Professional Documents
Culture Documents
REFLECTION
William Morrow
Internship II
Dr. Torres
University of St. Thomas
Competency I
During my internship, the maintenance of the campus culture was one of my strongest areas. My principal has praised me on natural
ability to build rapport with fellow staff members, parents, and students, alike. This has allowed me to establish strong communication with the school
community and make everyone feel valued. The strong rapport I built with students and staff enabled me to convey clear and high expectations with
The vertical alignment meeting project which I initiated, highlights the implementing a shared vision through the use of student data, in
order to promote and improve student learning and teacher instruction. The collaboration and integration of these vertical alignment meetings increased
the alignment with the campus vision. Partnered with the data analysis from various sources such as student achievement data, the new Cypress
Fairbanks Independent School District appraisal system, and our accountability, we have assessed and made modifications for the future to help the
campus not only reach its vision, but also its campus improvement plan.
The technology class project also helped with implementing easy technology pieces that could be integrated into lessons to help students’
achievement increase as well as providing another strategy that would help allocate resources and align them with the current campus need and vision.
This class facilitates the need for collaboration, especially for the technology utilization in teachers who are reluctant in their usage of technology. This
would equip them with another resource to help their students and ultimately, help the campus realize its vision.
Competency II
Communication is key in the success of a school. This internship has shown me the power of the collaboration within the school community and the
power it has over student success. This competency was easier to address inside of the school, but to involve the community stakeholders was more difficult due to the
long process required to send out written or digital messages to outside parties. Communication to parents and surrounding community members is typically, unless sent
from the district level, approved by varying levels of administration, with the final say resting with the principal.
Competency II was addressed through the technology trainings, because a schoolwide survey was sent to gather areas of interest, programs that were
being utilized, and programs the staff and administration did not find helpful. The only stakeholder that was not included were the parents.
However, a goal for the future would be to hold technology trainings at school about the various websites and tools that can be accessed at home. This
would involve all stakeholders as it relates to student success. This proposed undertaking would require vast communication between the school and the stakeholders so
that the involved parties are clear on what will be addressed and what the training pertains to. This would allow parents to become knowledgeable in the varying
technological tools that are available for them outside of the school. Furthermore, this would provide a means by which parents are able to become engaged in their
child’s learning.
Competency III
This project has increased the awareness of the procedures and legality of a functioning school. The vertical alignment
project has really shown me the importance of abiding by the prescribed polices and regulations. One of the requirements of the district
is that one of the last days is used for curriculum development. As a result, the vertical alignment I planned fits perfectly because not
only are grade level and content areas discussing curriculum, but now every grade level can communicate and align expectations for the
upcoming students. This is a great way to advocate for the students’ learning by allowing teachers to give valuable feedback to one
another as to what works best and different strategies that they have responded well to in the past.
One of my responsibilities was acting as the Gifted and Talented Liaison/Facilitator for the district’s HORIZONS
Showcase. This was an excellent opportunity to promote awareness of the learning differences that the Gifted and Talented population
require to be successful. Similarly, my technology training class was a great way to see what the current generation need to be
successful, especially through the use of meaningful and purposeful technology integration.
Competency IV
This competency was addressed by every project, with the exception of “No Place for Hate.” To start, the vertical
alignment is so that each grade and align vision and expectations of where their students are and where they should be. The
goal is, after the alignment meeting, each grade level carries what was learned and discussed into their weekly PLC meeting, so
adjustments may be made to the curriculum, scope and sequence, and content to better serve the students.
The technology trainings directly correlate with this competency because the technology training is meant to
directly enrich the campus curriculum by combining best practices with modern technology to improve the students’ education.
This would also facilitate creative and critical thinking in the teachers. They would have to create activities utilizing the
technology and use critical thinking skills to determine where and how it could fit in their classroom, without losing the
growth. In regard to student learning, the planning and preparation for the implementation of the “No Place for Hate” program address the socio-
emotional aspect of learning. The program cultivates a campus climate that is nurturing and inclusive for students and staff. This allows the students to feel
safe and valued, a aspect of school climate that is paramount to realizing any vision.
With regard to professional growth, both the vertical alignment and technology training focus on providing staff with relevant strategies and
technology they can utilize to enhance learning in all content areas. The technology piece also allows teachers the power to create games for whole group
activities as well as specific materials for small group, thus allowing them to reach every student where they are.
Competency VI
This competency was a difficult to understand in regard to perceived and actual organizational health. I learned that a
preconceived notion of what the organizational health is can influence how the results are interpreted and understood.
Competency Six was addressed by the vertical alignment meeting, because the vertical alignment is aimed at looking at
the campus holistic from pre-kindergarten to fifth grade and analyzing trends. Those trends would be passed on to the Campus
Improvement Plan Committee, so that a goal may be created to address and prevent the deficit in the future. The vertical alignment
The competency was further addressed due to enhancement of knowledge that came with from both the vertical alignment
and the technology training, and the relation that they hold with the new appraisal system that was adopted by the district. The heavy
emphasis on planning and technology in the formative and summative evaluation was addressed by providing teachers with more
teacher. I was not able to be out and monitor as much as I would have liked for the implementation of the technology training
aspect of my internship.
Conversely, this competency was addressed well in the aspect of facilitating team building and building consensus.
The vertical alignment meetings were an easy way to build communication and rapport, in and across grade levels.
Additionally, the technology training addressed the aspect of encouraging change and overcoming obstacles. This
was especially true of the older teachers who were apprehensive of integrating technology in their classroom. The training was
crafted in a low-risk environment, so that reception was high and they were able to gain skills that could aid them in their future
evaluations.
Competency VIII
This was the least addressed competency of them all. Throughout this internship there was been very
little in what I am able to see and do with regards to the budget. In my district, the budget is given to the school, in
the form of number of teacher allocations, followed by fund amounts for various aspects of the maintenance of the
school. The only resource my projects used was the time and space, but they did not require any monetary funds
from the school or district. Cypress-Fairbanks is very departmentalized with regard to what the principal is in
charge and who to contact if there is a need in the area of technology services, building maintenance, and budget.
In the future I will do make it a point to be more knowledgeable in area of budget and to gather more information
was able. General safety hazards are always looked out for, especially on the playground and in the instructional areas.
As part of my internship, I was able to come up with a new system of exiting the building generally speaking, but keeping emergency drills,
especially intruder drills in mind. I created and placed hand markers on the doors, in an attempt to quiet some of the noise that came from the pushing the
metal bars on the doors. The phrase was “push and go”; however, this only lead to student pushing the bars extremely hard even upon exiting during
regular recess and transition times. The new slogan “hand to hand” drastically reduced the amount of noise during regular instructional time and during
drills when hearing instructions is vital. I feel like this was a great improvement in safety and security.
The district provides allocated time for crisis training as well as resources for administration with regard to safety and security. As a result,
there is little that teachers and administration can add to the existing systems that are meant to keep everyone safe and within the guidelines of the law.
Internship I Reflection
From the first reflection, the knowledge I hold on administrative matters has grown substantially. I feel very comfortable with the knowledge that I
have gained. This is especially true of the competencies housed in Domain II. Instructional leadership is as much of what knowledge one holds as it is about
being able to motivate and get the staff going. The struggle of being professional yet firm is the one that I have found extremely difficult and at times trying.
However, I have learned to balance relationships and keep them professional, so that criticism and feedback is taken more a helpful acknowledgment rather than
a playful joke. This I feel will aid me greatly in my future career as an administrator.
Likewise with Domain II, my principal told me my strength was in building rapport with others quickly and being able to deescalate matters
among staff. I feel that I can link the community and school, through the use of a shared vision that uses effective communication and high expectations to
involve all stakeholders. The rapport should allow support and an inclusive climate in the school that supports all students and staff. Aside, from intricate budget
knowledge, overall I feel like that I have solid foundation to build my administrative knowledge and perfect my craft in the coming years.