To encourage family participation and engagement, we must center community in all we do.

A day in the life of Principal Traniece Brown-Warrens.

By hosting monthly “Coffee With the Principal” sessions, I bring families SEL skills, staff expertise & support.

Both of us grew up in Linden, and we both serve here now – Allison as an educator and Laurence as an administrator. Last school year, as we considered how we could recognize and honor Black History Month, a thought occurred to us: Why not highlight the influential figures who came out of our own […]

At the start of the pandemic, one major adjustment we had to make was accepting that the new challenges weren’t going to end quickly. For me, the hardest part has been trying to maintain a sense of consistency and community. As my team faces each new challenge, I try to bring our work back to […]

I lead a high school in a beautiful, vibrant community, with 90% students of color and an active, devoted alumni association. It also happens to be a school in which over 90% of students qualify for free and reduced lunch – and one of the lowest performing schools in the city. In a school balancing […]

I hadn’t planned to answer the secretaries’ phones – but I’m so glad I did.

As a first-generation college graduate, I make college readiness a priority for my students and families.

Dr. VaShawn Smith is a middle school principal in Grandview, MO. This is part of our series on reimagining education. Follow him on Twitter at @drvsmith. As school leaders, we know family engagement is always important – and it’s our role to provide the sense of stability and care our learners and their families need. But […]

Michael Williford is a middle school principal in California. Follow him on Twitter at @mwillifordjbms. As a middle school principal, I know the jump from sixth to seventh grade can feel scary, even in an ordinary year – and for students who are English language learners or qualify for special education services, it can seem […]