Coaching—Not Just for Teachers
In 2001 when Jonathan Vasquez took over as principal of Rancho Santa Gertrudes Elementary in Whittier California, the school was identified for the Immediate Intervention/Underperforming Schools Program by the California Department of Education. The resulting school improvement plan was very comprehensive and provided professional development for all stakeholders, including a coach for the principal. Vasquez's coach spent a lot of time helping this new principal understand how to analyze student performance data to inform decisions. They discussed how to explain data to both teachers and parents, presenting it in a user-friendly manner, using charts and graphs.
The following year Gertrudes Elementary far surpassed its growth target on California's Academic Performance Index, yet was still identified as a Program Improvement school by the state. Vasquez was offered coaching for another year through the Los Angeles County Office of Education. Vasquez took advantage of this opportunity and worked closely with his coach on curriculum and instruction -- helping to establish consistency across the school.
Finally, in 2003 Vasquez used some of his school funds to pay for a coach. The school improvement plan called for hiring two literacy coaches for teachers. Vasquez wanted to model being coached to help his teachers become reflective and get over any resistance they might have to coaching. In this third year, focusing on classroom observations and feedback, Vasquez and his coach worked on how to determine if students are learning and how to present feedback. Using a coach not only helped Vasquez improve his skills as a principal, but also helped the whole staff become more open to coaching and feedback.
In 2004, Rancho Santa Gertrudes Elementary was identified by the California Department of Education as a Distinguished School and a Title I Achieving School.
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