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What 200 Episodes Taught Jethro Jones About Leading Schools with Courtney Orr
Description
Jethro Jones marks his 200th episode in an interview with his assistant principal, Dr. Courtney Orr. They cover building school culture first at a new school, why he keeps learning, and what administrators, teachers, parents and students each need. His challenge for principals this week: take back control of your time.
Jones explains his goal to impact 100 million kids by 2027, how Seth Godin gave him a phone number and answered the call, and why he would like to interview Betsy DeVos. The episode ends with a short chat with his seven-year-old son about being a principal.
What you'll learn
- Build culture first at a new school by visiting classrooms often and talking with teachers, not telling them how to improve.
- Work on your school, not just in it, and set aside time for vision instead of putting out fires.
- Give teachers mastery, autonomy and purpose, the three motivators from Daniel Pink's Drive.
- Overcommunicate with parents through a weekly newsletter and posts wherever they already look.
- Find one block of time this week for one big task, and make it your priority.
Chapters
- 0:46 Episode 200 welcome and meet Dr. Courtney Orr
- 3:47 Build culture first at a new school
- 8:22 Why Jethro keeps learning and podcasting
- 11:49 The goal to impact 100 million kids
- 14:42 How he picks guests, and the Seth Godin call
- 28:17 Lessons for administrators, teachers, parents and students
- 36:01 How to break the rules without getting in trouble
- 41:17 A principal interviewed by his seven-year-old son
Times are for the episode without ads. Your player may be off by the length of any ads.
Questions this episode answers
What should a new principal focus on first?
Jones says the biggest thing he learned at his new school was working on culture first. He and Orr visited classrooms frequently from the start, without telling teachers how to improve. They talked about what teachers experienced and what was going well, and a teacher started Feed the Crew Mondays.
How can a principal stop putting out fires all day?
Jones points to what Chris LaCurto calls the leadership crazy cycle. He says to work on your school, not just in it, and set aside time for vision. When you say your time is not your own, you let others set your priorities.
How should a principal communicate with parents?
Jones says parents need overcommunication. He started a weekly parent newsletter, though he is not perfect at it, and shares on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram too. One parent told him she gets all his emails but didn't say she reads them; she knows a message is coming.
About Dr. Courtney Orr
Dr. Courtney Orr is an assistant principal at Tanana Middle School and a former elementary ESOL teacher and teacher mentor in Kansas.
Links and resources
Working on this at your school? Get a free preview of a 10-week leadership pathway built from episodes like this one at transformativeprincipal.com/start.
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