Self Reflection

Competencies
Javier Marin

Competency 001: The principal knows how to shape

campus culture by facilitating the development, articulation,
implementation, and stewardship of a vision of learning
that is shared and supported by the school community.
WELLNESS PROGRAM:
Most of the work that I have participated on with the school is either
through the support of our major transition in becoming ONE SCHOOL, or
through my active participation in the COORDINATORS MEETINGS to
analyze and talk about important current events of the school.
However, the one project that I have undertaken, born from my own
initiative, is the WELLNESS PROGRAM. For the last two years my focus both
as a teacher, and as a concerned member of the community has been to
incorporate practices that would support the students wellbeing and
balance in their daily routine as individuals.
In February of 2014, I attended to the conferences entitled Bridging the
Minds and the Hearts of Youth in San Diego. There I learned about the
importance of practicing mindfulness in our schools regularly. I pursued
further instruction in the area and I became a certified .b teacher (one of
the many curriculums now available to implement mindfulness). Ever since,
I have been a passionate advocate for these type of practices in our
schools. Given the increasing number of stress and anxiety among our
students, I developed a vision to implement a WELLNESS PROGRAM in our
school to provide proper attention the whole students needs.

Competency 002: The principal knows how to

communicate and collaborate with all members of the school
community, respond to diverse interests and needs, and
mobilize resources to promote student success.

COORDINATORS MEETINGS:
My main work on this area has come as a result of
becoming 9th Grade Level Coordinator (GLC). All GLCs
meet along with the Upper School (US) Head, US Deputy
Head, the School Counselor, and the US Deputy Head
Secretary to discuss different issues: academic concerns,
behavior problems, administrative processes,
organizational events, among other topics.
IMMERSION PROGRAM:
Another major undertaking that requires a high level of
communication is the Immersion Program I am launching.
I will be taking 10 upper school students to Spain during
the month of July. That process requires constant
communication with administration, students, and parents
to shape and agree on the terms of the program.

Competency 003: The principal knows how to

act with integrity, fairness, and in an ethical and legal
manner.
TRIPS, TRAVELS AND ADMISSIONS:
As a 9th Coordinator I am in charge of organizing the FALL
TRIP of the entire 9th grade class, 117 students and 17
teachers. I am responsible for creating the budget of the
trip, managing the expenses, and effectively reporting to
the Department of Finances. It is essential to act with
integrity and ethically when using school money.
In the same way, as the organizer of the IMMERSION
PROGRAM I am in charge of informing parents on topics
such as insurance, legal issues, financial procedures and
charges in a way that is transparent and clear.
As the 9th Grade Level Coordinator I take active part in the
Admission process of the school. I have recently read over
50 applications for potential candidates. I order to do that,
I need to display fairness, objectivity, and ethical values to
contribute to the process in the most professional manner.

Competency 004: The principal knows how to

facilitate the design and implementations of curricula and
strategic plans that enhance teaching and learning; ensure
alignment of curriculum, instructions, resources, and
assessment, and promote the use of varied assessments to
measure student performance.

THE ONE SCHOOL PROJECT:

The school is now in its third year of implementation of the
One School Project. Three years ago the Board of Trustees put
a three goal mission to accomplish a) to become one school,
b) to be more bilingual c) and to extend our current
immersion program.
These three goals started a massive mobilization of resources
and collaboration from all members of the school to work
toward that future that we are all responsible for. On this
process, I have participated by supporting the Language
Department in the harmonization of curriculum with the
French Section. I have also done a school visit to bring the
positive aspects I saw to our school; I have participated in
several meetings to discuss different strategies to achieve
harmonization socially, academically, as well as
administratively.

Competency 005: The principal knows how to

advocate, nurture, and sustain an instructional
program and a campus culture that are conducive to
student learning and staff professional growth.
CREACTIVIDAD:
Since my arrival at Awty in 2007 I have been part of an enthusiastic
group of teachers (Renata Bevilacqua, Melanie Gauthy, and myself)
who have written down over 150 activities to implement in a
language class. We have presented our material in several
workshops and conferences at a local (HTFLA) and state level
(TFLA) over the years.
ADULT LANGUAGE LEARNING:
This year the Head of the Pre School Mr. Way has taking the
wonderful initiative to launch a program of language learning for
faculty and staff. I am a member of that committee, and I such I
take active part in any decision made to develop, implement, and
improve such initiative.
STUDENT SUPPORT:
One of the roles as the 9th grade level coordinator is to offer
individualized support to the students as well as the teachers.

Competency 006: The principal knows how to

implement a staff evaluation and development system to
improve the performance of all staff members, select and
implement appropriate models for supervision and staff
development, and apply the legal requirements for personnel
management.
FOLIO:
For the last three years our school has used an evaluation tool called
FOLIO. It is a website that connects all members of the school by
departments. The Head of each department is directly responsible to
coordinate class observations and to create an evaluation. Each teacher
is responsible to create their profile which includes a brief description of
their teaching style, their goals for the year, as well as an end of the
year self-reflection.
EVALUATION PROCESS INTERVIEW:
through a private interview with Sam Waugh, the Head of the Upper
School, I gained a deeper insight into our evaluation process. In our
school, unlike other public schools, class observations are more
formative than summative. In other words, formative class observation
has an uplifting positive nature, with the only goal of improving the
teaching/learning quality. Summative evaluations, on the other hand,
are high-stake and your position might depend on a good result.
CLINICAL OBSERVATION:
I had the opportunity and the privilege to observe my wife, Xochitl
Marin, as a part of the class I took last semester Clinical Observation.
For the observation, I had to create my own evaluation artifact, visit her
class and write a report. It was a very worthwhile experience for me.

Competency 007: The principal knows how to

apply organizational, decision-making, and problemsolving skills to ensure an effective learning environment.
HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH ASSEMBLY:
For the last four years I have coordinated the Hispanic Heritage
Assembly for the Spanish Department. It is a big undertaking as it
requires to coordinate all Spanish classes both in the International
and the French sections (Middle and Upper School). We have done
a variety of themes for our presentations: historical, musical,
social, entertaining. The goal is to bring the best of the Hispanic
Culture across nations and to share it through our students
enthusiastic efforts.
FALL TRIPS:
The organization of this trip has put to the test my ability to
quickly make decisions and to solve problems of all natures
(insurance, budget, allergies, accidents, unforeseen situations,
food supplies, rosters and delegation, hiring, creating events,
among many others).
IMMERSION PROGRAM:
One of the most difficult aspects of this program is to deal with
parents expectations, coming to an agreement when there is a
group decision, answering all questions, addressing parents

Competency 008: The principal knows how to apply

principles of effective leadership and management in
relation to campus budgeting, personal, resource
utilization, financial management, and technology use.
FINANCES AND ADVANCEMENT:
Through a series of personal interviews with Hank Nicodemus, Director of
Finances, and Kevin McTernan, Director of Advancement, I gained insight
into the intricate financial system of our school. Hank coordinates,
creates, and monitors the school budget for the year. This is a long and
complex process that is possible with much communication with the
different Heads of Departments (HODs). Each HOD has an assigned
budget that they are responsible to keep and follow up. Hank works out
the numbers so that our school can successfully make all payments and
still operates at a full capacity toward the most important goal: proper
learning environment for our students.
Kevin McTernan is in his second year in our school and he has been a
great addition to our staff. His experience and vision has brought a new
and fresh air to the way the school raises funds. This is probably one of
the most important areas of the school. As a private independent school
we dont get any public funds; therefore, we solely depend on our
potential to fundraise the money we need to further expand according to
our plans. The Capital campaign is dedicated to raise the necessary funds
to complete the complex and ambitious plan to turn our campus into a
modern, top of the line, educational institution.

Competency 009: The principal knows how to apply

principles of leadership and management to the campus
physical plant and support systems to ensure a safe
and effective learning environment.
FACILITIES AND CONSTRUCTION:
I had the opportunity to interview Don Davis, the Director of
Facilities and Construction to talk about many different topics
related to the school physical plant. He explained to me the
different jobs that his men do in the Maintenance Department
including landscaping, regular checks, teachers maintenance
jobs, facilities cleaning, seasonal repairs/cleaning/checks.
We also talked about safety measures and requirements in our
schools including drug checks, safety procedures such as fire
drills and lock down drills (levels one and two).
Finally, we talked about the construction plan, how it got
started with the stadium addition back in 2008, to the newest
land property acquisition that will become the future Pre School
by 2017. This intricate plan has been carefully studied and he
has been carrying it out to fulfillment thanks to his expertise,
vision, and commitment to the school.