Gladbrook-Reinbeck Implementing New Teacher Leadership System

In 2013 the Iowa legislature passed a law establishing the Teacher Leadership and Compensation system. The goals of this legislation were to: 1) Attract promising new teachers by offering competitive starting salaries and offering short-term and long-term professional development and leadership opportunities; 2) Retain effective teachers by providing enhanced career opportunities; 3) Promote collaboration; 4) Reward professional growth and effective teaching by providing pathways for career opportunities that come with increased leadership responsibilities and involve increased compensation; and 5) Improve student achievement by strengthening instruction.

According to the Iowa Department of Education, “the overriding philosophy of the system is multi-pronged, but boils down to this: Improving student learning requires improving the instruction they receive each day. There is no better way to do this than to empower our best teachers to lead the effort.”

The Gladbrook-Reinbeck Community School District submitted an application last fall to be included in Iowa’s Teacher Leadership System. This past spring, the district learned that it had been selected to participate in this initiative for the coming year and beyond. In the first year, grant funds have been provided by the state to fund the program; in future years, Gladbrook-Reinbeck’s Teacher Leadership System will be funded through an additional annual per-student allocation from the state.

The additional funding the district is receiving from this program is being spent on salary stipends and training for teachers who assume new and/or additional roles, designed to help foster collaboration between colleagues as a means of improving student outcomes. G-R’s plan called for the creation of a full-time Instructional Strategist position, several model teachers, several mentor teachers. The district has also set aside a portion of these funds for professional development related to the TLC program. It was a requirement of the program (and the TLC law) that those hired for these positions had to have previously been teachers in the district.

Last spring, Kyla Kiburis was selected for the full-time role of Instructional Strategist to begin with the start of the 2016-2017 school year. Kyla previously served as the district’s K-12 Talented and Gifted teacher. The role of the Instructional Strategist, in part, is to support teachers throughout the district through collaborative inquiry, analysis of student data, supporting teachers’ professional development, implementation of research-based strategies, and leading district-wide professional development efforts.

Model Teachers for the current year are Nicole Creswell, Ashley Caslavka, Brenda Egesdal, Lindsay Plett, Jen Wrage, Megan Welter, Kyle Formanek, Tom Boheman, and Andrea Rowe. These teachers have assumed their Model Teacher duties while remaining in the classroom full time. They are serving as a point of contact for professional development initiatives, and in cooperation with the Instructional Coach they are providing leadership for district-wide professional development efforts. Their classrooms are open for teachers to observe the implementation of new strategies or instructional methods. In addition, they provide an extra layer of support between the teachers and the Instructional Strategist, to ensure that professional development needs are identified and supported.

Finally, the G-R Teacher Leadership System includes a number of mentor teachers. The mentors are veteran teachers who agree to support teachers who are new to the profession. They work with the new teachers on many facets of the job, with the intention that they help the new teacher acclimate to the position, allowing them to be successful and, therefore, increasing the likelihood that they will stay in the field long term. New teachers will be assigned mentors for their first two years in the profession. This year’s mentor teachers include Diane Staker, Kassi Nelson, Jennifer Strohbehn, and Connie Doughan. 

I’ve heard some people referring to this program as the “Teacher Leadership Grant,” and I want to point out that I don’t consider this to be the correct terminology. The use of the term “grant” implies that it may be a one-year program or that the “grant” funds could eventually run out which would force the district to end the program. I think reasons people are calling it a grant are twofold: 1) The district was required to complete an application in order to be selected for the program, much like a grant; and 2) The funds technically did come to our district as a one-time lump-sum allocation in the first year. Teacher Leadership funding will be ongoing though, as the funds will come as an increased per-student allocation as part of our general funding from the state starting in year two and beyond. 

While the state funding for our Teacher Leadership System will be ongoing, the law requires for all of the Teacher Leadership positions to be one-year appointments. Those in a leadership position can apply to continue in their present role. If they decide to return to the classroom after spending time in a leadership role, we certainly support that and have a policy in place that allows them to do so.

Teacher Leadership represents a significant change in our school system and one that has the potential to significantly impact student learning at Gladbrook-Reinbeck.  I’m pleased to be part of a progressive school district that is implementing Teacher Leadership to benefit student learning at all levels.

Do you have a comment or question about our new Teacher Leadership System? You are welcome to visit my blog at http://rebelsupt.blogspot.com/ where you can read all of my columns from the Northern Sun Print and Reinbeck Courier, and leave comments if you wish. You are also welcome to follow me on Twitter, where my handle is @DavidRobertHill.

Clarifying Recent Reports on G-R's Dissolution Process

              This blog post is in response to recent media reports about the current status of the Gladbrook-Reinbeck district dissolution process; most notably, the March 15 article in the Waterloo Courier under the headline “Gladbrook-Reinbeck Dissolution Process Moving Forward.”  (Read the online version HERE.)  While I haven’t seen a physical copy of the paper, I understand that this same article was published in the print version under a different headline…something along the lines of “G-R Split Moves Forward.” I just want to set the record straight on a few items in these recent media reports -- especially on the misleading headlines.

              Headlines are important. In fact, in today’s fast-paced world in which many people just “scan” the paper or quickly scroll through items shared on social media, often times the headline is the only thing that people read.  Headlines like, “G-R Split Moves Forward” are especially misleading, they give the impression that the district WILL be splitting. To clarify, no final decisions have been made and in the end, the patrons of the G-R district will have an opportunity to have their say in the matter by voting in a referendum election on the issue. 

What’s moving forward is the process of developing a dissolution proposal that will eventually be presented to the G-R school board and voted on by patrons of the school district.  The district is required by law to go through this process because the district was served with a petition signed by just over 20% of the district’s registered voters.  The mandate of the dissolution commission is not to decide if the district should or shouldn’t dissolve.  Their job is to develop the best possible proposal outlining the details of a dissolution in the event that a public vote to dissolve the district would pass. 

The use of the word “split” in the headline will lead some to think that a dissolution means the same thing as “un-merging” or dividing the district back into the “old Gladbrook district” and the “old Reinbeck district,” and this is just not the case. When a district dissolves, it completely closes down – the district doesn’t exist anymore.  In a dissolution, all parts of the former district are assigned to a neighboring district, and the assets, liabilities, land, and students are divided accordingly. Once a dissolution is finalized the district no longer has a school board, the district’s employees no longer have jobs, and the district’s citizens all become residents of another district.

Recent media reports have used phrases like, “…residents have submitted another petition,” and, “…citizens pushed for dissolution,” in their reporting. I do want to clarify that while these statements are technically correct because some residents have submitted a petition and some citizens have pushed for dissolution, this doesn’t mean that this represents the viewpoint of the majority of the district’s citizens.  

In my short time as the district’s superintendent, I’ve come to quickly realize that Gladbrook-Reinbeck is doing a great job of educating its students and serving its community. G-R is serving its community and students in the most fiscally responsible way possible. The district employs a top-notch staff of teachers, principals, coaches, and support staff.  G-R is a leader among schools in this region in terms of academics, fine arts, and athletics. I’ve also come to understand that while there are some who would like to see the district dissolved, the G-R district continues to have tremendous community involvement and support. I believe that a large proportion of the district’s citizens do support the district and want to see it continue to serve the community for many years to come. 

Ultimately, the voters will have their say and the majority will prevail.  I hope that all of the district’s citizens will take time to educate themselves on the related issues, attend public hearings or visit with dissolution commission members, and exercise their right to vote on this important issue. 

One final note: I do want to say that I'm not upset by the recent reports or upset at the reporters themselves; the purpose of this article is simply to give more clarity to patrons of the G-R district. We're blessed in this area to be covered by some outstanding reporters who are very good at their jobs. School dissolution procedures in Iowa are rare and complicated, and misunderstandings will happen. I've done some freelance writing for newspapers myself (in my younger years before the internet & social media) and I understand that the headlines are usually written by someone completely different than the writer of the article.  

For more on the G-R dissolution process, read my January 4 blog post: “Gladbrook-Reinbeck Dissolution Update.”