eNews In this issue - BCPVPAeNews the BCPVPA’s weekly electronic newsletter February 13, 2015 eNews/ 1 In this issue … Leadership Opportunities Last chance & < 100 days to go MediaScan

eNewsthe BCPVPA’s weekly electronic newsletter

February 13, 2015

eNews/1

In this issue … Leadership OpportunitiesLast chance & < 100 days to goMediaScanSupervision 4 LearningGordon Li on empowering leaders

Leadership opportunities Abbotsford invites applications for Assistant Superintendent, Elemen-tary Education. The core portfolio of the Assistant Superintendent will be to continue providing leading-edge development to SD34’s elementary schools, ensuring that the Board’s plans for childhood literacy and numer-acy are achieved across the District. For details visit http://bit.ly/1CbDG7M

West Vancouver is seeking ‘dynamic leaders’ for vice-principal. This pro-cess will create a pool for VP openings. At this time, there is a vacancy at Bowen Island Community School that will be the first assignment for a suc-cessful candidate. If other vacancies occur within the school year, this pool of successful applicants will be reviewed to fill the opportunity. Applications must be recieved by 1 pm, February 16. For details visit http://bit.ly/VTnvcM

Ministry Survey on Awards The Ministry of Educa-tion is seeking feedback from principals and vice-principals (and parents, students, employers, counsellors, teachers) as part of its review and redesign of its Grade 10-12 scholarship/awards program. The goal is to better rec-ognize and support students’ accomplishments and circumstances. It is ex-pected that a new program designed in the 2015/16 school year. The survey closes at 4 pm March 10. Take the survey here: http://bit.ly/1zGl2oL

Ministry seeks feedback on scholarship and

awards program

The BCPVPA extends its condolences to the family, friends and community of Stanley French who passed away suddenly on Wednesday, February 11 in Palm Desert, California. Stanley was 73 and leaves his partner Judy (Findlayson), son Stuart, and daughter Shirley.

Stanley was a Charter Member of the BCPVPA, a former President of the Association, Manager of Communications, Executive Director, and an Honourary Lifetime Member. He retired in 2007.

Reader, writer, photographer, politician, poet, traveler, linguist, soccer-mad, and all-round good guy, Stanley touched many throughout a career that took him from Northern Ireland, to Africa, Japan and British Columbia.

His contributions to the BCPVPA and efforts on behalf of public education in British Columbia will long be remembered.

Condolences can be mailed to: Judy Findlayson, 72627 Rolling Knoll Dr, Indian Hills, Palm Desert, California, 90260

An appreciation of Stanley will appear in an upcoming Adminfo.

Stanley French • In Memoriam

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February 13, 2015

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On the move?If you’ve moved or changed

schools, please clickand let us know.

Friday Forum February 20Marriott Airport Hotel (Richmond) • 9 am – 3:15 pm

Breakfast will be available from 8:00 to 8:45 am • Lunch is included

Connections: Reaching StudentsFree for BCPVPA members $50 Associate members $75 non-members

Effective strategies and resources for helping anxious youth with Dr. Kristin Buhr, AnxietyBC

Plus four presentations on the effective use of technology

From Alternate to Innovative: Re-engaging the Disengaged Learner with John Tyler (SD61)

Mobile Learning with Allen Beckingham (SD67)

Blogging with Ian Landy (SD83)

Establishing a Twitter Presence to Enrich your Professional Learning Network with Dan Watt (SD57)

Last chance to register: http://bit.ly/1wqLxd9

Last chance ... Friday Forum & Healthy Schools survey

Healthy Schools BC Complete this survey for a chance to win one of three iPad Minis

The Healthy Schools BC initiative is asking principals and vice-principals for their perspective on Healthy Schools BC. By completing a brief, confidential survey, you’ll be entered in a draw for a chance to win one of three iPad Minis. Winners to be announced in March. The survey will close on February 20.

To complete the survey visit http://bit.ly/1wISSoB

To read the summary report for year one visit http://bit.ly/1yLGSUa

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Connecting LeadersInspiring Learning

5keynotespeakers

May 11-14, Chateau Whistler

Guide http://bit.ly/1rq36vW Registration http://bit.ly/1utETY2

Morethan

30sessions

Culturaldinner

Relevantexhibitors

CrossCanada

networking

Registernow

Less than 100 days until ...

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February 13, 2015

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Call for articles

AdminfoClick to email your article

Plans for the 38th annual Short Course are well underway. Short Course 2015 will take place on the UBC campus, July 6 – 10. Developed in

partnership with UBC, Short Course is an intensive, one-week (44 sched-uled contact hours) program designed to provide new school leaders with an opportunity to hone the skills necessary for success in their new roles. The course work contains a blend of research and practical application that cre-ates an essential understanding of what principals and vice-principals need to know and how to accomplish it. Participants are immersed in the realities of school administration and given the knowledge, skills, and strategies needed in their new roles. The program is based on the Leadership Standards for Prin-cipals & Vice-Principals in British Columbia. Each day of the program focuses on one of the four Domains of the Standards (Moral Stewardship, Relational Leadership, Instructional Leadership, and Organizational Leadership). The concluding session evolves around our BC education partners.

Short Courseregistration opens

next week

Short timely updates … click to join the BCPVPA’s more than 2650 followers on Twitter

Supervision for Learning:Registration is now open

for the BCPVPA’s Supervision for Learning program. In its first two years, the program has engaged more than 350 principals and vice-principals. Supervision for Learning sup-ports instructional leadership and is designed to increase the impact of school admin-istrators on teaching practices and student achievement. Participants gain skills and confidence in their ability to engage teachers in learner-focused dialogue. The program provides five days of learning over eight months. In addition, participants are involved in ongoing shared-practice and dialogue with colleagues and BCPVPA instructors. Each participant is involved in one hour, bi-weekly meetings with others in their cohort. Pro-gram directors Jessica Antosz and Woody Bradford check-in with all participants fre-quently throughout the program. The cost is $800 per person ($1150 for non-BCPVPA members). A registration form is available at http://bit.ly/1A4FWyd

The BC Technology and Innovation Association has developed a Technol-ogy Mentoring Program for Young Women and provides mentors to support

and champion young women in B.C. ‘to open their eyes to Technology as a career choice.’ The mentors are also offering to help students prepare for the IoT World Forum Young Women’s Innovation Grand Challenge. This global challenge awards one $20,000 prize; four $10,000 prizes; and another four $5,000 prizes. The forum and awards ceremony is being held this year in Abu Dubai and shortlisted candidates will be invited to attend. Details about the mentoring program and the contest are here http://bit.ly/1Dpcipv

Technology Mentoring Program for

Young WomenPreparing for a contest that

awards $80,000 in prizes and a trip to Abu Dubai

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February 13, 2015

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On the move?If you’ve moved or changed

schools, please clickand let us know.

The BCPVPA is now accepting nominations from Chapters for its annual Partnership Awards. The Awards recognize the valuable support provided to principals,

vice-principals, teachers and students by a variety of people and organizations who share their time, energy and expertise to support schools. The winners last year were Anne Mae Rae (nominated by the Vernon PVPA); Patty Lou Bryant representing the Food for Thought program (nominated by the Central Okanagan PVPA); Pastor Andy Sebanc representing Green Timbers Covenant Church, (nominated by the Surrey PVPA); and Mike Csoka and Donna Yates, founders of the Chilliwack Bowls of Hope Society, (nominated by the Chilliwack PVPA). Nominations must be submitted by Friday, April 3, 2015. The Awards will be presented at the May 2015 Chapter Council meeting.

Visit http://bit.ly/VESLYA to download an application form.

Nominations now open for the BCPVPA’s 2015 Partnership Awards

Three learning opportunitiesLearning Forward

Digital LearningBCSSA

Learning Forward BC presents Innovation in Times of Transition: Leading with Clarity, Feb 26, 4 to 7 pm, Burnaby Central Secondary. The event will feature three district teams, from Surrey (moving away from traditional re-porting systems), Burnaby (Aboriginal ways of learning) and North Vancou-ver (creating a learning organization) that will show innovative approaches to implementing the new BC curriculum. The cost is $40 and includes a light dinner. There will be a second, follow-up event, with a separate registration required, on April 9th. To register visit http://learningforwardbc.ca/events/

Supporting Success for Each Learner (Inclusion: A belief system for all) is the BCSSA Spring Forum which is scheduled for April 15 at the Westin Bayshore in Vancouver. Speakers include Faye Brownlie, Leyton Schnellert and Shelley Moore who will support teams to continue to lead and build inclusive pos-sibilities and practices. The registration and program information are here: http://www.bcssa.org/springforum2015/

Digital Learning (DL) Spring Conference — Connect. Engage. Grow. Foster-ing Community Online — will be held in Burnaby, April 19-21. Conference organizers hope to see many administrators and educators who are already working in DL or who are interested in learning more about DL and the po-tential that can be realized by partnerships between DL and neighbourhood schools. For conference information visit http://conference.learnnowbc.ca/

MinistryScholarships &

Awards

We are seeking a member with an interest in scholarships/awards

to represent the Association at a Ministry-sponsored half-day

stakeholder meeting in the Lower Mainland on April 8.

APPLY: http://bit.ly/18AMAlR

BCPVPA Committee Opportunity Applications are due by February 27

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BCPVPA MediaScanPrincipals & vice-principals & the BCPVPA in the news

SD61 VP Anne Nilsen, on the new learning website launched by @RoyalBCMuseum ‘Pretty cool’ say students. http://bit.ly/1ClgHWI

SD48 Principal Margaret Paxton on school as family: building relationships & community, listening, addressing needs http://bit.ly/1Ac5mx1

SD58 @cmullin58 Colleen Mullin on partnering with Kelowna Actors Foundation: ‘youth can immerse themselves in their passions; http://bit.ly/1vDLq4m

With thanks to Meadow Ridge Rotary Club, SD42 Principal Jovo Bikic on collaboration, creativity & climbing http://bit.ly/1zU86fe

SD69 VPs Kevin McKee & Don Bold on training students to use an automated external defibrillator http://bit.ly/1zTZqp6

SD8 Principal Dan Miles, leaving for Tokyo soon, on engaging the disengaged student by celebrating accomplishment http://bit.ly/1931cvs

SD36 Principal Antonio Vendramin on the modern report card: ‘communication with parents as we go’ http://bit.ly/1xwzA6h

SD41 Principal Dennis Taylor, Gilmore Community Elementary, finds a way to beat the ‘mean, old, dastardly principal’ rap http://bit.ly/1yOb81J

SD74 Principal Patricia Teskey on Lillooet Sec’s ‘multi-faceted approach in support of inclusion & against bullying’ http://bit.ly/1zaxqcU

SD54 District Principal, Aboriginal Student Services Birdy Markert on Richard Wagamese’s inspirational storytelling http://bit.ly/1DzvMWr

SD61 Principal Nadine Naughton on Gr. 6 Shoreline students ‘doing the right thing because it’s the right thing to do’ http://bit.ly/1DFIBPm

SD60s Pat Jensen, District VP Aboriginal Education Centre on Alison Springer’s Young Women of Power Workshop http://bit.ly/1Cr3dha

SD39 Principal Aaron Davis on a STEM project that has ‘given students an outlet to be passionate about learning’ http://bit.ly/1BAkWNO

SD23 Principal Raquel Steen on putting students first: the most important part of why we do what we do http://bit.ly/1wFeS3M

Congrats SD23/SD48 Principals Raquel Steen, École KLO Middle School,/Margaret Paxton, École Squamish Elementary, 2 #OutstandingPrincipals http://bit.ly/1EqiK1r

MediaScan is published in the second eNews of the month. We try to monitor stories of interest,

but if you have been in the news, please forward the story or a link to [email protected]

SD20 @principaldd David DeRosa along with JL Crowe staff & students perform, create lifelong memories & give

back to the community http://bit.ly/1EOSCxt

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February 13, 2015

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2014 — 2015 Board of Directors

President Gordon Li (Burnaby) [email protected]

Directors

Susan Clough (Surrey) [email protected]

Darren Danyluk (Rocky Mountain) [email protected]

David DeRosa (Kootenay-Columbia) [email protected]

Heidi Grant (Nechako Lakes) [email protected]

John Horstead (Surrey) [email protected]

Brett Johnson (Greater Victoria) [email protected]

Bryan Johnson (Sooke) [email protected]

Lee Karpenko (Prince George) [email protected]

Carol-Ann Leidloff (Kootenay Lake) [email protected]

Brian Leonard (Coquitlam) [email protected]

Kevin Reimer (Comox Valley) [email protected]

On the move?If you’ve moved or changed

schools, [email protected]

who will update your records

I was inspired by a visit to Sea to Sky this past December. When visiting both elementary

and secondary schools I saw evidence of how the district is living up to its education plan to, “create safe, purposeful and powerful learning environments in order that all students can think critically, create, collaborate, contribute and learn. We are honoured to be learning on the Traditional Territory of the Skwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw and St’át’yemc Nation. We remain committed to

supporting the traditions, languages and ambitions of the local Aboriginal people.”

I returned this past week to the District, both to visit Juanita Coltman (Principal, Stawamus Elementary and a member of the BCPVPA Aboriginal Advisory Committee) and then, later, to sit down with Sea to Sky Superintendent, Lisa McCullough, to learn more about the success of Aboriginal students in her district and the use of Pathways to Learning as a framework leading to learning competencies. I went away feeling inspired by our conversation on empowering leaders; it was an attitude adjustment. Over two hours, Lisa and I talked about the ultimate goal all educators strive to achieve: enabling our students to be the best they can. During our wide-ranging conversation, Lisa talked about leadership and empowering leaders. As leaders, she said, “we need to ask the tough questions and not be afraid to take on the difficult tasks.” Her belief that culture is not built by what we say, but rather what we do is reflected in her philosophy that, ‘leaders measure success through the work of others,’ which entails ‘engaging others meaningfully, moving forward led by your beliefs, and empowering those who will make the difference.’ But the work itself, she said, is tough. “There is no substitute, no alternatives, for hard work,” she said, “when you are building the best possible learning environment for students.”

In last week’s column I inadvertently misidentified the Principal of Coquitlam Open Learning. The District Principal is, in fact, Mike McGlenen.

The upcoming week is a busy one: a Board meeting on Thursday, Friday Forum (last chance to register here http://bit.ly/1wqLxd9), and Chapter Council. A short, early eNews will be distributed on Wednesday.

Have a great weekend, Gordon

President Gordon Lion empowering others