Have a Good Life

Josh DeSmyter is the proud principal of Shrevewood Elementary in Falls Church, Virginia. He has worked in education for 15 years in Detroit, Washington D.C. and now in Virginia. Josh is currently in his eighth year as an administrator in Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). He leads with the three core beliefs of Family, Excellence and Relationships at the forefront of his work. Josh has taken Shrevewood ES school from a 54% engaged school community to a 94% engaged school community in just three short years by instilling a Culture of Joy. He is currently a finalist for FCPS’s Outstanding New Principal of the year award.
- culture of Joy.
- handcuffs are coming off when you get the principal job!
- positivity, modeling, consistency
- Being a really good listener.
- Knowing who they are
- individual conversations, one-on-one
- Influence others around you.
- How to handle it when someone comes to you with something that doesn’t really matter.
- We listen, and we go back to leadership teams.
- Taking Action Book
- Episode 100 of Transformative Principal
- Professional Development team.
- Parliament Team - wise owls
- Collaborative Learning Teams - putting leadership in the hands of the teachers
- Staff Engagement Survey
- How to be a transformative principal? Be a learner every day. Find something you can learn from others in your building.
Reeks excellence - can see that kids, family, and staff are happy.
Process of the journey: What have you learned through other schools and leadership?
Managing the message: importance of clarity, key stakeholders to support the message
Leadership Teams: tell me about the team leaders that support culture? How have you developed their leadership capacity?
Hiring: how have you hired teachers to support the positive culture?
Community (students, staff, families): Consistency with the modeling
Building aesthetics: How does an environment support culture?
Relationships with students, staff, and families
Visibility in classrooms, hallways, meetings, and community events
Celebrations: with staff, school,  and community
Being reflective and learning from mistakes
Honesty and vulnerability
The power of collaboration
Sunday Scaries - blech
60% there to everyone being happy.
“How was your break?” You can tell a lot by their response to that question.
Culture -
CulturedKids has helped bring

What do you do to help your people feel good about coming? You can’t control their feelings, but what can do you to motivate and inspire?

Sponsors

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Transformative Principal Mastermind

Lead a school everyone can be proud of.

Being a principal is tough work. You’re pulled in all kinds of directions. You never have the time to do the work that really matters. Join me as I help school leaders find the time to do the work they became principals to do.

I help you stop putting out fires and start leading.

Learn more at https://transformativeprincipal.com

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