More Listening and Learning

“The gifts of those we serve are already there, and they are much easier to find if you choose to look.” George Couros recently shared this sentiment in his blog, and it resonates deeply. Learning is truly a journey, and if you’re in education, I’m sure you feel this too. In today’s rapidly changing world, …

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Continuous Learning through Curious Coaching

I often ask myself, “What kind of leader do you want to be, Lauren?” My answer: The type of leader I always needed. That is the sentiment I share in my book The Leader Inside. As I was walking out of my high school office yesterday, I heard a familiar voice say, “Lauren, I left …

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Defining Moments

We all have moments in our lives that live at the forefront of our memories. Often, it's hard to recognize these defining moments as they unfold. In their book The Power of Moments, Chip Heath and Dan Heath write, “Defining moments shape our lives, but we don’t have to wait for them to happen. We …

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All Hands on Deck

This week, we facilitated several professional learning experiences for teachers across the district. Yes, not just me — WE. We are all hands on deck, not only because we need to be but because we want to be. Why? Because we are shaping learning experiences that will impact all of our students and their future.  …

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Helping Others Flourish

Coaching is a vehicle to creating lasting impact in educational organizations, especially when districts are fully invested in allowing a coaching mindset to flourish. From my perspective, if you work in an educational setting, you are a coach and an instructional leader for the kids, colleagues, and communities you serve.  What I have come to …

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8 Pieces of Advice for Teachers and Leaders

In this week’s post, I’m excited to share an excerpt from the chapter titled From Teacher to Leader: An Open Roadmap of Advice from my book, The Leader Inside: Stories of Mentorship to Inspire the Leader Within. I hope you find it helpful, whether you’re embarking on a new school year, starting your career in …

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Uncomfortable, But Growing

“Bad news: You’re growing, and it’s uncomfortable. Good news: It’s uncomfortable, but you’re growing.” — Rachel Wolchin Even after 19 years in education, the start of a new school year still brings a mix of emotions—daunting, scary, unfamiliar, and, yes, uncomfortable. Can you relate? In the days leading up to my return, my sleep is …

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5 Ideas to Keep Learning Moving

Learning is a gift. It’s not just something you do; it’s an opportunity to grow your skill set and elevate the social, emotional, and intellectual capacity of learners. Yes, I said learners because whether you are a student, teacher, coach, or administrator, everyone in an educational organization is both a teacher and a learner. In …

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Coaching Aspiring Leaders: A Pathway to Growth

Who is the leader you wish to become, Lauren? My answer is, I wish to become the leader I always needed. This is a question I continuously ask myself as I navigate the ebbs and flows of education and leadership. These sentiments are woven throughout my book The Leader Inside: Stories of Mentorship to Inspire …

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Four Principles of Curriculum Leadership

“Leaders need to be visionary, but they need to also be able to utilize the people they work with to create a vision of what school should and could be together” (p. 9). This sentiment was shared by George Couros in his latest book co-written with Allyson Apsey, titled, What Makes a Great Principal: The …

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