and bipartisanship and less political gamesmanship. Thestakes are high. Our children’s education and their future are onthe line. �

Bipartisanship Needed… (continued from page 4)

current educational drama, take the time to laugh, especially atyourself to lift your spirits. A good belly laugh and other positiveinfluences will make the task at hand easier to find the necessarysolutions. Be sure to surround yourself with positive people andinteract with them. At the start of district administrator meet-ings at BPS, we start with an opening laugh to share humor withall.

Change is very scary for some in education. As the buildingadministrator, change should be planned by all affected parties.Take the time to collaborate with everyone and be sure all un-derstand the reasons for the needed changes.

Teachers and administrators can no longer work in isolation tomeet the needs of their students. A building administrator mustdiscover the teacher leaders and actively engage them in the de-cision making process for the building. By utilizing these educa-tors who are able to take a leadership role, the school can benefitfrom their collaboration and improve instruction and education.

Words do make a powerful statement when they become a partof our vocabulary that we conscientiously use in our daily pro-

fessional journey. Applying something as simple as a re-teachstrategy of words that create your personal word wall will helpyou hit a moving target. Using the words that are important to theindividual administrator will help “keep our eyes on the prize” aswe continue to work with students and staff in our building.

As building administrators, our day is often consumed by somany distractions with which we have little to no control, andour plate gets piled higher with each new educational program.Yet, our target must always be learning for those in our educa-tional community. To guide your aim, use nourishing words tosteady your mind to hit the moving target. �

The Power of Words… (continued from page 6)


TECHNOLOGY

With the recent growth of new technolo-gies, there exists an opportunity to in-corporate new learning tools into

education, and some schools may be asking, “So why usetechnology?” Steve Ballmer, Microsoft CEO writes, “Thenumber one benefit of information technology is that itempowers people to do what they want to do. It letspeople be creative. It lets people be productive. It letspeople learn things they didn't think they could learnbefore, and so in a sense it is all about potential.”

These comments define the effective use of technol-ogy. Technology should be used to empower individuals,to increase efficiency and productivity, and to enhancecommunication and collaboration. However, it is also im-portant to consider the possible downsides of technol-ogy, as well. If not planned well, technology can hinder,distract, and isolate. Purposeful and effective imple-mentation of technology will result only if schoolsdemonstrate careful planning for its use. Planning hastwo major implications; it will prevent the use of tech-nology from feeling like an “add-on,” and it will lead tosustained integration of technology into classrooms tosupport student learning. As part of the planning,schools should consider the answers to the followingquestions:• Will it increase the quality and/or efficiency of our

work?• Are we able to collaborate/communicate more effec-

tively?• Can we collect, organize, and provide more efficient

ways to review data?Currently, most educators use technology to learn

through research ofinformation on theInternet. The ca-pacity of knowl-edge availablethrough the worldwide web is liter-ally endless, and isa tremendous re-source for adminis-trators, teachers,and students.However, with the

introduction to web 2.0 tools, we now have the oppor-tunity to go one step further, and not only review infor-mation, but create, modify, and collaborate aboutinformation. These tools provide a system to promoteadditional dialogue and conversation among all stake-holders. I have listed some of the technology tools I useas a building principal. All are free, and most are web-based, eliminating the need to download software.These examples demonstrate how principals can usetechnology to support and involve teachers, and couldeasily be tools teachers use in their classrooms to sup-port and involve students.

Google Docs (docs.google.com):Users can create documents similar to the programs in

Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint). Documentscan be shared so multiple users can collaborate and editone document. Our leadership team has used this to cre-ate a planning document for school improvement. Eachmember of the leadership team can makes changes, com-ments, and chat online while reviewing and editing thesame document. This has proven to be a beneficial wayto have an ongoing, online discussion.

Another valuable tool within the suite of google docsis the form tool (a survey tool similar to Zoomerang andSurveyMonkey). Google forms allow you to create andedit surveys, and the results of these surveys are col-lected in a google spreadsheet. We use surveys to col-lect information from the staff, parents, and students;this data helps us organize information and plan for ac-ademic improvements. I also use a google form to com-plete electronic walk-through observations ofclassrooms. Through the use of an iPod Touch, iPad,Smartphone, or Laptop computer, forms and commentsare collected and stored before I leave the classroom,and the information is immediately emailed to the class-room teacher. This has allowed me to transition to anevaluation and feedback structure that is year-round,formative, and drives ongoing conversations about stu-dent learning.

Google Groups (groups.google.com):If you’re interested in a free discussion board, this is

a very user-friendly tool. You can easily post and an-

Kubicek

Planning and UsingTechnology EffectivelyBY MITCH KUBICEK, Principal, Dorchester Public Schools

Mitch will provide a one-dayworkshop on how to use hisGoogle form on March 28th from9:00 to 3:00 in the NCSAconference room. Participants willreceive training on how to use thetool and a customized version.For more information or toregister contactToby Boss [email protected] orTammyWilliams at [email protected].



TECHNOLOGY

swer discussion questions, and invite additional users through anemail invitation. Users can rate each post and each time a postis created an email notification is sent to each participant of thegroup. We have used this in our district for ongoing discussionsabout school improvement initiatives, and online book studies forstaff professional development.

Crocodoc (crocodoc.com):Upload a PDF, share it with others, highlight text, and make

comments. Our leadership team has used this to have an onlinediscussion about school system processes. I uploaded a schoolimprovement rubric which allowed staff to highlight areas on therubric and make additional comments. This tool allowed our teamto have an ongoing conversation, and also served as a record-keeping device we will be able to review over time. Our guidancecounselor has started to use this tool with high school seniors tofill out applications and scholarship forms; you can write on thePDF, and save it or print it out with your additions.

Voicethread (voicethread.com):A collaborative, multimedia slide-show that can share images,

videos, documents, and allows people to leave audio or writtencomments. I have not used this application much, but it showsmuch promise for collaboration. It would be an effective way toupload a document and explain it using the comments. The slide-shows can then be shared with other users through a link orembed the slide-show in a website. The free version currently al-lows you to create three slide-shows. If you would like to createmore there is an annual fee.

ScreenR (screenr.com):I use this tool frequently to create training videos for staff to

view. ScreenR allows you to capture your computer screen, audiofrom your microphone, and combines them to create a video thatcan be shared. You also have the option to download the movieas a file to your computer. I have used this most recently todemonstrate how to create classroom blogs within our website.The major limitation is the length of videos - you are limited tofive minutes.

TweetDeck (tweetdeck.com):With the wealth of information that is available through the

internet, I needed to find a way to channel the most importantinformation to my computer. TweetDeck sends twitter commentsto my computer, and displays the “tweet” in a pop-up window onmy screen. I have created groups on my twitter account, andonly have TweetDeck send comments from a specific group. This

group includes only organizations and people I have chosen tofollow who post education-related comments. This has been agreat professional development tool where I learn directly fromother educators. The comments from my education group oftenhave links to valuable websites or articles. I can then share thisinformation with specific teachers who I think will find the in-formation meaningful and helpful.

The purpose of these tools is to enhance our school processes,and their use developed out of a need. I am reminded of a pieceof advice that was given to me when I began my administrativecareer – “Don’t have meetings just to have meetings – have a pur-pose.” The same philosophy should be applied to the use of tech-nology. Don’t use technology just to use technology...be sure youhave defined a purpose for using it. At the same time, don’t avoidits use if it could be helpful. Incorporating technology can pro-vide additional opportunities to increase learning, improve com-munication, foster creativity, and empower individuals. �

Planning and UsingTechnology Effectively…(continued from page 8)

Register today! Discounts available for teams and advance registration. www.nasspconference.org

IMPROVING STUDENTPERFORMANCENASSP CONFERENCEFEB. 24–27, 2011 • SAN FRANCISCO, CA

The Time is Now!

2011 Offi cial Conference Sponsors:

Bring your leadership team to

the NASSP Conference! Develop

strategies for building leadership

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The conference is ideal for principals,

assistant principals, teacher leaders,

and superintendents and district

leaders.

Your team will leave rejuvenated and

motivated to achieve the goals you

set for improving your school.


Like many school districts in Nebraska, Papillion-La Vista (PLSD) has done extensive, teacher fo-cused work in developing and enhancing core

instruction in Language Arts. Achievement measuresshow steady improvement across subgroups, while ef-forts expand to answer the question, “But, what aboutthose students who are not responding as well to thecore as is expected?”

Researching, piloting, and analyzing effective inter-ventions has been a focus of PLSD for the past severalyears, and through the use of American Recovery andReinvestment Act (ARRA) funds, PLSD implementedReading Together (R2) from the Learning Together Com-pany in elementary, Title I buildings. R2 was selected fora variety of reasons. First, solid research supports theuse of crossed-age tutoring and the benefits for both thetutor and tutee. Comprehension intervention was neededfor intermediate students. R2 is affordable and compre-hensive, yet flexible as a reading comprehension inter-vention that can be delivered with fidelity across avariety of settings and circumstances. Training and pro-fessional development, provided by The Learning TogetherCompany, supported the needs of each building coordi-nator.

In September of 2009, building coordinators, identi-fied by principals, came together for initial discussionwith a list of tasks to accomplish. Their first task was todetermine which third and fifth grade students would be

eligible to access the intervention. District criteria wereidentified and included Fountas and Pinnell Benchmarksin Accuracy and Comprehension, District ComprehensionCSAs, Guided Reading levels, and teacher recommenda-tion. In addition to reading scores, fifth grade tutors,not typically tapped as leaders, were selected in hopesof building internal assets. For this reason, all partici-pants were screened with a Developmental Assets check-list.

Since each elementary building had its own uniqueschedules, personnel, resources, transportation issues,and the like, building coordinators were charged withdetermining a plan for the training of tutors and the de-livery of weekly interventions, as well as a timeline forimplementation. Understanding the short term fundingof ARRA, building coordinators were also asked to workwith their principals keeping the sustainability of theplan in mind as they worked though implementation de-tails. As a result, each building plan looked differentlywith two examples below:• Building A: Interventions were to be delivered one

time weekly for 30 weeks. Reading Recovery Teacherstrained fifth grade tutors. Tutors met at 2:30 forcoaching on the day of the intervention. After school,tutors and third grade tutees met for 45 minutes. Ashort debriefing followed with the tutors.

• Building B: Interventions were to be delivered 2 timesweekly for 15 weeks. The fifth grade teacher trainedtutors during Guided Reading time on the days of in-tervention. Intervention took place during the build-ing-identified “intervention block” for all kids.Also noteworthy is that one building used a parent

to train fifth grade tutors and to oversee the tutoringsessions.

Testimonials to success became immediately avail-able. One fifth grade classroom teacher wrote the fol-lowing to her building coordinator, “I have noticed a bigdifference in Sam and Josh’s reading. Both boys wereable to discuss in detail the areas of strength and weak-ness they heard. Josh even told me about the amount offluency practice he gets by modeling fluency for his thirdgrade partner. Great program and exciting results al-ready! I told them they both sounded like teachers dis-cussing fluency and they said, ‘Well, we are teachers!’”

“LearningTogether” in Papillion-La VistaBY JANE BYERS, Special Services Coordinator, Papillion-La Vista Public Schools

Byers



PROFESSIONAL OPPORTUNITY

At the end of the school year, outcomes were compared tobenchmarks and the following results were noted: The averagenumber of sessions attended was 24.5 out of 27. The percent-age of tutors proficient on District Comprehension CSAs fromfirst quarter to fourth quarter increased by 4.1 percent. The CSAgrowth for tutees was 3.2 percent. The average tutor growth inFountas and Pinnell Benchmarks was 3.16, and 3.08 for tutees.The District expected growth rate is 3.0. Twenty-one percentof tutors were at grade level according to their Guided Readingplacement prior to intervention and 23.9 percent were at gradelevel post intervention. Fifteen percent of tutees were at gradelevel prior to intervention and 32.9% were placed at grade levelafter intervention. Additionally, an average gain of 1.7 in De-velopmental Asset capacity was found.

With positive pilot year results from 2009-2010, PLSD hasmoved forward with a second year of implementation and fur-ther analysis to look at the significance of different outcomesfrom building to building in order to determine the most ef-fective delivery plan in terms of student growth. Regardless ofthe results of the quantitative analysis, the benefits of R2 areillustrated in this excerpt from a fifth grade tutor CaseyHirschfeld’s journal in reference to her third grade tutee, AmberBeasley: “I have seen lots of improvement from her. She thinksI’m the best. I always get a warm and welcoming greeting fromher every Wednesday. I couldn’t ask for a better tutee.” �

“LearningTogether”…(continued from page 10)

Leading a school district using the technology ourteachers and students have available today isvastly different from even five years ago. The Ne-

braska Council of School Administrators began assistingschool leaders in supporting staff’s use of technology bystarting the Administrator Technology Conference in2009 and 2010. Dr. Scott McLeod, director of Iowa StateUniversity Center for Advanced Study of TechnologyLeadership in Education, presented to administrators theneed for change and for principals to engage with thecurrent technologies.

NCSA is accustomed to collaborating with other enti-ties to provide the best workshops and trainings for ad-ministrators. Last year NCSA partnered with theEducational Service Units Technology Affiliate Group(TAG) to provide a ‘train the trainer’ session with Dr.Scott McLeod.

In March 2011 NCSA and TAG will host TechnologyBoot Camps for Administrators. During these boot campsthe TAG group will cover:• The use of smart phones for better organization and

planning• Google docs, spreadsheets and searches and other

Google tools

• Facebook Fan pages – communication with studentsand patrons

• Doodle (a meeting planner)• Google Reader to help organize the blogs or websites

you follow• And much more.

This training is designed for administrators. TAG sup-port will meet the needs of an audience with varied lev-els of technology skills.

These trainings will be limited to the first 25 that reg-ister at each site!

Registration is limited to NCSA members. Check thewebsite, registration will be out soon for the followingdates:

March 28th, 2011 ESU#13 in ScottsbluffMarch 29th, 2011 ESU #10 in KearneyMarch 30th, 2011 Lifelong Learning Center in NorfolkMarch 31st, 2011 ESU#3 in LaVista �

Technology Boot Camp forAdministratorsNCSA and ESUTechnology Affiliate CollaborationBY JACKIE EDIGER, Instructional Technology Specialist, ESU #9

Ediger


SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT

Every year, schools and districts in Nebraska setgoals and take action with the best intentions toensure all students meet mastery in reading,

writing, and math by the year 2014. To some, this goalis beginning to feel more and more unattainable as thestakes get higher and the deadline becomes closer. Timeis critical not only for schools and districts, but more sofor the students of Nebraska falling behind in skills andknowledge. To these students, each year is essential andthere is no room for error in terms of their learning.Schools and districts going at it alone run a greater riskof burn-out from initiative fatigue, lack of focus and co-herence, or disconnect between work and results. Inorder to motivate schools and districts to sustain fo-cused, result-based efforts to ensure the success of allthe students in our state, we must consider engaging instatewide purposeful collaboration.

Purposeful CollaborationIn his latest work on achieving significant positive

change in student learning, Michael Fullan advocates forevery school to become part of a learning network orcluster where schools are not only thinking of the teach-ers and students in their own buildings, but are com-mitted to the students in the network as a whole. Hecalls this the “we-we commitment.” Networks of schools

work because theyprovide both ac-countability andsupport required inmeeting seeminglyunattainable goals.Such relationshipsallow schools tolearn through ex-plaining their sto-ries to anotherschool, or by beinginspired to trysomething newwhen a school seesthat it has workedfor another school.Fullan refers to this

as “positive pressure” or “friendly competition” to im-prove.

Eight years ago under the leadership of Dr. Bess Scott,Goodrich Middle School in Lincoln, Nebraska joined theNational Staff Development Council’s 12 Under 12 Net-work. This network consisted of four high schools, fourmiddle schools, and four elementary schools from acrossthe country (Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Nebraska, andTexas) committed to ensuring all of their students wouldmeet or exceed their state’s level of proficiency prior tothe twelve-year deadline issued through the No ChildLeft Behind Act. NSDC sponsored and assisted in facili-tating the network through the principles of accounta-bility, support, leadership, and powerful professionaldevelopment strategies. There was no prescribed plan orcourse of action for the participating schools, only anopportunity to be accountable and supportive to eachother in taking on this vital task. During the existenceand evolution of the network, several themes emergedand accounted for the success of the individual and col-lective efforts of the participating schools.

Focus On ResultsOne requirement of the network was keeping a cur-

rent school profile with longitudinal and cohort data forall students and subgroups in the areas of reading, writ-ing, and math. From the beginning of the network, eachschool shared a formal report of student learningprogress every six months using norm reference tests,state and district assessments, and in time school orgrade level formative data. Each school had a differentcriteria or assessment to measure learning, but all wereaccountable for monitoring the rate of improvement inlearning for all of their students. In addition to report-ing out the quantitative results of their assessment sys-tems, schools were required to reflect and summarizehow their building professional development and schoolwide initiatives correlated with their student learning re-sults. This accountability process enabled the staff atGoodrich and individual schools to effectively manageand respond to student learning data in a timely manner,but also offered an opportunity for feedback and criticalquestions from partnering schools. Ultimately the goal

Learning Networks – Connecting NebraskaSchools withAccountability and SupportBY ANGELA ZABAWA, Principal, Dawes Middle School

Zabawa


In order to motivate schools

and districts to sustain

focused, result-based efforts

to ensure the success of all

the students in our state, we

must consider engaging in

statewide purposeful

collaboration.


SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT

was to attain sustainable results in an apt amount of time so itwas critical to determine what efforts were having the most sig-nificant impact and which were not. Therefore an ample amountof the network schools’ time together was spent reporting, ana-lyzing, reflecting, and responding to concrete student learningdata.

Manageable and Effective Initiative ImplementationAt the start of the network it was clear schools were loaded

down with multiple school improvement goals and even more ini-tiatives. For the first few years, all of the schools continued tohaphazardly drop and add the latest initiatives to their reper-toire. It was not until trust and a shared knowledge of continu-ous improvement and job embedded professional developmenthad been developed that the work between and within the net-work schools became focused and coherent. After three years,schools within the network began to pare down the number ofinitiatives within their schools and work to collectively evaluatethe effectiveness of the professional development, implementa-tion, and effect on learning for each initiative. For the last fiveyears of the network, the focus was on four high leverage strate-gies: collaboration and job embedded professional development,balanced assessment practice, content literacy, and RTI.

Over time a framework rooted in accountability and supportwas developed by the participants to build the capacity of thenetwork and individual schools in implementing these initiatives.Each participating school used the NSDC standards for profes-sional development to guide and evaluate their work in trainingand coaching teachers in implementing the strategies. Together,participating schools began to engage in monthly conferencecalls in order to support each other in implementation and mon-itor the effectiveness of implementation in respect to teacherpractice and student learning. Not long after, teachers fromschools in the network began leading and facilitating the pro-fessional development for the network and within their own dis-tricts. In the end, the network schools created and maintainedtheir own continuous improvement process with student learningas the undeniable target.

Teacher LeadershipOver the eight years Goodrich participated in the 12 Under 12

Network, 25 teachers attended NSDC conferences, attended sitevisits to partnering schools, or participated in monthly confer-ence calls. Prior to joining the network, most of the teachersfrom the network schools attended professional development ex-periences where they would sit and listen or have surface levelconversations about issues loosely connected to student learn-

ing goals or in which there was inconsistent follow up. Teacherparticipation within the network and in the building was an es-sential part of the network’s function. Through the life of thenetwork, the role of the teacher grew in how they reflected,shared, and questioned. As mentioned earlier, network teacherstook the lead in building the knowledge and skills of the otherteachers in the network and in their own buildings. More impor-tantly, network teachers became active participants and, in somecases, leaders in their buildings’ continuous improvement efforts.

“Friendly Competition”Initially, most schools in the network came together to “show

off” the wonderful things they were doing in their schools. Itwas difficult at first for any school to admit they had problemsor they might not know something. After two years, however,schools began to understand the bigger goal was to ensure all ofour students experienced success. There was no time to hide be-hind fancy lingo or adult actions; the heart of our work was stu-dent learning. It soon became clear which schools were makinggains in student achievement; it was even more apparent whowas linking effective practice to achievement. The teachers fromGoodrich were excited and celebrated when Lomax Middle Schoolreported 100% of their students met the comprehension require-ment on the Texas state test. They knew how focused Lomax hadbeen, they knew exactly what strategies and interventions theyhad used, and they knew the teachers who taught the students.If the teachers at Lomax could do it, so could the teachers atGoodrich. It was motivating and inspiring to work with schoolsand teachers who were experiencing success with similar obsta-cles and challenges.

Without a doubt, participation in the 12 Under 12 Networkhas had a significant impact on the learning of both staff andstudents. The students at Goodrich increased their achievementover the eight years the school participated in the 12 Under 12Network, especially in the areas of reading and writing. Staff andstudents continue to work so that each student leaves Goodrichproficient in reading, writing, and math in the 8th grade, butstill have a way to go. Participating in the network has sharpenedthe focus on learning, improved the management and use ofdata, and increased the capacity of the staff to engage in con-tinuous, purposeful collaboration. All of these practices remainstrong within the school, but without the accountability and sup-port of the network, sustainability becomes a challenge. �

Fullan, Michael. (2010). Motion Leadership. Thousand Oakes, CA: Corwin Press

Learning Networks…(continued from page 13)


AFFILIATE RECOGNITION

Brenda McNiff, Special Education Director at Ed-ucational Service Unit #5 in Beatrice, wasawarded the New SpEd Supervisor of the Year

for 2009-10 by the Nebraska Association of Special Edu-cation Supervisors (NASES), at their fall conference inLincoln on September 16th. Presenting the award wasPeggy Romshek, President of NASES and SpEd Director atMitchell Public Schools. The NASES Outstanding NewSpEd Supervisor of the year recognizes outstanding serv-ice of individuals new to the profession. Criteria wouldinclude individuals who have demonstrated outstandingleadership in their school, their region and at the statelevel. This individual will have demonstrated their en-thusiasm for Special Education Administration by sup-port from students, parents, teachers, and peers.

Brenda has been the Director of Special Education atEducational Service Unit #5 since 2009. Prior to workingin Nebraska Brenda was a Secondary Principal, GuidanceCounselor and Social Studies Teacher in Clarinda, Iowa.

In addition to being active in NASES/NCSA, Brenda isalso a member of the School Liaison for Out-of-HomePlacement Advisory Council.

Jeremy Christiansen, Principal at Central Elementaryin Fairbury states: “Brenda chooses to lead with proxim-ity and is most often found working directly on-site, inschools and classrooms with both teachers and adminis-trators. Empathetic, encouraging, efficient are wordsmost often used to describe Brenda McNiff.” �

NASES New SpEdAdministrator of theYear

McNiff

“In my opinion if anyone deserves this awardit’s my favorite man Mr. Johnson.” Thesewords, written from the heart by an elemen-

tary student who attends Bryant Elementary School inKearney, refer to Mr. Mark Johnson, current principal ofthat school. He is also the recently crowned New Princi-pal of the Year for NAESP.

Mr. Johnson, in his third year as principal at Bryant,has made a significant impact on the school since tak-ing the position in 2008. Mark is described as an enthu-siastic principal who connects quickly with students,staff and parents. He makes solid decisions that benefitchildren, hires the best folks possible to help address theschool’s demographic challenges, possesses a thoroughknowledge of curriculum and instruction and does all ofthis while maintaining an upbeat demeanor throughout.

In addition to his many contributions to the BryantSchool community, Mr. Johnson has also made signifi-cant contributions across the state and nation. He servedon the State Accreditation Committee for five years,

been a voice for education while visiting with senatorsin Washington D.C., and has been a national presenterfor the Love and Logic Institute. He was a Milken Fam-ily Foundation award recipient in 2004.

Mark Johnson has been a member of ASCD for threeyears, NCSA/NAESP for the past four years, and theMilken Family Foundation since 2004.

Mr. Johnson was recognized for his achievementsthrough presentation of this award at the Principal’s Con-ference recently held in Kearney. Congratulations to Markfor his outstanding efforts during the early years of hiscareer and his daily contributions to the Bryant Elemen-tary School community. �

NAESP New Principal of theYearWinnerAnnounced

Johnson



BBuulllleettiinn BBooaarrdd

For more information or to register for any of these events visit http://ncsa.org or contact [email protected]

Labor Relations

February 7-8, 2011

Younes Conference Center –

Kearney

NASES Legislative ConferenceFebruary 17-18, 2011

Cornhusker Hotel – Lincoln

Administrators Days

August 3-5, 2011

Younes Conference Center – Kearney

State Data ConferenceApril 18-19Younes Conference Center – KearneyNational

Conferences

AASA

February 17-19, 20

11 – Denver, CO

NASSP

February 25-28, 20

11 – San Francisco,

CA

NAESP

April 7-10, 2011 –Ta

mpa, FL

NASBO State Convention

April 13-15, 2011

Cornhusker Hotel – Lincoln

Hal Urban WorkshopJune 1, 2011

Grand Island Sr. High – Grand Island

Barry McFarland, Principal of J. Sterling MortonElementary in Lexington has been named theNebraska Association of Elementary School Prin-

cipals National Distinguished Principal for 2011.Mr. McFarland has been an active educational leader

during his young career in Nebraska. Barry is describedas an administrator who”…likes to be in charge. Mr. Mc-Farland not only accepts the challenge, pressure and re-sponsibility that a leader must assume, he thrives in thisrole.” His goal at J. Sterling Morton is widely known….todevelop the whole child. He works diligently to move alltoward this goal. Toward that end, he has implementedor moved forward many programs designed to assistthose who come to school with needs in many areas oftheir lives. He is dedicated to the children and staff inhis building and “devotes time and energy to work ef-fectively with school staff, parents and the community.”

Mr. McFarland’s many career accomplishments includeincreasing student achievement to the point of havinghis school named Nebraska’s National Title I School ofthe Year for 2006, creating a positive perception of JSterling Morton Elementary within the community, andbringing a passion for education to his school. He wasnamed NAESP New Principal of the Year in 2006 as well.

During his tenure as a principal at J. Sterling Morton,the record clearly shows increased student achievement.Barry has actively involved all interested groups in mov-ing education forward, effectively implementing his vi-

sion through a shared process involving all stakehold-ers. Building pride by community members in what stu-dents are accomplishing, a feeling of ownership inMorton Elementary children’s success, and a pride in thechildren, families and staff have been keys in moving hisschool forward.

Mr. McFarland is an active member of the NebraskaAssociation of Elementary School Principals (Region IVPresident 2007-08), the Association for Supervision andCurriculum Development, Lexington Chamber of Com-merce Member, Masonic Lodge Member, Rotary Interna-tional Club Member, Boy Scouts of America Officer, andon the Board of Directors for the Nebraska Winery &Grape Growers Association.

Barry will be recognized during a presentation cere-mony at J. Sterling Morton Elementary School in Lex-ington on a date yet to be determined. He will also

represent NebraskaPrincipals in Wash-ington, D.C. in thefall of 2011.

Also honoredwere Regional Dis-tinguished Princi-pals of the Year:

Tim Kwapnioski, Principal at Bel Air Elementary School inNorfolk and Rob Alderson, Principal at Mary Lynch Ele-mentary School in Kimball. �

NAESP National Distinguished Principal for 2011

McFarland

Alderson Kwapnioski



The Nebraska State Association of SecondarySchool Principals is proud to recognize StevenWickham, recently retired Principal at Kearney

High School, as the Distinguished Service Award winnerfor 2010. Katherine Urbanek, Principal at Creek ValleySchools in Chappell has been selected as the Outstand-ing New Principal and Brandon Mowinkel, AssistantPrincipal at Milford Junior/Senior High School, is theNSASSP Assistant Principal of the Year. In addition, pre-viously announced award winners, Dr. Robert Michl,Principal at Freeman High School, the High School Dis-tinguished Principal of the Year and Lance Fuller, Prin-cipal at Sunrise Middle School in Kearney, the MiddleSchool Distinguished Principal of the Year, were recog-nized. All received their awards at the Nebraska StateAssociation of Elementary and Secondary School Princi-pals state conference in Kearney on December 2nd.

Steven Wickham has been selected as the NebraskaState Association of Secondary School Principals recipi-ent of the Distinguished Service Award. Steve receivedhis education from the Chadron State College (Bache-lor’s) and the University of Nebraska–Kearney (Master ofScience in Educational Administration & Educational Spe-cialist in Administration). Mr. Wickham served the ma-jority of his distinguished educational career at KearneyHigh School. Steve was an Assistant Principal at KHS for17 years prior to his appointment as the Principal in2005. He also served as a classroom Mathematics teacherat Hildreth and Kearney Junior High before being se-lected as an Assistant Principal at Kearney.

Steve has been active in many professional organiza-tions and community leadership positions such as theNational Association of Secondary School Principals, theNebraska Council of School Administrators, and the Ne-braska State Association of Secondary School Principals.Mr. Wickham has held several offices in these positions,including his selection as the Assistant Principal Repre-sentative on the Executive Board of the NSASSP and asthe NSASSP Region IV President. In the Kearney com-munity, Mr. Wickham has served extensively as a memberof the Kearney Chamber of Commerce, the Kearney Down-

town Kiwanis, and the First United Methodist Church inKearney.

Mr. Wickham’s other honors include being selected asthe NSASSP Region IV Principal of the Year in 2009, theNSASSP State Assistant Principal of the Year in 2001, andwas awarded the Kearney Area Chamber of CommerceBoard of Directors Service Award in 2004. He has alsopresented at several state conferences, and has repre-sented High School Education on several state and re-gional committees, as well as publishing several articlesin professional journals. Steve was also selected for theRegion IV Distinguished Service Award in 2010.

Dr. Brian Maher, Kearney Superintendent, states: “Asan administrator, Steve maintained many quality pro-grams and initiated several others. But beyond programs,his focus was always on people. As our Principal, he builttrust with students, parents and staff. Steve definitelyunderstood that schools are about people, and we havebeen privileged to share his tremendous abilities.” AaronSvoboda, Kearney High Band Director, and Brittany Svo-boda, Kearney High English teacher, noted: “It is not sur-prising that Steve has been nominated for this honor, asthe word ‘service’ is one that is an excellent descriptor ofhis career as an educator. Steve was a dedicated teacherand administrator at Kearney High School and always putthe well-being and success of our students first in histhoughts and actions. Kearney High was blessed to havesuch a dedicated leader at the helm, and he is missed.”Todd and Lois Thalken, parents of three daughters, allKearney High students, say: “As parents of Kearney Sen-ior High students, we believe our family has been fortu-nate to benefit from Mr. Wickham’s commitment toexcellence in education. His efforts at Kearney High ex-emplify a personal and professional commitment to cre-ating the best learning environment possible, and asparents, we found Mr. Wickham carried great respect andinterest in us, making us feel he valued our thoughts,concerns and our contributions to our children’s educa-tion and to the overall health of Kearney Senior High.”

Nebraska State Association of Secondary School Principals Announces 2010 Award Winners

Wickham

Urbanek

Mowinkel




Katherine Urbanek was selected as the NSASSP OutstandingNew Principal for 2010. Ms. Urbanek has been the Principal at theCreek Valley Middle School in Chappell since 2006. During hertenure at Creek Valley, Kathy has led her staff through profes-sional development by following the process for accreditationthrough the NCA/AdvancED organization. She also serves as aNCA/AdvancED external Quality Assurance Review Chair for otherschool districts at the state and regional level. She has also or-ganized and led several building wide improvement initiatives,including extensive data analysis leading to improved instruc-tion, a new reading program at the K-6 levels, alignment of allcurricular areas with state and national standards as well as theadoption of the Positive Behavior Support system for school-widebehavior management. Kathy also serves as the District Assess-ment Coordinator, and has participated as a Portfolio Reviewer forthe S.T.A.R.S. assessment portfolios in Language Arts and Math-ematics.

Mr. Ted Classen, Creek Valley Schools Superintendent, praisedMs. Urbanek, noting: “Ms. Urbanek goes above and beyond herregular duties making sure our students are learning what theyneed. She is familiar with the Nebraska Department of Educationand works closely with them to make sure our teachers alwaysknow what is expected, and carries that out. She does not hesi-tate to move away from conventional methods of instruction totry something “unconventional,” and is able to convince theteachers in the Middle School to improve their instruction, andthus improve student learning. She is well deserving of the honorand exemplifies the characteristics we look for in great princi-pals.” Laurie Widdowson, Creek Valley School Board member,states: “I have found that Kathy has an exceptional dedicationto the constant improvement of our children’s educational expe-rience. There is a sense of teamwork that she has incorporatedinto the culture of her building that is enviable. All in all, I feelextremely lucky to have Ms. Urbanek leading our Middle Schooland our curriculum and development.” Creek Valley Teacher TessaFraass writes: “Ms. Urbanek has an impressive knowledge of cur-rent laws and seeks opportunities to keep our school on the cut-ting edge. Kathy is an assertive and resilient leader for ourdistrict and has outstanding leadership skills, especially in thearea of curriculum development.”

Ms. Urbanek is a graduate of Doane College (Bachelors in Psy-chology and Elementary Education and Masters in Curriculum andInstruction and Educational Administration). Kathy served as aMiddle School Language Arts teacher in Elkhorn, as well as sub-stituting as the acting Middle School Principal in Elkhorn, priorto accepting the Principal’s position at Creek Valley. Ms. Urbanekis a member of the Nebraska State Association of Secondary

School Principals, the Nebraska Council of School Administrators,and the National Association of Secondary School Principals.Kathy is also an active member of the Association for Supervisionand Curriculum Development, the Nebraska Association for Mid-dle Level Education, the National Middle School Association andRegion V of the NSASSP.

Mr. Brandon Mowinkel has been recognized by the NebraskaState Secondary School Principals as the 2011 Assistant Princi-pal of the Year. He has served as Assistant Principal at Milfordsince 2008 and also taught Industrial Technology at Milford HighSchool prior to his appointment to Assistant Principal. Mr.Mowinkel is a graduate of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln (BSin Education) and the University of Nebraska–Kearney (MA in Ed-ucation). Brandon also received an endorsement in Assessmentthrough the Nebraska Assessment Cohort at UNL.

Mr. Mowinkel is a member of the Nebraska State Associationof Secondary School Principals, the Nebraska Council of SchoolAdministrators, the National Association of Secondary SchoolPrincipals, and the Region I Principals association, where he hasbeen named as the Region I Assistant Principal of the Year andis currently serving as the Secretary of that organization. Locally,Mr. Mowinkel has served on the United Methodist Church Boardof Trustees and is active in the Milford Kiwanis service organiza-tion.

Mr. Tod Meyer, Principal at Milford, states: “As my assistantprincipal, I have complete trust that Brandon will make good de-cisions and handle situations in the right manner. He has demon-strated natural leadership skill and has shown the ability to workwell with others. Brandon has worked extremely well with theteaching staff to help establish a respectful environment and apositive school culture.” Sean Nutzman, Milford teacher, notes:“Mr. Mowinkel has been an instrument of change, progress, highmoral standards and improved student achievement here at Mil-ford Junior-Senior High School. He has raised the standard for ed-ucators within the building and has led by example, whilechampioning the student as the center of our focus.” Ned Pauley,the parent of a student at Milford states “As a parent of a JuniorHigh Student, I’ve received the benefit of Mr. Mowinkel’s influ-ence in my daughter’s life. It’s impressive to see one who so sin-cerely cares for and effectively serves the needs of a divergentstudent body, while at the same time, maintaining a proper levelof authority. His ability to lead from among, rather than fromabove, allows him to create a culture of trust and respect fromthe teaching professionals.” �

NSASSP Award Winners…(continued from page 16)


NCSA REPORT

The 102nd Legislature convened Wednesday Jan-uary 5, 2011. “Difficult things take a long time,impossible things a little longer.” ~André A.

Jackson. With the challenges and issues before the Leg-islature one must wonder if the ninety-day session willprovide the necessary time to conduct the state’s busi-ness. We are aware of the difficult economic times andare understanding that we have not recently seen theseeconomic conditions in our state. At the same time weare pleased to see some positive signs of economic re-covery but understand that it will take time to see ourstate’s economy fully recover. With that said we are ap-preciative of the difficult decisions that will need to bemade in order to prepare and adopt a balanced budgetfor the next biennium.

Governor Dave Heineman, while speaking at the NCSA2011 Legislative Preview Conference on December 15,2010, commented on the priorities of the legislative ses-sion…they are budget, budget, budget. With a recentprojected revenue shortfall of $986 million it is no won-der that the budget will receive a high priority for thesession. In the January 2, 2011 Journal Star, EducationCommittee Chair Greg Adams reports that the EducationCommittee did no interim studies this year and that thecommittee spent most of their time discussing budgetoptions. “As a result, the committee has no planned leg-islative proposals other than those that are budget re-lated.”

In the first year after the nationwide census is com-plete, senators have the added responsibility, or oppor-tunity for redistricting, both in congressional andlegislative districts. Boundary lines always seem to beimportant to Nebraska residents. Each of the 49 leg-islative districts must contain a population range be-tween 37,200 and 37,300. The shift in populationtowards the Eastern part of the state will make this achallenging and potential contentious debate in the non-partisan legislative body.

As always, there will be a plethora of issues and leg-islative bills introduced that will require our undividedattention. One issue that may be forthcoming in the Ju-diciary Committee may be addressing legislation with re-spect to the Court of Industrial Relations. As of thiswriting we have not seen specific bills but do understandthe high interest of this topic among administrators and

boards of education. We also expect legislation to be in-troduced on cyber bullying. Your NCSA Legislative Com-mittee will meet January 26, 2011 to review these issuesand other legislative proposals and determine the NCSAofficial position.

As we progress throughout the legislative session and2011 year, we are hopeful that the economy responds fa-vorably and schools will be able to appreciate a stablefiscal picture and growth in the future to meet the ever-changing fiscal needs within their school community.

Legislative Communications – We are pleased to callyour attention to the new and improved NCSA LegislativeInformation website (http://legislative.ncsa.org). Wetake great pride in providing accurate, useful, and timelyinformation to our members on important legislative is-sues. The legislative website improvements are madepossible through our partnership and sponsor School Fu-sion. In addition we would also invite you to sign up toreceive text alerts on breaking legislative news. Textalerts are provided by our NCSA sponsor Alert Now. Youcan also follow us on Twitter.com – ncsamike or ncsadan.�

Communication Never More ImportantBY DR. MIKE DULANEY, Executive Director; and DR. DAN ERNST, Associate Executive Director

Dulaney

Ernst

From Dr. Keith Lutz, Superintendent, Millard Public Schools

To my colleagues in NCSA ...

I would like to thank all of our manyfriends in NCSA across the school systemsin Nebraska for the tremendous outpour-ing of good will during this difficult time.Your support and correspondence hashelped all of us heal in the Millardschools. We very much appreciate themany acts of kindness. Thank you for theemails, calls, cards, offers of help, flow-ers, and food. All of you make us proudto be part of the Nebraska family of edu-cators.


LEADERSHIP

It has been well established that the “Greening ofSchools” can have a positive impact on the teachingand learning environment and potentially on the an-

nual operating budget. Additionally, Green practices im-plemented in school facilities will positively impact theenvironment and promote sustainability.

Construction of new facilities and remodeling of ex-isting facilities provide opportunities for incorporatingGreen practices and technology. However, there are manythings that school districts can do to promote the prin-ciples of Green without renovating or investing capitalfunds.

Energy savings from three to twenty percent can berealized by adopting best energy management practices.These opportunities typically require little or no cost toimplement. Suggested best energy management practicesfor public schools include the following:

Lighting: Train staff and others to turn lights off inunoccupied portions of the building. This reduces elec-trical consumption and heat loading. This is especiallyimportant training for custodial staff.

Setbacks: Utilize control systems to setback heatingand cooling when buildings are not occupied thus re-ducing energy consumption. Evenings, weekends andholiday periods, when schools are unoccupied, shouldnot require heating or cooling a level necessary for com-fort. Setting temperature set points back will reduce en-ergy required to heat or cool unoccupied spaces.

Controls: Monitor heating, ventilation and air condi-tioning (HVAC) controls to ensure proper operation and

optimum efficiency. Make sure thatappropriate staff are trained in theproper use of controls to ensure max-imum benefits.

Production Equipment: Turn off ap-pliances, computers, monitors, copymachines, fax machines, and printersduring evening, weekend and holidayperiods. Many of these items haveenergy saving modes that should beactivated to reduce energy consump-tion when the equipment is idle dur-ing the work day.

Exterior Lighting: Regularly moni-tor time clocks, control systems or

photocell controlled exterior lighting to ensure properhours of operation. Update hours of operation as theamount of daylight changes.

Exterior Doors and Windows: Train staff to leave exte-rior doors and windows closed when the building is inheating or cooling mode. Opening doors and windowsnot only allows cool air out or cold air in, but has a neg-ative impact on the HVAC systems balance and opera-tion. Regularly check door closures to ensure properlyclosing exterior doors. Caulk and weather strip arounddoors and windows and other building penetrations toreduce air infiltration into the building.

Set Points: Narrow the range allowed for adjustingthermostat set points. Determine what is required forcomfort and set thermostat ranges for two (2) degreesabove and below that set point. Remind staff, studentsand parents that we are in a climate that requires layer-ing of clothes to ensure comfort during the heating sea-son.

HVAC Equipment Preventive Maintenance: Perform pre-ventive maintenance on a scheduled basis. Changing fil-ters on a regular basis, checking and changing belts,lubricating moving parts and other preventive mainte-nance will produce a 20% savings over equipment that isonly serviced when problems arise. Additionally, regularservice will prolong the life of the equipment leading tofurther cost savings.

Hot Water: Reduce the domestic hot water tempera-ture to 122 degrees Fahrenheit.

School districts can also further the cause of “Green”by reducing the amount of waste materials that go intothe landfills through recycling of plastic, paper andglass. Carefully selecting cleaning materials used bycustodial staff will ensure safer school environments andless toxic releases into the environment. Institutingstrict idling policies for school vehicles will reduce fuelconsumption and exhaust emissions. Reducing the wa-tering and application of fertilizers, herbicides and in-secticides to landscapes and grass will prevent runoff oftoxic elements into ground water and streams.

Many of these best management practices are basedon changing the behaviors of staff, students and com-munity users of school facilities. However, these “blackand white” practices will produce “Green” benefiting stu-dents, staff, the community and beyond. �

The Black and White of GreenBY DAVE RAYMOND and DENNY VAN HORN

Green practices

implemented in

school facilities

will positively

impact the

environment and

promote

sustainability.


CALENDAR OF EVENTS

JANUARY25 NAESP Region V 9:00 a.m. Valentino’s Ogallala25 NSASSP Region V 9:00 a.m. Valentino’s Ogallala27 NCSA Executive Board 9:00 a.m. NCSA Lincoln31 NASES Region V 8:15 a.m. Community Center Bridgeport

FEBRUARY 2 NAESP Region III 2:00 p.m. Lifelong Learning Center Norfolk3 NSASSP Region III 2:00 p.m. NECC Norfolk7 NASA Executive Board 5:00 p.m. Younes Conf Center Kearney7-8 Labor Relations 1:00 p.m. Younes Conf Center Kearney11 NASES Region II 8:30 a.m. Bellevue Admin Bldg Bellevue17-18 NASES Legislative Conf. 8:00 a.m. Cornhusker Hotel Lincoln23 NAESP Region II 5:30 p.m. Brix at Village Point Omaha

MARCH 9 NSASSP Region I 5:30 p.m. Seward Country Club Seward9 NASA Region IV 10:00 a.m. ESU #10 Kearney10 NASES Region V 9:00 a.m. Community Center Bridgeport11 NASES Region II 8:30 a.m. Lincoln Admin Bldg Lincoln17 NSASSP Region II 1:30 p.m. Papillion LaVista HS Papillion18 NASES Region III 12:00 p.m. TJ’s Norfolk28 Tech Boot Camp 8:00 a.m. ESU #13 Scottsbluff29 Tech Boot Camp 8:00 a.m. ESU #10 Kearney29 NSASSP Region V 9:00 a.m. WNCC Sidney29 NAESP Region V 9:00 a.m. WNCC Sidney30 Tech Boot Camp 8:00 a.m. Lifelong Learning Center Norfolk30 NASA Region III 8:30 a.m. NECC Norfolk31 Tech Boot Camp 8:00 a.m. ESU #3 LaVista31 NASES Region IV 12:00 p.m. ESU #10 Kearney

April5 NASA Region V 10:00 a.m. ESU #16 Ogallala13 NASBO Golf Tournament 1:00 p.m.14-15 NASBO State Conference 8:00 a.m. Cornhusker Hotel Lincoln14-15 NASES Spring Conferenc 10:00 a.m. Harms Center/ESU #13 Scottsbluff18-19 State Data Conference 9:00 a.m. Younes Conf Center Kearney20 NASA Region I 4:00 p.m. Hillcrest Country Club Lincoln20 NSASSP Region IV 2:30 p.m. ESU #10 Kearney21 NCSA Executive Board 9:00 a.m. NCSA Lincoln21 NSASSP Region III 5:00 p.m. Fairplay Golf Course Norfolk27 NSASSP Region I 5:30 p.m. Evening w/ Friends Milligan27 NSASSP Region II 5:30 p.m. TBD TBD27 NAESP Region II 5:30 p.m. River City Star Omaha

May6 NASES Region II 8:30 a.m. Fremont Admin Bld Fremont6 NASES Region III 12:00 p.m. TJ’s Norfolk27 NASES Region I 9:30 a.m. NCSA Lincoln

National Convention Dates

AASA - February 17-19, 2011 - Denver, CONASSP - February 25-28, 2011 - San Francisco, CA

NAESP - April 7-10, 2011 - Tampa, FL

Bronze Sponsorships

Gold Sponsorships

Silver Sponsorships

ARCHI + ETC. LLCStacy LaVigne6500 Holdrege St., Ste 007Lincoln, NE 68505402-429-7150; fax: [email protected]

Nebraska Public Agency Investment TrustBecky FergusonPO Box 82529, Lincoln, NE 68501402-323-1334; fax: [email protected]

AmeritasAl Eveland5900 O St., 1st FloorLincoln, NE [email protected]

John Baylor Test PrepJohn BaylorP.O. Box 30792Lincoln, NE 68503402-475-7737john@johnbaylortestprep.comwww.johnbaylortestprep.com

CDIPaul Copeland130 South Town Centre Blvd.Markham, Ontario L6G 1B8 [email protected]

DLR GroupPat Phelan, Whitney Wombacher400 Essex Ct., Omaha, NE [email protected]

Energy EducationKaren Mullins5950 Sherry Lane, Ste 900Dallas, TX [email protected]

Innovation in Education–Houghton Mifflin HarcourtDonna Droge6140 SE 53rdTecumseh, KS [email protected]

Learning TogetherJulie Smith5509 B W. Friendly Ave. Ste 201Greensboro, NC 27409866-921-0000julie@learningtogether.comwww.learningtogether.com

Horace MannCindy Dornbush10612 Monroe Street, #4Omaha, NE [email protected]

National InsuranceMike Boden9202 W. Dodge Rd., Ste 302Omaha, NE [email protected]

NLAFBarry Ballou455 S. 11th St.Lincoln, NE [email protected]

SchoolFusionCarson Apps999 18th St., Ste 2150South TowerDenver, CO [email protected]

TRANEDanny Szegda5720 S. 77th St.Ralston, NE [email protected]/omaha

Virco, Inc.Dan Atha1230 Footprint Ct.Castle Rock, CO [email protected]

Awards UnlimitedLarry King1935 O St., Lincoln, NE 68510402-474-0815larryking@awardsunlimited.comwww.awardsunlimited.com

D.A. Davidson & Co.Dan Smith1111 N. 102nd Ct., Ste 300Omaha, NE [email protected]/ficm

JostensDon Bartholomew309 S. 8th St.Broken Bow, NE [email protected]

PRSRT STD.U. S. POSTAGE

PAIDLINCOLN, NE

PERMIT NO. 951

455 So. 11th Street, Suite A • Lincoln, NE 68508-2105

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

Nebraska Council of School Administrators