Start at the begining... PROPEL

Dr. Guerra stood in front of a group of teachers at the information meeting... his speech went something like this:

This program is designed to be rigorous, you will be giving up every Thursday and every Saturday for the next two years. If you can't devote the time, this program isn't for you. If you have a TV sell it because you wont have time to watch it. If ballet concerts, baseball games, weddings or Bar Mitzvahs are in your plans, this is not the program for you...

Those of us that were still left sitting in the room were about to hear outlined a program that was unlike anything else ever done in the district. PROPEL was a Race to the Top grant that created a partnership between FAU and Broward County Public Schools. If selected for the program, (which was an ordeal that involved being first nominated by a principal, included an application process, an on-line assessment, a writing assessment, and an interview- only 27 people were selected for Cohort 2) participants would participate in a two-year intensive, and accelerated Education Leadership program. This program would not only earn us our degree but also our Level 1 & Level 2 certifications and credentials that would qualify us to be hired as a principal in a Florida school. In addition to the fast-track program, the courses are taught by a team of professors that are all serving in leadership capacities in the district. The training is specially designed to prepare the participants to work in "turn-around schools."

WOW... a "free" education, AND we are working with leaders that are in a position to hire us when we are done with the program... WHAT A GREAT OPPORTUNITY!

So I jumped! I mean, really jumped... with both feet!

And so it begins....

This blog site was actually started to fulfill the requirements of one of my assignments for LEAD 3. We need to do a book critique and present the information in a new media. So I decided to write a blog. (You can read the critique later.) In the meantime, I decided that since I was going to create the blog for the project, why not chronicle my experiences along the way.

I hope to have my fellow Cohort Members join in and add their thoughts and experiences during this adventure because we have already formed sort of a family identity, we are in fact a huge part of each others support system. I hope that over the next two years... and into the future we will all be there for each other- there is nothing like a common experience to bond people.

This blog will include reflections, experiences, recommendations for "good" leadership books, and insights into educational leadership. I hope you will find the information informative and entertaining, and that you will join me from time to time on this journey.

Arlene