Accelerate Your Performance

Can you imagine combining the first day back to school during a pandemic with a raging wildfire threatening students, employees, and the entire community? This is exactly what Estacada School District experienced in September of 2020. As district leaders switched to a crisis response model, people found new and innovative ways to stay connected, make decisions quickly, and cascade information to c...

What about the students? What are the effects of 20 months of disruption on them? Young people are feeling more stressed than ever before. Their lives are difficult to understand for adults. We often think about how students are feeling from our adult lens, yet they don't have the adult experiences we've gained. How do we really know how our students are feeling?  This episode addresses...

Embedding the context of local culture into classrooms results in a more successful, memorable experience for students. It's likely that your community has a rich culture and history, much like Lac du Flambeau in Northern Wisconsin. Today, we revisit an interview with Lac du Flambeau School District Superintendent Dr. Larry Ouimette . During this conversation, we discuss how the local Native...

Why are teachers choosing to leave the profession at even higher rates than before? Teachers have a great passion for helping students learn, yet the stress has increased and teachers aren't feeling heard. Today, Dr. Janet Pilcher discusses why there is a disconnect between school leaders and teachers, and what administrators can do to get teachers to stay. This episode addresses questions, s...

Changing the culture of an organization doesn't happen overnight. However, when leaders focus on the fundamentals to build trust a positive culture can emerge. Today's episode revisits an interview with Dr. Pat Greco , who shares how the School District of Menomonee Falls stayed 8 months ahead of other districts. Leaders communicated the measures that matter and decision rules to all tea...

Being a leader of an organization is never easy. Not to mention leading an organization that is experiencing constant change in relatively unpredictable times. Today, Janet shares three important suggestions to apply 100% of the time to best manage change. This episode addresses questions, such as: What usually goes wrong when leaders are managing change and what should be done differently? How ca...

Our school systems, leaders and educators have role-modeled tremendous resiliency since March of 2020. Despite the challenges the pandemic has brought, there have also been bright spots and bold leaders encouraging their teams to thrive. Today, we revisit a conversation with Tea Area Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Lowery , to highlight the difference their district makes by leaning on its values and...

Bold leadership isn't about a position. Bold leaders use their hearts and minds to make a difference in the lives of others. Our profession calls on you to help young people realize their hopes and dreams - that is where educators find purpose. Bold leaders focus on the right small things that make a difference for employees, students and their communities. In this episode, hear how our host,...

Have you ever felt like you're running around your organization putting out fires? Today, Superintendent Ryan Carpenter , Estacada School District shares the communication tactics his team has in place that help him feel less like a firefighter. You'll also hear how these decisions were deeply rooted in data and continue to be analyzed on a consistent basis. As a result, people in Estaca...

We all know that a leader's behavior has a significant influence on the employees of an organization. Great leaders are reflective, have self-awareness and are connected to the people they serve. On the other hand, bad leaders often cause employees to seek out another work environment. How can we become the type of leader that contributes to building an inspiring workplace? To answer this, Dr...

Hiring a High School Principal is a can't-miss situation. Due to decreases in qualified applicants for these positions, one school district found a unique way to find the best candidate. Joining Janet today is Sand Creek Zone District 49 , Superintendent Sean Dorsey , who shares how to hire boldly and authentically engage staff and students through challenging times. This episode answers ques...

The northern gulf coast is home to millions of residents who are no strangers to natural disasters. Today, Dr. Janet Pilcher reflects on our education partners who have suffered tremendous damage due to Hurricane Ida. The storm has brought major loss to the students, employees, and community members of Fletcher Technical Community College and Nunez Community College in southeastern Louisiana.  Sho...

Ensuring learning progress despite disruptions to learning has been no easy feat since the pandemic began. However, at Erwin Middle School leaders worked together to decrease student absences by over 40% and decrease the number of F's and incomplete assignments by 51%. Today, Principal Dr. Angela Bush joins Janet to share how her team continues to close the academic achievement gap and move s...

The skills that students need to be successful after school ends are rapidly changing. What it means to be career-ready tomorrow, will look different in 2025. To best support students for the future, leaders and community members in Oak Ridge School District have made a collective commitment to advance their strategic plan and include a focus on college, career and life success. Listen as Dr. Bruc...

Are you trying to find the next silver bullet solution? Or are you focused on evidence-based leadership and improvement practices? Focusing on the next shiny silver bullet will often lead to organizational chaos. Today, Janet shares another way leaders can prepare their teams for change and build leadership capabilities to improve organizational systems. This episode addresses questions, such as:...

Get comfortable being uncomfortable.  It's a saying you've likely heard before, and one that today's guest says applies to being a Superintendent. As an educator for 29 years, Deanna (Dede) Ashby, recently retired Superintendent of Hopkins County Schools joins Janet again to share how she helps others develop a vision and mission that leaves a huge impact on their community. Listen...

New academic years begin with new faces everywhere you look.  Whether people are new to the organization or new to their role, Janet recommends two tactics that build confidence and support employees in a new position. To be an excellent organization, we strive to apply these practices and train all of our team members to do the same. This episode answers questions such as: What does AIDET stand f...

Being a Superintendent can bring out the best in people, as well as highlight our most glaring mistakes and blindspots. Today, retired Superintendent, Tim Wyrosdick joins Dr. Janet Pilcher to share what he has learned from 36 years as an educator in Santa Rosa County, Florida. Listen as Tim explains why it's important to embrace new challenges and never be satisfied.  This episode answers que...

How can we tackle declining student performance? After over a year of difficult transitions and decisions, Janet shares why we need to rethink and unlearn what schools have done in the past. Most people in our educational systems want to contribute to student success - it is our purpose. Using the book, Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know by Adam Grant , Janet explains how w...

Leadership development is often viewed as a "nice to have" in organizations. Today's guest, Dr. Pat Greco , shares why leadership development is core to the capacity of the organization and a lifeline to everyone it supports. School systems aren't static - they are continuously changing with new students, teachers, leaders, support staff and board members. Listen as Pat and Jan...

The words we use matter. Messages that focus on the customer's perspective build relationships and reinforce how important the customer is to an organization. Customers are always seeking to understand, 'what's in it for me?' Communication with this as the focus engages the people we serve. Today, Dr. Janet Pilcher shares four steps to address customer questions and respond wit...

Organizations sustain high performance when people are aligned and understand where the organization is headed. Although there will always be people who are resistant to change, the best leaders persevere through pushback to help create incredible results in our school systems. Such as, Hudson School District Superintendent Nick Ouellette, PhD , who understands that even though reaching agreement...

Families are a great resource for educators. They offer a unique perspective and window into the life of our students. When we approach building relationships with families the same way we approach building a team within our organization, students are more successful. Today's guest, Dr. Holly Ellis shares how leaders can invest their effort into relationships that increase student engagement...

Leaders want employees who are happy,  productive and invested in the organization's future. However, retaining these people requires leaders to become aware of what it takes to meet employee's needs in the workplace. Hear about those needs and the fundamentals we use to support confident and engaged employees from Leader Coach and employee engagement expert, Dr. KK Owen . Today, KK and...

What can we do when an individual hoards conversation time, constantly interrupts, provides unsolicited advice and puts others down? These behaviors can be interpreted as manipulative and can damage individuals on our teams and organizations. To maintain working relationships, and be authentic to ourselves and those we lead, we have to firmly and diplomatically say no to manipulators. Today Janet...