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Education is Life

July 24, 2023 / / 0 Comments
I’m a fan of the Apple TV show “Ted Lasso” and one of the characters, Dani Rojas, has a saying “futbol is life” … so, in the spirit of Dani Rojas, “Education is Life” is the title of this blog post!
I’ve been a public school educator in suburban Chicago, Illinois, USA since 1992. I’ve been a superintendent of schools (PK-8) since 2010. Education really has been and in some ways “is” my life too!! My daughter is in college studying to become a special education teacher, my son is a park district day camp counselor, my wife taught pre-school and worked in park district recreation, so I guess it’s in our DNA as a family too!
Education, of course, is essential – everywhere.
Together with my son and our other adventurers, we’re helping construct a bottle school in the indigenous Mayan community of Zaculeu in the Tecpan region. This is our third such trip together and my seventh since my first experience on the 2016 LifeTouch Memory Mission to Constanza, Rio Grande, in the Dominican Republic. I have written on my blog about past experiences and adventures! Feel free to search the blog (enter Dominican Republic or service learning).
The father son time is priceless, the father/educator in me also finds this time affirming and spiritual on many levels. To be able to serve and share these Peak Moments with my son is greater than any words I can piece together. The opportunity to make new friends from around my country as well as from all over the world is pretty amazing too.
During this bottle school building trip and Guatemalan culture, history, and ecology trip, we are fortunate to have amazing guides and leaders. From Guatemala, we have Vivi, Andres, Lilian, Enrique, Christy & Marta, from the USA Hug it Forward team we have Adam and Jennifer. Together with veteran Gary and so many others – we are engaged in lifetime memories and incredible learning. Our team is aged 9 to 67, we hail from multiple races, religions, ethnicities, vocations, locations, and together we are now one!
Working alongside of our Guatemalan hosts, working with the children of Zaculeu, and building walls made of eco bricks to help demonstrate care for the ecological needs of our planet, we learned, lived, felt, experienced, and did each day on this incredible set of experiences.
When we arrived in Zaculeu, as the first representatives from Hug it Forward, ever, and among the very few foreigners who ever have come to visit and serve with the Mayan people of the village, we were welcomed LARGE! The assembly from the nearly 400 students in grades K-6, the teachers, the principal, the mayor and the village elders, the parent organization and many of the parents of the children – we knew we were not in Kansas anymore! The assembly with speeches, songs, dances, signs, and an unbelievably warm welcome was so energizing and so motivating, that when we got to the job site, the excitement was palatable.
I’ll share a bunch of photos as a picture is worth “1000 words” in an effort to illustrate the incredible set of experiences — words alone cannot capture the power of this experience and even the photos & videos don’t do it justice – but I’m so moved and so inspired, that I am compelled to share my story.
Feel free to follow Hug It Forward on Facebook and on Instagram to see not only our trip, but previous and future trips. Anyone with the motivation can reach out and serve.
Service, education, cultural immersion, and more is what we found on this trip. Food was prepared for us daily by cooks Marta and Christy – the food was outstanding! Enrique drove us in our bus (chariot) through city streets, highways, country/rural roads, mountains, hills, and dirt roads with angles approaching 80 degree inclines – incredible!
We also met individuals who shared their personal stories and histories regarding various timely topics including the Guatemalan Civil War (1960-1996), migration from Guatemala to the United States, economic conditions in the nation, social history, and much, much, more.
We also engaged with local artisans who make their living creating cultural and personal effects for sale and for more than a “side gig” – for some folks, this is their primary income.
As I write these words, I realize, as best as I try, nothing can capture the power of this trip and the series of peak moments more than actually experiencing this, but my aim and my effort is to celebrate the good and highlight the hope of serving, learning, getting out of one’s comfort zone, and joining amazing people who do this all the time.
Education in Guatemala is different than education in the United States. The public school system is not always present, fully available, or even funded in the rural/indigenous areas of Guatemala where we were serving. There were classrooms from a USAAID project in 1987 and in 1993, and then there is our project in 2023! The classrooms for this village of Zaculeu serve children in grades K-5 — there are not classrooms for children in middle school, grades 7-9 (YET). High schools in Guatemala are fee based – not free.
Creating classrooms for children in grades K-6 and ultimately in grades 7-9 changes lives and changes cultural, historical, and economic opportunities and access to opportunities for generations of children. This bottle school project in which we are involved is one step to provide chances, hope, opportunities, and change for people.
Our public ambassador programming and efforts represent efforts afloat all over the world and efforts I have had the privilege of participating in in the USA (Puerto Rico), in the Dominican Republic and now, in Guatemala! In addition to the bottle school construction, the engagement with the villagers via the welcome ceremony, the artisan markets, and the community walk/hike and home visits, we also visited sacred Mayan archeological sites, learned from first hand historical accounts and engaged with the powerful beauty of this incredible country!
Sharing more images of our incredible journey to Guatemala!

4th in a series -Dominican Republic Service, Mission, Culture Trip Reflections 2022

August 8, 2022 / / 0 Comments

In this post, I am sharing more reflections, thoughts and images from a LifeTouch Memory Mission reunion trip to the Dominican Republic, to Constanza, La Vega, to the Cecaini School in Rio Grande. On these several blog posts, I’m sharing my reflections.

Once major personal “peak moment” for me on this current trip is that my son came with me! With words and images, I am trying to do my best at telling our story — of our life-changing, humbling, impactful, and seriously amazing set of experiences! Thanks for reading 🙂

Back in 2016, I was lucky enough to be a part of the LifeTouch Memory Mission trip to the Dominican Republic and I was a representative of AASA, The Superintendent’s Association. I wrote about that set of life-changing experiences on my blog — BLOG POSTS ABOUT TRIP IN 2016

August 2, 2022

What a day and night we had today! We put in a full day’s worth of hard labor at the Rio Grande Cecaini School — it was amazing and fulfilling on many levels.

A mural in the cafeteria painted by Ken, the amazing painter, teacher, and friend!

Justin painting and learning a lot of Spanish from Ken

Time with the children of Rio Grande was a highlight for each of us every day!

Nick and Domingo removed the well used rim and net in preparation for replacement “break away” and new nets.

Pam was an amazing painter!

We all helped wherever we could.

Friendship between our two nations.

As we enter Rio Grande, the sign by the bridge!

The building behind the basketball court was built just before and just after the Pandemic. It will house a library, computer lab, infirmary — for the school and the community. We finished this building (paint, window guards) on this trip.

The beautiful views of the countryside were breathtaking.

Our awesome crew with representation from all over the USA! New Hampshire, Minnesota, Arkansas, Washington, Oregon, Illinois, Minnesota

Jan was an excellent painter!

I spent a lot of time back here – moving rocks, raking rocks, moving dirt, moving sand, making planters out of tires, pouring concrete, learning a ton from Domingo.

We made a lot of concrete. We used cement mix, water, sand, rocks, and dirt. And we mixed it A LOT

Every morning we started by gathering as a group, getting instructions from our Dominican hosts and experts (Ken and Domingo) and establishing our work teams, expectations and goals!

By the end of the trip each room was painted well, cleaned up and the window frames/decorative and security bars were installed.

Tonight’s Face Book post had less text and more photos – it was more of an Insta Gram type post vs the “blog” type posts I have shared the first few days of our adventures on Face Book.

Justin and I, along with our new friends and community are humbled by so much we are seeing, doing, and learning in Rio Grande, Dominican Republic. Today we were able to apply learning, enter into new cultural space, learn, do, build, create, play, speak, and engage with an entirely new set of people.

It’s fun to paint, to sand, to scrape, to fix up, to mix concrete, to put glue on PVC  pipes for plumbing, to move rocks, to move dirt, to connect PVC tubes … that’s all  a lot of what’s depicted in the pictures.

It’s also nothing short of amazing to walk the street leading up to the school with the neighborhood kids who waited hours to play with us and to hang out with us and to speak with us and learn about our families and share with us about theirs!

Today we started with a quote from President Ronald Reagan, “live simply. Love generously. Care deeply. Speak kindly. Leave the rest of God..” The word for today was generous. While it might appear that we were generous, I submit that the people of Rio Grande at Cecaini School are the ones who are generous. Ken the head painter – he is amazing. Domingo the head engineer – he, too, is amazing. They and the entire community shares their generosity allowing us into their culture, their school, their homes — their generosity is humbling and powerful.

Tonight we reflected on our experiences, we discussed the applications for learning. We enjoyed being in our collective and individual spaces. Until tomorrow

Inspired by Leadership Conference – Honoring President’s Day #112Leads #Suptchat

February 20, 2022 / / 4 Comments

“I am seeking, I am striving, I am in it with all my heart.”
– Vincent Van Gogh

On Monday, February 21, 2022, we celebrate President’s Day in the United States. It’s a day to honor those who have been elected by the “people” or some version of the “people” as that has evolved over time, to lead the “free world” as we say. These leaders have experienced trials, tribulations, scandals, triumphs, and much, much more over our nation’s many years in the global sphere. Leadership is what makes the difference as all leaders have ups, downs, and in between.

Our nation’s schools, a foundation and cornerstone of freedom, democracy, and “The American Way”, have come under a spotlight, scrutiny, hate, and love during the nearly two years of the experimental leadership driven by COVID-19 and divergent leadership around the nation. Follow the scientists – OK but they disagree. Follow the public health experts – OK but they disagree. Follow the politicians? – Uh – no thank you (LOL)! – But even they disagree. So … what is a leader left to do?

Publicly elected school board members (unpaid volunteers in Illinois and in many states around the nation) became (and are) at the front lines of democracy. Elected Officials who shop at the same grocery store as their neighbors who voted them in office. They who attend the same churches and faith-based organizations as their neighbors, and those, who until recently, held boring meetings. You know things may be out of control when Saturday Night Live parodies school board meetings and every superintendent is “like” – “yep, they got it right”!

So how do we evolve and grow, progress, and lead for our nation’s children and educators? When outside “experts” either abdicated leadership, waffle at the leadership, paralyze themselves with fear of failure, other, or “all of the above”, the leader (eg – the superintendent of schools in partnership with his/her school board and team) must LEAD.

I’ve been in public schools for nearly 30 years, I was a middle teacher (social studies, US history, civics, reading, Spanish, English, 6th grade, and 8th grade), a middle school associate principal (grades 4-8 and 5-8), a middle school principal (grades 6-8), a PK-8 Assistant Superintendent, and for the past 12 years, I have been a PK-8 public school superintendent. I learn from other leaders, and I lead others. I have four degrees from college universities (Bachelors, Masters, Specialist, and Doctorate). I’m a member of the AASA Leadership Network and the IASA Leadership Team, I’m a published author and a leadership coach. Blessed with opportunity, coaches, guides, friends, colleagues, and inspired by students, families, teachers, and experts, I am a lead learner proud of opportunity and highly cognizant of responsibility.

I take nothing lightly (for better or for worse). Thankfully the school board for whom I am employed, dedicated, and proudly serve is composed of seven amazing people who understand governance, leadership, and future-focused planning. With them we have and we continue to navigate the uncertain waters of the pandemic. We are now at a “crossroad” where the politics have gone haywire, the scientists and public health experts have gone haywire, and the need for leadership outpaces the speed at which outside experts have offered guidance. This coming week, the week where we honor President’s Day, our Board, locally, will be demonstrating on-the-ground leadership at a very important time. I’m honored and proud to lead in #112Leads.

My experiences from last week have reignited my passion to write … this is my first blog post in months … thank you AASA!

Leadership is a Team Sport

Recently I had the good fortune of attending the National Conference on Education, NCE, from the American Association of School Administrators (AASA). The School Superintendent’s Association, the AASA, has been in operation for more than a century. Supporting professional development, growth, and innovation for our nation’s top educational leaders has been and remains their mission of service. In the twelve years, I have served as a public school superintendent, I have attended the NCE. The conference was in person this year, the first time since February 2020 — and even though it’s only been a few years — it has seemed like an eternity since we have been able to learn together, lead together, and network together as colleagues and friends from all over the USA.

Education, public education, some would argue is the glue that binds us as a society. Some would argue it’s the most “American” of institutions. It’s where our youth spend more time than anywhere else from age 5 to 17 (or age 3-22 in many cases, as well). It’s the place where cultural values and norms are taught, reinforced, challenged, and promulgated. It’s where the very roots of the foundation of our democracy are first taking hold. And since March 2020, the foundation has been shaken, inequities have been exposed, innovations have been tested, divisive politics have divided and leadership both absent and present has guided us — or misguided us — on many fronts.

The #NCE2022, with great keynote speakers, honored partners, and heroic superintendents recognized for leadership and accomplishment helped restore my faith and confidence and my re-energization with respect to my role as a suburban Chicago, Illinois public school superintendent. The title of this post is “Leadership is a Team Sport” and that is exactly what #NCE2022 reminded me and my colleagues at each interaction. Whether it was awarding the national Superintendent of the Year or focusing on a keynote speaker from government, higher education, k-12 education or global leadership, or whether it was in the form of the hundreds of break out sessions, roundtable discussions, or special events, one huge theme came forward – we’re in this together. Whatever “this” was, is, and will be, we’re in it together.

I have the good fortune of leading with many exceptional people in North Shore School District 112 in Highland Park, IL, in Lake County, Illinois, in Illinois in general, and around the nation. At the #NCE2022, I was able to bring closure to a year-long leadership academy called the AASA National Aspiring Superintendent Academy, Blended Learning Model. Together with my good friend and leadership partner, Nick Polyak (Superintendent in Leyden High School District 212) we had the chance to meet in person most of our students with whom we have been leading on the journey towards the superintendent of schools position. Of our 29 students/participants representing 17 US states, 19 were able to make it in person, 14 US states were represented. Ideas and perspective sharing from Alabama, Texas, New Mexico, Illinois, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Maine, Massachusets, Arkansas, Maryland, Tennessee, Arizona, South Carolina, and Ohio were prominent in the team building and capstone project presentations.

Each of the participant’s capstone projects, presented in the IGNITE style (20 slides with imagery advancing every 15 seconds for a concise 5-minute presentation) were moving, thoughtful, highly prepared and planned, innovative, inspiring, and reflective of the excellence that each of the aspiring superintendents brings to the table in their home, work, and beyond interactions. They were individuals who became a team as a result of our time together. After all that we have been through and all we endure during the pandemic, it was powerful to gather, learn, and lead in person. Their graduation ceremony was fun, dignified, and well deserved.

In addition to teaching at the conference, Nick, PJ Caposey (Superintendent in Stillman, Valley, IL, Meridian CUSD 233) and I had the opportunity to make a presentation as a breakout session to more than 100 attendees at the conference. Our session on Student Voice: From Invisible to Invaluable was based on our 2018 Rowman & Littlefield book of the same title. Our team approach to research, writing, and presenting was energizing and affirming too. The AASA Conference staff wrote about our session and made a short video interview of my thoughts on Student Voice, which was also the theme of the conference. 

As I return to my home and next week back to my home district, I have recalibrated my “why” and thanks to my multiple teams of colleagues, friends, mentors, coaches, and fellow superintendents, I have the strength to lead with purpose no matter what challenges emerge. I have the strength and courage to lead for the students I serve, the employees I lead and manage, the Board to whom I report, and the community.

Leadership is a team sport and the strength, inspiration, grounding, and clarity a team provides can only help us each and all do better for those we have the privilege to serve.

Reflections from Dominican Republic – IASA Global Service Trip

October 12, 2021 / / 0 Comments

IASA Global Service Trip 2021-Blog Post 1

Cabarete, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic

Cabarete, Dominican Republic 1,851 miles from Highland Park, Illinois

October 2021

As our world heads out of the restrictive nature of the recent years, and as our school district re-energizes and re-commits to student educational access and excellence in education for each child, every day, I’m beyond grateful that I have had the opportunity to join a recent trip to another country to learn the culture, history, sociology, teamwork, global interconnection, education (of course) and much, much more. Together with a member of my school district’s Board of education, and with leaders from all across the state of Illinois (Cairo, IL to Zion, IL and all parts in between), our lives were forever changed and opportunities for students across Illinois and throughout the Dominican Republic will be impacted for years to come.

In 2018 thirty strangers agreed to participate in international service, culture, and leadership trip called the Illinois Association of School Administrators (IASA) Global Service Trip. The trip was delayed twice due to the impact of the global pandemic. Thanks to incredibly generous and supportive business partners, the cost per person was minimal, and thanks to an international educational tour company, the world-class tour, trip, adventures, experiences, reflections, expertise, travel, fellowship, new friendships, shared love for our calling to serve and to educate, and the overall service-learning was among the best I have experienced.

Understanding I will likely leave out details, miss a detail or two or three, to the degree possible, I’m making an effort to share in this blog a documentary accounting and “editorial” in this blog post and some follow-up posts as well.

To start, we all met together at a dinner at a restaurant outside of Chicago, IL. As a reminder, we are each superintendents, board of education members, school administrators, and we represent all areas of the great and diverse state of Illinois. We had no idea the depth of communal care, comfort, support, experience, joy, reflection, and leadership upon which we were each embarking.  We each had our own motivation for applying to join this trip. Our partners at the Law Offices of Hodges, Loizzi, Eisenhamner, Rodick, & Kohn (HLERK), International Contractors Incorporated (ICI), DLA Architects, AXA, and SPM Architects all took a significant leap of faith believing in the powerful vision of my good friend and the Leyden High School Superintendent Nick Polyak and his vision for impacting the world, education in Illinois, superintendent-board relations, and so much more — words cannot thank the business partners for their support and investment — and genuine on the ground experiential learning and partnership. Life-long friendships were made on this trip across the Dominican Republic!

Service-learning changes lives forever, after having the incredible opportunity to have served on several trips over the past few years, I know firsthand how powerful the hands-on learning and engagement of people make a lasting impact and serves to support a legacy of global connectedness and growth opportunities. Hat tip to the AASA for allowing me to join in on the LifeTouch Memory Mission in 2016 to the Rio Grande/Constanza, Dominican Republic area with World Servants, and hat tip to my friend and fellow Illinois Superintendent Jim McKay for two trips to San Juan, Puerto Rico (so far) for service learning, educational partnership, teacher exchange, training, technology,  hands-on construction and more! On one of these adventures, I had the opportunity to bring my son with me; blending work and home, blending professional and personal, wow – seriously impactful. My son and I will clearly enjoy many more memories and experiences in the future.

Back to this 2021 trip, …Me and my Board member (or my Board member and I) learned together, experienced together, built together, laughed together, and most importantly, we planned together visions for students in our school district to experience life-changing service like we did. I’ve reached out to the district and school administrators back home (while in the DR) to start the thinking process for a legitimate investment in our students in partnership and travel as an adjunct part of the curriculum. Our motto in North Shore School District 112, https://www.nssd112.org/ is Inspire…Innovate…Engage. This trip to the beautiful island nation of the Dominican Republic was highly inspiring, we are beyond motivated to bring these learning opportunities to our students, and we were engaged from the dinner meeting the night prior to our departure.

A few years ago I posted a reflection post about a series of reflections (I see writing as an intimate and public way to express myself, communicate my thinking, and share professional experiences). See link: Reflecting on Global Service – 3 Year Anniversary of Dominican Republic Memory Mission Trip – This is the blog from Public School Superintendent & Author Dr. Michael Lubelfeld

The incredible company Education First,  EF Education First – Global SIte (English), sent us their “A-Team” of leaders and they truly have outdone themselves in terms of an authentic set of learning, leadership, service, opportunity, and true business/education vision and planning opportunities for children. Thank you, Brian, Alex, Claire, Gabriel, Hector, and everyone in the Dominican Republic on the ground for their amazing leadership, expertise, camaraderie, fellowship, friendship, vision, and overall and genuine professionalism. This was a fantastic experience all around. Thank you also to Angel for day and night support!!

We literally visited and traveled through the entire length of the country traveling from the south to the north. We visited urban, rural, and coastal communities. We saw both the Caribbean and Atlantic coats. We visited cultural and historic sites, geographic sites, the two largest cities, public school sites, private school sites, after school clubs, “NGO” not for profit areas committed to environmental sustainability, social justice, education, future-focused support and so many opportunities for post-trip partnership and service and support. I will be sharing the information and “leads” with my local Rotary Club, Leadership Team, Board of Education, and community leaders.

After we arrived in Santo Domingo, the capital city, we visited a Coral Reef and Mangrove reforestation NGO on the Caribbean Sea prior to our long drive north, through the center of the island towards Jarabacoa. We were immediately taken in by the

Captivating natural beauty

immense natural beauty of this island nation. We were also starting our journey and adventure into the Dominican Republic’s commitment to environment study, preservation, sustainability, and education. The sense of community was powerful and we were just getting started.

The overall journey from Santo Domingo to Jarabacoa is 90 miles/144 kilometers, and by motorcoach with a quick visit to the Coral Reef/Mangrove restoration center (and the Caribbean beachfront), it’s a trip of around 3-4 hours (with a stop on the way for a rest and some coffee). We were at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago at 3:00am for a 5:00am flight to Miami, Florida, then after a short layover we headed to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (journey of 1,936 miles/3,116 kilometers), we arrived in Santo Domingo at 12:40pm local time (O’Hare is CST and Santo Domingo is EST). The journey was long, our anticipation was high, our anxiety was being eased by actually being on the ground and for having enjoyed dinner the night before as well as a long travel journey. But the learning was just getting started.

On our next visit, we went to the Environmental Institute, formally called Instituto Técnico de Estudios Superiores en Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales in Recinto, Jimenoa. At this impressive, Ministry of Education funded school, founded in 1968 and refurbished within the past few years, we learned a ton about reforestation efforts, trail building and preservation, the

Trail “oasis” “before” work

connection of the Dominican Republic and Haiti, and the overall impact on the preservation of nature’s greatness. At the institute, students are 18-25 years old, the integration of genders was recently added and the federal government funds and runs this impressive, two-campus higher education institute. Topics we addressed at the briefing included conservation, tree nursery, forestry, agriculture, trail building, learning, service, and education. The impact of climate change is real and the need for a larger-scale focus on sustainability is everyone’s responsibility. Here in the Dominican Republic, there are scholarships for students from Haiti in an effort to positively impact the entire island of Hispaniola which both countries share. One of the service projects, hands-on learning for our leadership team, was in the tree nursery and the other was in the nature trail. This institute plants more than 750,000 (seven-hundred fifty-thousand) saplings across the island each year! The impact is beyond huge and lasting.

I was part of the trail restoration project. With sweat equity and really intense physical labor, our team cleared out tree stumps, restored a number of benches and a table (in a clearing on a nature trail at the Institute) our team was really proud of the physical labor and task completion. With natural leadership and skills emerging from team members, and under the

Trail “oasis” “after” completion

supervision and leadership of our Dominican hosts, together we created a nice and comfortable oasis in the trail for a meeting space, thinking, reflection, and ambiance of the beautiful and serene nature trail on one of the campuses.

The tree nursery group learned how to take “baby” trees and plant, clean, separate soil/plants, and recreate the initial steps in the tree nursery growing and sustaining process. Education First (EF) formed relationships with institutions that thrive on their own, but who also benefit from volunteer service and support from student groups, educator groups, and others, to complete their mission-driven work.

It’s really hot in the Dominican Republic— even in October — it’s 90 degrees, powerful sun, intense heat, and we’re not all physical/manual laborers by day. So, the work was really intense and we had sweat on top of sweat and we drank more water than we normally drink! It was also highly rewarding to impact this institution in such a positive way. The service-learning projects are high-intensity and powerfully related to what our students will do as well. In addition, the concepts of inter-dependence are built upon each other at each step.

Following this intense and novel manual labor, our hosts from EF allowed us to experience a geographically beautiful and one of the highest waterfalls in the Dominican Republic. We visited Salto Jimenoa Waterfall,  in Jarabacoa. This was about 35 meters, or 115 feet, tall. The walk to the “watering hole” at the foot of the waterfall was far easier on the way to the falls vs the way back (climbing back up was tough). We were so hot, really stretching muscles we don’t normally use, an intense pride in task completion due to the adrenaline and pride in service we were walking around with since we boarded the plane in Chicago. The visit to this waterfall, impressive on its own — tall, loud crashing water, awe-inspiring geography, and much welcomed “cold water”. Once we entered the watering hole we felt the wind — forceful and inspirational wind — we then headed towards the actual waterfall itself. The massive, natural force driving this water from the mountains — this waterfall invited us in — we each felt a sense of invigorating relief at the entrance with the cold water, the cold almost mystical wind; but words cannot describe the feeling of inspiration upon entering the area against the rock behind the crashing cascade of water! The force reflected our powerful desires and force to serve, learn, and accomplish all we can for each child, every day. We were in paradise — a unique and foreign world compared to our middle-American realities.

Words I wrote in my journal were: “work hard, serve, learn from collaboration, sweat equity, the satisfaction of contributing part to whole, symbolic of the overall trip, aim each of us as global citizens are parts contributing to the whole – cultural, local”.

Each meal was authentically Dominican. We ate rice, beans, chicken, beef, plantains, yucca, fruit juices, fruit, banana, truly outstanding and truly local cuisine.

Each cultural experience was a tribute to our Dominican hosts, the beauty and richness of the people, and representative of the value of travel, touring, meeting other people, gaining experiences through other people’s lenses, learning and respecting the locale. We were not there on any mission to “help” or to “save” — we were present in respect and mutual admiration to learn, lead and serve shoulder to shoulder. We were not there to show who we are and what we do — by embracing our hosts and by opening our minds and hearts, we showed who we were and who we are. On our journey we learned about Bachata, Merengue, Salsa, yes, we superintendents danced (or tried to dance) with the Latin rhythm and beats in our hearts and our souls. Our dance teacher was really patient.

My next post will highlight our visit to Santiago (the 2nd largest city) visiting the historical district and learning about street art history and culture. I’ll describe the visit to the artisan area in Moca where we learned how to use pottery and bricks for stoves that help reduce the use of wood and lumber by 70% in the mountain areas, our adventures on the north coast of Cabarete, the Dream School and Inspire DR.

Thank you for reading the first post about half of our journey in the Dominican Republic!

Stay tuned for the rest of the story.

The COVID-19 Impact on District 112 – #112Leads

December 13, 2020 / / 0 Comments

“Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean.”
– Ryunosuke Satoro

Since March 12, 2020, our school district has been engaged in the COVID-19 global pandemic. Our schools first closed their doors on March 13, 2020, then Illinois closed all in-person schooling on March 17, 2020. Our teachers, support staff, administrators, parents, students, community, everyone, marshaled new resources for learning, teaching, and living, and our lives changed forever. Our Teaching & Learning team met with teachers and administrators and made learning and teaching plans to get us through and ahead of each and every step of the journey we were thrust into. Schooling for the 2019-2020 school year ended on June 4, 2020, with revolutionary transformative impacts still yet to be fully understood or realized. The District pushed out online resources at a pace and scope and scale never before seen. The District pushed out devices to children and families at a pace and scope and scale never before seen – and the District’s four priorities led us through the next phases. 

During this phase, the March – June phase, I was honored and humbled to be asked to join and take part in multiple interviews regarding the District 112 story, some shared below:

Learning Through Leading Podcast   Edmentum – Video Interview Anchored In Education – Podcast Chip Southworth – Podcast Interview NLU Video Webinar Blog Talk Radio Interview  

In July, the District ushered in its first-ever virtual summer school and the data showed effective impact! The District assembled a 50+ person stakeholder team to plan for the restart of schools with the support and advice of the DMGroup from Boston, MA. We planned last summer for the possibility of three options, fully in-person schooling, fully remote schooling, and Hybrid schooling.  In September, and through October, the District implemented the well thought out plans for Hybrid Learning (full plan and many communication tools linked https://www.nssd112.org/domain/1243).

On October 21, and through today (and ongoing) the District is engaged in full remote learning. We have measured learning (using the NWEA MAP tests) we have measured Remote Learning (with our partner ECRA Group assessing teachers/staff, parents, and middle school students in May and October), we measured staff culture (with our partner Humanex Ventures), we measured family engagement and student engagement (with our partner Humanex Ventures), we take what works and replicated and improve upon it and we take what doesn’t work and fix it (example with middle school remote learning moving from all asynchronous to all synchronous).

So, when will we reopen our schools …. when will we resume the Hybrid Learning Model and even the fully in-person model? Early on in this journey, we yielded public health expertise, advice, and guidance to the public health experts. The Lake County, IL Health Department (an agency of the Illinois Department of Public Health) has taken a lead in Illinois (and in the nation) with parsimonious guidance and leadership to the schools in Lake County, IL. Our District follows their advice. Our plan has been clearly laid out and communicated since August.  The hyper significant community spread of COVID 19 caused us to close the doors to our school buildings and transform learning and teaching from Hybrid to remote.

We will open our schools again when we can. There is no calendar date for reopening since the virus, hyper significant community spread, and the advice of public health experts will guide our decision making. We investigate widespread surveillance testing as an enhanced risk mitigation, we investigate how to get the vaccines to turn into vaccinations in the arms of our staff and community, as well as the efficacy of the millions of dollars in already introduced risk mitigation in our schools in an effort to get our kids and staff back on campus.

I want our kids back in school and our doors open again as soon as practical and permissible. As the winter holiday season falls upon us, I call for grace, compassion, kindness, love, and care as we bring this year of years to an end – farewell 2020 …. and as we welcome 2021 with open arms and HOPE and ANTICIPATION!

I know this to be true, our schools WILL be open again to in-person learning in 2021 – I do not know the dates for the transition, but I know we will create a new and improved learning system that innovates, inspires, and engages each child, each staff member, and each member of the community. Where we go from here is up to us. How we react to life is up to us. How we model humility, grace, resiliency to our children is up to us!

Stay tuned … our journey is just beginning!

 

Impact of a Teacher – #112Leads

May 22, 2020 / / 0 Comments

Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.”
– Benjamin Franklin

With this school year coming to a close on June 4, 2020 I was reflecting on the power of a teacher, and in February 2017 I shared a similar story about one of the most impactful educators in my life. I thought it would be a good time to reflect on Dr. McFarland and share his impact on me again as we prepare to bring the most unprecedented school year to a close! Originally shared in February, 2017 I shared some thoughts about how a college professor from an undergraduate course on the American Presidency from many years ago impacted my life and my professional journey. A journey that currently has some powerful meaning/relevance with our district’s move to remote e-Learning. With this blog post, I’ll draw the connections!

As a former 6th and 8th grade social studies teacher (U.S. history, civics, law, world history, reading, etc.) I have a deep interest in our nation’s culture, history, values, beliefs, celebrations, etc. In addition, I hold a degree in political science, so I have been a “policy wonk” for many years, and to this day I follow the news, politics, etc.

While I was a student at the University of Illinois at Chicago, UIC, I had some of the best teachers in my life. The late Dr. Twiley Barker Jr., Dr. Kevin Lyles, and Dr. Andrew McFarland, to name a few. During a course on the American Presidency, POLS 229, an event took place in my life that impacted my philosophies, beliefs, and actions as a teacher and educational leader over the past 30 years. In some ways it likely shaped my philosophies and impact as a teacher and as an educational leader so many years later. Right now there is a current challenging transition from the abrupt changes to remote e-Learning and how teachers have to “report progress” in this unusual time. Looking back at my personal educational history, I’m reminded of why meaningful feedback, teacher /student relationships, and the mastery of content and the flexibility of instruction supersedes any percentage grade or mark in terms of meaningful feedback and communication about learning.

With this blog post, I’m reflecting on the congruity of an impactful event in my life during an undergraduate course, and the realization that this impactful event has impacted my beliefs whether I consciously knew about it or not. This is an “aha” moment for me – this is partially why I so strongly believe the growing pains and transition are worth the time, effort, energy, and extra work involved in pupil progress reporting.

 

Change is hard (I’ve written a lot about the change process) – Unlearning is hard (I have also written about this concept).

My college professor Dr. Andrew McFarland gave me a chance in the “real world” -when I was in college. Because he knew me, he knew what kind of student I was – he knew my passion for political science he treated me like I was more than a percentage or a score. Dr. McFarland also taught so that students would learn. He had high standards for each and every student and he held himself to high standards too.

So what is this all about? What is this big event that caused me an “aha” moment? Dr. McFarland called me one night while I was eating dinner with my parents; it was 5:30pm – I don’t know how I remember this fact, but I do. This event took place in 1988 or 1989 and I still vividly remember our call!

He called me that night because earlier that day when I took the final exam, I inadvertently forgot to answer one or two additional questions. If Dr. McFarland graded or assessed based on the “old” system I would have received an F. Dr. McFarland, though, was using standards based learning and instruction (whether he or I knew it or not). He called me on the phone and asked me to respond to the final exam question prompts – for 30 maybe 60 minutes. Because he cared about learning – not about percentages or “harsh” lessons, I was able to demonstrate mastery and competency of the American Presidency course (in which I did earn an A, not only because of what I learned, but more importantly, because my professor cared about discovering what his students knew).

He assessed my knowledge acquisition in an alternative learning setting because my teacher was more concerned about assessing my learning and mastery than he was about issuing a grade or a percentage. Had this caring professor used traditional methods I would have failed the exam. In my opinion and in my experiences, standards based grading, reporting, learning, and assessment actually prepares people for real life by holding them accountable to learn. Thank you Dr. McFarland!

Our district will transition through this remote e-Learning to next year (whatever that may be … ideally safe, healthy, and in person). Through this transformational experience for our schooling and for our society, we have all shown how quickly we can unlearn when we must, we have shown how we can relearn schooling, and we will show that we can learn how to create a new reality as necessary.

Dr. McFarland unlearned old school and rigid grading and assessment practices and I consider him to be remarkable and gifted, he was a leader who impacted me and my practice. Let’s use modern instructional strategies to maximize the impact and effect of learning whether we’re in person or remote, or in a hybrid combination of both. Let’s help people unlearn practices that make no sense other than to have been used in their past school experiences.

Preparing students for the future world requires teaching them content that is meaningful in learning environments that are powerfully purposeful and full of clear, regular, meaningful feedback and opportunities to learn and demonstrate learning. As we bring the school year to a close, we are reminded of the impact and power of a teacher and his or her feedback. Thank you to all educators — and thank you again, Dr. McFarland!

Renewed focus on Student Learning #112Leads

June 30, 2019 / / 0 Comments

“Success is not a result of what we do occasionally. Success is a result of the little things we do EVERY SINGLE DAY. Habits are a choice!”
– Alan Stein

This blog post is a reflection post as well as a foreshadowing of my personal professional focus for the coming year. Many of these notes have been jotted down over a period of time and I’m putting them all together while in the air on the way home from San Juan, Puerto Rico where my son accompanied me on a service trip organized by a fellow superintendent Jim McKay. Jim organized a similar trip last year, and based upon momentum and growth, he’ll be organizing more trips in the future. The service is powerful – the lasting legacy of service and respect for fellow educators and fellow students makes a deep mark in my heart and mind. The fact that I had the opportunity to share this with my son makes this year’s journey that much more powerful. In addition to service, my son and I had the good fortune to explore one of the United States’ oldest and longest lasting territories and people. The history of Puerto Rico is inexorably linked to the history of the United States.

So July 1st marks my 10th year as a public school superintendent, my 27th year as a public school educator, and my 2nd year at the helm in North Shore School District 112. As mentioned, I’ve recently returned from a service trip to a high school outside of San Juan, Puerto Rico with Relief Through Leadership; this was a follow-up to service that started last year in an elementary school outside of San Juan. I often write about “my why” or that which keeps me called to service, leadership, and community. In this blog post, I’ll share some reflections as well as some foreshadowing for the year ahead in my personal, professional, and District leadership roles! My “why” is to facilitate opportunities for leaders to support student voice and engagement.

Mission and service work is not only altruistic and ‘feel good ‘ work, it’s a humbling way to physically give and do for others so that I can show respect and goodwill through actions beyond words. That I can share this passion for service with my son is beyond humbling and honoring as well.

To watch my son sweep, scrape, clean, paint, help, serve, respect, and give simply for the purpose of giving and serving, not for any extrinsic reward, makes me beyond proud as a father and as an educator. Sharing this part of my world with him and further allowing me to explore my inner workings and my “why” and my purpose make me a better father and leader (I hope).


My personal educational philosophy statement is and has been:

Our society is complex enough to present many challenges to people as they pass from childhood to adulthood. It is my firm belief that a strong foundation in educational preparation will support a person’s quest for success and prosperity. My philosophical foundation holds that young people are our windows to the future; working with them has given me a unique vantage point to assess their goals, needs and abilities. I have been, and I remain committed to preparing our young citizens, and those who teach and support them, for their futures – and ours.

This year, like so many of my School Year New Years, will be focused on enhancing student learning and education in general. Since the mid 1990s when I first started teaching middle school social studies at Blackhawk Middle School in Bensenville (IL) Elementary School District #2, the foundation for my view of learning and teaching has been centered around student input, voice, choice, and engagement. In another blog post I have written about my why, what a superintendent actually does, and multiple metrics and measures for success. I firmly believe public schools owe a report on ROI (return on investment) to the public. I also firmly believe that taxes and other public monies that support public schools should be looked at as investments and not as costs.

Back to my “why” … in 1997 the Illinois Council for Social Studies published an article about an instructional model/unit planning guide I wrote for 8th grade U.S. history. In it, I shared the overall student outcomes (listed below):

Student Outcomes

The main outcomes include the following:

Actively engage the students in history.

Allow the students to work on teams and be accountable both individually and collectively.

Teach the students to view social studies critically and maturely (as more than just names and dates).

Permit the students to express themselves and communicate, according to their unique gifts and talents, up to their capabilities.

Apply higher order thinking skills.

Use research skills in a meaningful context.

Leave the unit with intrinsic motivation for the students to continue their inquire into their past.

This U.S. History workshop and those student outcomes (applied to various situations) would find its and their way into my career and various leadership posts over and over again, not just for the purposes for which it was designed (teaching students U.S. history) but for leading other educators and systems of educators to focus on outcomes for students (with students) at every juncture in their education.

In 2018, with fellow authors and superintendents Nick Polyak & PJ Capsey, we wrote Student Voice: From Invisible to Invaluable (2018 Roman & Littlefield) and this year that book will be published in Mandarin Chinese and sold throughout the Chinese speaking world thanks to a partnership between Rodman & Littlefield and Hohai University in Nanjing. My commitment to student voice is deeply embedded into my why as a leader.

The point here, though, is not to reminisce so much as to forecast and telegraph this year’s focus and energy. Student engagement. My leadership focus on student engagement is not a fad (that’s the main point I aim to share with the detailed background and description of 1990s-2018 examples). This year one of my aims is to facilitate leadership that elevates student voice and amplifies student engagement.

In our School District we are embarking on a much needed and long awaited facilities project to modernize both of the District’s middle schools. The design, the input from staff, community, parents, professional experts, and students is being built with the student in mind first and foremost. The social emotional learning needs and the social engagement and interaction needs drive the design process and decision making as we get closer and closer to construction.

Over the past few years, in my District some on the outside, and perhaps, on the inside too, have offered criticism at the administration’s focus on “bricks and mortar”. On the surface my administration’s focus on the bricks and mortar might seem to imply that the bricks and mortar are the focus. Nothing could be further from the truth. The bricks and mortar exemplify the student focused learning environments that react to modern learning environments designed to support modern learning. It’s an exciting time indeed in North Shore School District 112. I’m leading a modernization effort in concert with community input, the Board’s vision, and the needs of the students and staff in the communities we serve.

This year will be off the charts (in terms of success metrics) in our school district – please stay tuned in to our various modes of communication as I continue to share my why as a leader and where we continue to support learning and teaching as the #1 priority for our work on behalf of students, staff, community, and one another.

#112Leads is our hashtag and leading is what we all do regardless of title or role or position.

An Interview with Dr. Kevin Ryan – Podcast Episode #2

January 4, 2019 / / 0 Comments

“For our own success to be real, it must contribute to the success of others.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt

Sharing podcast episode 2, an interview with Dr. Kevin Ryan, Assistant Superintendent for Teaching & Learning!

Podcast Episode 2 – An Interview with Dr. Kevin Ryan, the Assistant Superintendent for Teaching & Learning. In this episode, we’re going to learn more from Dr. Ryan about the top initiatives in the Department of Teaching & Learning as well as a preview of a major recommendation he’s about to make to the superintendent and the Board of Education regarding instructional coaches.

This podcast is from the superintendent of schools in the north shore school district 112; a Pk-8 public school district in northeast Illinois. It is a source of information about the school district, its leadership, its teachers, its students, and its community. It is another source of updates and an additional source of news regarding the changing narrative of public education. Inspire…Innovate…Engage

 

The podcast is available on multiple formats:

On Spotify

On Stitcher

On Radio Public

On Pocket 
Casts

On Breaker

 

Launching a Podcast: Lighthouse 112 – #112Leads

December 28, 2018 / / 0 Comments

“Success in life comes when you simply refuse to give up, with goals so strong that obstacles, failure, and loss only act as motivation.”
– Unknown

In North Shore School District 112, we’re committed to changing the narrative of public education to one of despair to one of distinguished excellence. In our historic school system, we’re proud of our mission, motto, and current reality.

Our mission is: The Mission of North Shore School District 112, a community partnership committed to a world ­class education, is to nurture every child to become an inspired learner, a well ­rounded individual and contributing member of a global community by striving for excellence within an environment that fosters innovation, respect, engagement and intellectual inquiry.

Our motto is: Inspire…Innovate…Engage

Our Current Reality is: Excellence in Education! The Future Starts NOW.

One of the main ways we can get our messages out is finding out where people are getting their information and meeting them there. We use Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and now we’re launching Lighthouse112, a podcast! in this blog post I’m sharing a video promo about the Podcast as well as an embedded link to the first Podcast Episode.

With effort, commitment, courage, joy, appropriate risk taking, modeling the way, and inspiring a shared vision for excellence and innovation, we show the world that what we do matters on behalf of ALL students, staff, and one another.

We enter 2019 confident of our past, present, and future success! Success in financial prudence, fiscal responsibility and responsiveness. With a focus on guaranteed & viable curriculum, enhanced instructional methods, construction projects with insights and input from experts within the district and within the community – – and so much more!

North Shore School District 112 is back on the block as an Inspired, Innovative, and Engaged place to raise your children and educate our youth!

Please listen, share, offer feedback, and share the stories of education — the narrative of public education is positive, powerful, and here to stay!

Check a brief video promo for the Podcast, then take about 10 minutes and check out the Lighthouse 112 Podcast’s first episode.

Happy & Healthy 2019 to one and all!

Listen to the first Podcast Episode here:

End of Year Highlights from D112 – #112Leads

December 26, 2018 / / 0 Comments

“Success doesn’t come to you, you go to it.”
– Marva Collins

2018 was a big year for North Shore School District 112! With this blog post, I’m thrilled to share some highlights of 2018 as we look back on many exciting accomplishment with an eye on our future. The Future is NOW in North Shore School District 112.

  • The Long-Range Plan Phase I for the renovated and modernized middle schools in the District
  • All schools rated commendable or excellent by Illinois
  • Establishment of a guaranteed & viable curriculum for all children in all schools (new training, materials and expectations)
  • Renewed focus on communication and publicity of the changing narrative of the school district – The Future is NOW!
  • Reaching a five-year collective bargaining agreement with our North Shore Support Staff Association recently was a “win-win” for both parties! (all non-teaching and non-administrative staff)
  • Continuing our 1:1 journey by being able to provide iPads for Kindergarten – 2nd grade students!  It’s been so nice to see how iPads have helped achieve facilitate high levels of engagement and success for teachers and their students.
  • Upgraded safety and security internally and externally at all school sites, including a Visitor Management System and safety vestibules.
  • We implemented Too Good for Drugs, a youth substance use prevention program, at all schools in grades 3-8.
  • We trained all mental health professionals in the school district on a threat assessment protocol to keep our schools safe.
  • We attained a AAA bond rating from S&P Global Ratings. A AAA bond rating illustrates the exceptional degree of creditworthiness and fiscal aptitude of the district.
  • We have continued our excellence in transparency, financial reporting and budgeting; winning awards such as the ASBO Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting, for twenty-two successive years, the GFOA Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for twenty years, the ASBO Meritorious Budget Award for the past seven years.
  • Fiscal Sustainability –  We have maintained a 4.0 Financial Profile Score from the Illinois State Board of Education – every year since the fiscal year 2012.
  • We have engaged with the award-winning K12 architectural firm, Wight & Company to develop our long range facility plan.
  • We successfully transitioned to a new food service contract with OrganicLife at Northwood, Oak Terrace and Red Oak.
  •  We joined the Northern Illinois Health Insurance Program, a health insurance cooperative made up of over 30 Illinois school districts.
  • Highland Park Community Foundation awarded Northwood Social Studies teacher, Mr. Jon Mall with the Highland Park Golden Apple Award.  The selection committee considered nominations for middle school educators and the finalists for the award also included Northwood teachers Margaret Delligatti and Sarah Holsen.  All teachers were honored at the North Shore School District 112 Board of Education meeting May 15th.
  • Northwood hosted the 8th annual Day of Giving event including an inspirational assembly featuring Mr. Angel Roman from the Boys and Girls Club of Lake County.  Mr. Roman encouraged the young people in the room to give back to their community; and told them they could make a meaningful difference. Following the assembly, the students got to work setting up the Northwood gym for the Day of Giving on December 1.  Students organized clothes, toiletries, food and other necessities donated by families across District 112. Other students made blankets, cards and gift bags for local families. The 112 Education Foundation is proud to support this service-learning program.  We extend our thanks to Northwood teachers, Constance Cunningham, Ida Fiore and Caitlin Lucci, for their tremendous effort to bring this opportunity to students at Northwood and Edgewood.
  • Northwood Junior High School is the proud host of the District 112’s annual Robot Revolution Tournament and Northwood teacher Bill Steinbach is the Robot Revolution Grant recipient.
  • The Green Bay Early Childhood Center began implementation of the Math Learning Center Bridges Pre-K Program. This program directly aligns with the kindergarten programming, and will allow for Green Bay students to begin kindergarten familiar with both the format and content of math in kindergarten.
  • Jolly Phonics, a multi-sensory phonics program, was introduced in all monolingual sections of preschool. The program was paced with the intention that students will begin kindergarten with an understanding of the letter sounds. Students in Dual Language programming are focusing on sounds that are the same in both the English and Spanish languages.
  • An academic enrichment program was launched in the spring of 2018, allowing additional intervention outside of the school day for children identified as below age expectations in mathematics. In the spring of 2019, the enrichment program will include intervention in both pre-literacy and mathematics.
  • Successfully integrated Dual Language students, staff and families from Sherwood Elementary and Red Oak Elementary to form the new Red Oak Dual Language Academy.
  • Made the Top Ten in Lake County for attendance in the annual Lake County Attendance Week competition.
  • Applied for and received a Title I grant to support our struggling learners. We used these funds to begin an after school Academic Extension program. We also purchased the Imagine Learning math, Spanish and English intervention programs that are used during Academic Extension and also during the school day.
  • Successfully implemented our Student Success Block, a daily 30-minute intervention and enrichment program for all K-5 students.
  • 44% of Red Oak students exceeded national norms for growth in reading and math as measured by NWEA Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) winter assessment.  
  • Implemented a new Student Leadership group. Students initiate multiple service projects and have a voice in school spirit days and celebrations.
  • The proportion of students meeting or exceeding standards jumped from 65 percent to 84 percent in one year at Ravinia School as measured on PARCC.
  • Implemented a 5th grade Leadership program. Students participate in mentoring K-2 students within our school; Junior Coaches program for  5th graders that focuses on leadership and facilitating recess for  K-2 students. (Indian Trail & Wayne Thomas).
  • Based on the NWEA Map assessment, student growth on ELA and MATH at all grade levels, was at the highest level in school history at Wayne Thomas.
  • The 4th annual Braeside STEAM Night was fully conceived and produced by students. There were nearly 40 stations of child centered exploration from a dog dryer to elephant toothpaste to a variety of robots. The STEAM community has expanded over the years and now includes former Braeside students who return from Highland Park High School and Edgewood Middle School to share in the fun, lend a hand, and let our little scientists drive their robots.
  • Successfully transitioned to a 50/50 Dual Language allocation program model in grades K-5 (OT & RO).
  • At Oak Terrace, focus on guaranteed & viable curriculum led to increased the percentage of students meeting or exceeding state standards in English Language Arts from 24% to 33% and in mathematics from 18% to 24% as measured by the PARCC assessment.
  • Developed and led a summer school program specifically for at-risk students in our Title I Dual Language program which led to growth in reading and math for nearly 70% of all participants (OT).
  • Edgewood maintained a focus on giving back to the community by participating in and/or leading various successful philanthropic events. Some examples include collecting over 1,600 books to donate to Bernie’s Book Bank, collaborating in the planning, donating, and implementation of the Day of Giving at Northwood, and fundraising to provide 45 children with holiday gifts through the Phyllis Santullano Gift Drive.
  • Edgewood also hosted the first annual Grandparent Night, providing grandparents the opportunity to take a student-guided tour of the school, ask questions to a student panel, and learn about life as a middle school student from the building’s administrators and teachers.
  • In a continued effort to provide opportunities for each student to be involved and feel connected at school, Edgewood issued a survey in which students voiced their interest in various clubs and teams and proposed new ideas for activities. The results of the survey informed the introduction of various new programs at Edgewood. A few of the new offerings include Ping Pong Club, Climbing Club, Improv Club, the Fall Play, Philanthropy Club, Reach for Change, and Yoga Club.
  • Indian Trail developed a new learning community with additional students and families from the closing of Lincoln School. The merge started in the spring of 2018 and the work has continued into this school year. Students have developed new friends and families have opportunities to participate and volunteer. We are Indian Trail and looking forward to a great 2019!
  • Indian Trail celebrated the opening of our Greenhouse and Garden with a ribbon cutting ceremony that included all IT students and staff, school board and community members.
  • Students participate in fun activities such as Green Growers Garden, Coding, Robotics, Chess, Boys/Girls Sports, Books and Cooks, STEAM, Chorus and Drama (IT).
  • Indian Trail Green Growers Club donated pounds of fresh vegetables to the Moraine Township Food Pantry.
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