Lead with Culture
The life of an educational leader can be a lonely road. Your task list has multiplied, yet time seems to have diminished. It is essential that you have a strong network of support to celebrate the great things happening as well as get you through those rough moments. We wrote Lead Like a PIRATE to do just that. We wanted to help support educators by sharing our stories and strategies. We wanted to be sure that no one felt as if she/he was alone. Our goal has been to set up systems of support through our PLN to empower leaders to take risks to ensure that school is an amazing place…for both students and staff. Since the book’s release, it has been inspiring to watch our #LeadLAP crew grow. The examples and stories shared daily on our hashtag is inspiring beyond belief. What we came to realize, is that we are surrounded by greatness that needed a voice. One evening after our book was published, we started brainstorming how we could continue to support leaders, but in a way that wasn’t the norm. One thing we discussed was that leaders sometimes get overwhelmed by the amount of information that is being shared at what seems like lightning speed. How might we offer bite-size expertise for leaders that would have huge impact on schools? The Lead Like a PIRATE Guides were born.
We are honored to introduce our very first of the Lead Like a PIRATE Guides: Lead with Culture: What Really Matters in Our Schools by Jay Billy. Jay is constantly inspiring and motivating by showcasing the incredible things that are happening at Slackwood Elementary in Lawrence, New Jersey where he serves as building principal. Jay shares his stories of both success and failures along the course of building a school culture that definitely gets students, staff, parents and the community running in each and every day. Jay also highlights strategies that he has learned from others, magnifying the core belief that we are always better together. Jay walks the talk and has a way of inspiring and motivating to bring out the best in us all. The mission of culture first, culture next, culture always comes alive on the pages that follow in practical, yet life changing ways.
As we write in Lead Like a PIRATE, Pirate leadership is about being the kind of leaders we always wanted to be and creating the kinds of schools we dream of for kids. These leaders relentlessly search for ways to make school an amazing place. These leaders don’t simply believe schools can be better; they KNOW schools can be better and stop at nothing to make it happen. Jay Billy is a PIRATE leader in every way and we are honored to have him as part of our crew.
In the spirit of always working towards greatness and knowing that learning never ends, here is our first book of many that will help to provide inspiration and leadership ideas for all that are doing this most important work. Thank you for your dedication to making school an amazing place.
Get your copy HERE today and start sharing your reflections on the #LeadLAP hashtag! We can’t wait to hear your thoughts!