10 Reasons to Have a Passion Partner
3/23/2018
Do you have that drive or passion in education where you are always pushing the proverbial "envelope?" Some educators are a lucky to not only have this passion to try new things, but they have found a partner that shares the same passion on educating youth. Those partners may be rare and hard to find, but it is worth the search…I guarantee it!
DISCLOSER: I am going to brag about my passion partner, and I will tell you what he has accomplished, and how it has pushed me in my own position. I will try to convey it in a humble manner, yet I am so proud of his accomplishments, as well as what it has done for my school community, I am ecstatic!
Travis Niemeyer, elementary principal at Beartooth Elementary in Billings, MT, is my Passion Partner. I truly believe he has pushed me to better myself, and more importantly, pushed my students with ideas and strategies in academics, supporting our school culture, and leadership skills. Here are 10 reasons why you, too, need a "Passion Partner.
1 - Bounce Ideas Back and Forth
Finding someone to bounce ideas back and a forth may be something you already have and if so, cherish this relationship. Many educators get into the rut of "doing school" the same way they have always done it. They may use the same exact notes or PowerPoint they created a decade ago. How is this any different from the teacher that laminates their lesson plans? I will not use the word lazy, but I will use the word "stuck." These teachers are "stuck" in doing what they have always done. I would like to believe it because of time constraints as we all know as accountability increases time usually decreases. A teacher or leader may list any one of these various reasons:
1) easy to pull the same activities,
2) they know what to expect from students with same activities,
3) they know how to troubleshoot problems,
4) more excuses to not change it up, and
5) it's hard to change instruction each year for the new students in front of them.
Travis and I are able to pick up the phone, exchange a text, or meet regularly throughout the school year. We look forward to these exchanges, as we both know that we share the same passion for education. We also know there is going to be ideas thrown back and forth, sometimes for mere minutes, and other times we are up all night exchanging ideas back and forth.
A passion partner is there for you to bounce ideas back and forth. The other person must be a good listener, but also confident enough in themselves and their personal philosophy to give ideas and suggestions in exchange. Your partner knows you well enough to throw out ideas that may work in your school or classrooms. They understand you may have to tweak the idea to fit the school or class environment. Your passion partner does so without judgment or critique…that is what makes a great Passion Partner!
2 - A Solution to Stagnancy
Whether it is the winter doldrums, or a flat out loss of ideas, your passion partner is there to give you a boost. Scheduling these meaningful conversations can be difficult, but when you have someone that can be a solution to your stagnancy, these times can change you immediately. Currently, I understand and know exactly how many days there is until spring break…I personally feel like I am "tapped out." Yet, talking with him recently, I am now revitalized and ready to tackle each day until spring break. Having a great partner can pull you out of the same mundane and monotonous rut. They give you a spark and make you think about solutions to a problem that you may have never known.
Travis's greatest strengths are his passion to empower students, and his never-ending energy to try something new. When I propose a problem to him that I am encountering in my school, he is able to think about what he is doing in his school, what he has seen in other schools, and what he has read or researched on most any given topic. The ability for me to listen, and chose a solution from Travis's ideas, helps make my job exponentially easier. The ability to tackle a problem with several different solutions, especially when I only had one in the beginning, makes my job easier to adapt and change.
3 - Twist on the Same Old
There are many ideas, strategies, procedures, routines, and even rules, we continue to use with our students and staff because we have always done it that fashion. When you have a passion partner, you may even discuss these small things looking for new ideas. Putting a twist onto an old idea may invigorate the students and staff, or may even increase the effectiveness and efficiency.
Travis is an expert at the "twist." He understands the potential in his students and teachers. One of his greatest events he recently completed was the Amazing Shake. This is based off Ron Clark's, Amazing Shake. Travis set up several rounds of competition to finally get to a winner. The contest is based on teaching manners and the ability to have an amazing handshake, introduction, and conversation. In order for Travis to find his winner, he created multiple rounds of competition. One of the first rounds of competition was meeting with business partners in their school's gymnasium so students could introduce themselves and have conversations. These business partners then narrowed down the competition. Ensuing rounds included creating a news story for the local TV station, selling a product to an audience even though they hated it (pickle juice drink), using proper eating manners with the Mayor, and being a host at a local restaurant. This twist gives ownership to Travis, staff, students, and his overall learning community.
4 - Pushing Passion and Energy
Much like a virus that is passed around in a school, passion and energy can be infectious. Travis has a level of passion and energy you do not see with many educators. His smile and enduring ability to get the most of his students and teachers makes him infectious. People want to be around him and they want to partner with him and his students.
He has made me realize all my interactions with students, staff, parents, and community members are important. Starting right away in the morning with greetings, announcements, and check-ins, I make sure to increase passion for being there, a smile, and evident energy in these interactions. I would hope to think students like to see me in the morning. Hugs, high-fives, and handshakes can be seen, as I walk down the hallway each day. He has helped me realize more about communication with my students and staff.
This energy is transferred to my staff and students. We want both staff and students to be a part of creating a place where they would like to attend. With staff, I continually use the mantra, "Make this a place where you want to work and learn."
Travis does several events on his school's Facebook Live account. He exudes energy and passion. When he includes students in these interviews, you can see that energy is passed onto his students. Recently, students had to create an advertisement to sell a new juice product. They were encouraged to drink a bit of the juice and then be able to sell it to other students through words and actions. What the audience did not know was that the juice was actually pickle juice. Students had to fake it all. Students loved this twist and were fully engaged with the challenge!
5 - Creating New Ideas and Strategies Together
It is one thing to take someone else's work and make it your own. In education, this is a mainstay. Creating new ideas and strategies can be invigorating, as well as incredibly useful. When two like-minded individuals get together, they can create anything.
Different from a twist, Travis is able to come up with completely new ideas for his students and staff. Recently, Travis and I compiled 21 strategies to engage principals in their learning community. We started from the easiest of strategies: smiling, using our hands above our waists, to a more complex community partnership that engages students in a "Sharktank-like" decision-making process!
Travis and I are always coming up with new ways that our schools can connect with local businesses. Some of these connections are financial in some fashion, but many are not and we are tapping their leadership skills and trying to get as many different types of professions in front of the students. We both believe in getting our students "college and career ready."
Travis collaborated with a local architecture company who brought employees into his school. They helped small groups of students learn more about the math behind the designs they created. Students were fully engaged with these Billings business leaders, and students were able to broaden their real world applications for this type of math.
6 - Successfully Implementing Ideas Simultaneously
Think about two different classrooms or schools…there are obviously many differences no matter how similar the schools may be in geographic location, demographics, academic success, etc. The challenge is finding two people who can implement an idea simultaneously with goal of collaboration. A passion partner can provide this needed guidance when implementing or starting something new.
Recently, Travis and I started business partnerships in both Great Falls, MT and Billings, MT (200 miles apart) where students and business leaders work to find solutions in our schools. Leadership teams in each school were tasked with pitching ideas to business leaders. The leadership teams surveyed students and teachers, used that data to create proposals, and then presented these proposals to business leaders. They then analyzed the ideas and helped decide which ones the leadership teams should implement in the schools. Funding came from the business partners in order to fund the ideas.
Travis and I started with the same premise, yet implemented it simultaneously this year with some small differences. We discussed the differences as we tailored our structures to the students, business partners, and our own personal skills, accordingly. These discussions were powerful, and can be powerful for teachers when implementing ideas with their passion partner!
7 - Power of Self Reflection
A passion partner can force you to think about your own practices and self-reflect. This strategy may done in the presence of our Passion Partner, or alone. Reflection can be a powerful tool for change, as well as the effectiveness and efficiency for implementation of a given process, project, or idea. John Hattie, author of the book, Visible Learning, states that reflection or meta-cognitive strategies has an effective size of 0.53. This is quite substantial and reaffirms why reflection needs to be a part of partnerships.
My greatest reflection time comes prior to meeting my passion partner, as well as after we meet. Before we meet, I review the ideas I want to share with him starting with the projects I am most proud of, as well as most entrenched. I think about the hurdles that I have overcome, and the hurdles I have yet to surpass. I make a mental list of all the positives that I have encountered in each project so far. In the same sense, I am thinking about new ideas I want to share. Most importantly, I reflect on the projects that he is currently doing. I am thinking about questions I can ask him, ideas I can support him in pushing him further.
8 - Hurdles to Success
Travis and I spend a vast amount of time reflecting on things that have went well, our successes. We also spend time discussing all the hurdles and problems to these successes. We talk about specific events, people, and practices that kept us, and our teams, from making success happen sooner. We understand that there are going to be failures and our humility, in retrospect, will help fuel our growth going forward.
When we talk about hurdles, we both are able to determine if the idea is going to be a hurdle in our own schools. We think about our administration, as well as teachers and students. It makes us think about the words, actions, and proactive practices we can put in place in order to surpass these hurdles with less effort than experiencing them on our own. A Passion Partner helps plan and reflect how to jump over these hurdles with ease.
9 - Giving Back
When being passionate about education, giving back to the profession can come naturally. As a teacher leader or administrator, you find yourself constantly answering questions, giving advice, mentoring, teaching, connecting people to other people, as well as delegating our own resources and time to make sure students are getting the best-personalized education possible.
Travis and I give back to other teachers and leaders in our district frequently. Teaching and leading sessions for workshops, professional learning community opportunities, as well as other face-to-face events. Another way to give back can be online through social media. We both find ourselves getting ideas, as well as giving ideas and strategies through Facebook groups, Twitter, and other social media platforms. Travis and I get many of our ideas from others on social media. Our personalized learning plans both include an online component.
10 - Finding Your People
A Passion Partner may be one person who shares the same philosophies and ideologies as us. As we push ourselves to become effective educators, we need to branch out to find specific people in other areas, our own strengths and weaknesses. This group of people can provide us with a multitude of ideas and strategies.
A personal learning network or PLN has become a popular concept among educators. Teachers and educational leaders can now find people, usually through social media, that fill a need for a personal growth area. Many times these people are just as passionate about a topic as you are. I challenge teachers and leaders to find not only a Passion Partner, but people that can push our personal strengths and passions, as well as our self-identified areas of growth. In this fashion, a PLN can be used for professional development and these connections can help push ourselves to become better at what we do with students every day.
My PLN includes several people from local colleagues, to experts across the nation. Making a LIVE PLN document can be extremely helpful. When I added LIVE to that title, it consists of my current PLN that could change at any minute (see below). There are people that have been added to my current PLN, and some that have been taken off, as I have not talked with them in a while.
To create your own LIVE PLN, start by listing everyone you work with daily, weekly, and finally a month or more. This is your PLN. This is a good start when developing your network. When reflecting on my complete PLN, I find it difficult to keep communication going with all of these people as I do strive to communicate and continue relationships with these important people. To determine if they should go onto you LIVE PLN document, use these three quick rules:
- Fill a specific need(s) over time (Some specific, some general).
- Frequency of communication (Some daily, weekly, or monthly depending on need).
- Formed a positive working relationship that is reciprocal (Why keep negative people in your PLN?).
Here is an example of my LIVE PLN Document:
Amy Konen, 5th Grade Teacher/Behavior Specialist - All Areas and focused on Communication, Behavior (Wife)
Ruth Uecker, Asst. Superintendent - All areas of curriculum, instruction, and assessment; Culture (My Boss)
GFPS Elementary Principals - All areas of curriculum, instruction, and assessment; Culture (My Colleagues in District)
Travis Niemeyer, Elementary Principal - All Areas of Education (PASSION PARTNER)
Bill Salonen, Retired Elementary Principal - All Areas of Education (Informal Mentor)
Jeff Blessum, Retired Elementary Principal - All Areas and Focused on Socio-Emotional Learning (Formal Mentor)
Dave Wick, Middle School Principal - All Areas and Focused on Culture (President Elect of NEAMSP)
Pam Meier, Elementary Principal - All Areas of Education; Leadership
Steven Layne, Author, Professor at Judson University - Reading Guru
Jared Brown, Financial Advisor Executive Director on Montana's Make-A-Wish Foundation - Student Leadership
Kirk Miller, Executive Director of School Administrators of Montana - Leadership, Communication
Bryce Hall, Founder/Creator of Teacher.org - All areas of education with focus on Bully Prevention, Exemplary Teaching
Denny McLauglin - Creator/Presenter of High Trust Philosophy - School culture; behavior; Communication
Mary Marsh/Carrie Triplett - Aware Behavior Therapists - Behavior; Communication
Rachael Kelley - Instructional Coach - Curriculum, instruction, and assessment; communication
This PLN has been built and established over my 20 years in education. I kept my list short to the people I talk to the most. I could include a multitude of other people that are in my outside circles of influence, or even some that I may have forgotten. When I look at my PLN, I see holes in certain areas. I am looking to add more people to my PLN that push me in the areas of teacher evaluation, science, social studies, and math. When you create your LIVE PLN document, look for areas of growth…then search out people that can help you grow.
As a 5th grade teacher, in 2010 Jon won the Presidential Award for Elementary Math and Science Teaching (PAEMST). As a principal, his school won the 2012 Blue Ribbon Award. In 2018, he won the National Distinguished Principal Award (NDP). In 2019 he won the National No Kid Hungry Breakfast Hero Award.
Jon is the author of three guides published on teacher.org: An Educator's Guide to Combat Bullying & Bully Prevention; Teacher Evaluation: A Transition Guide to Exemplary Performance; and You are the Wild Card: Infusing Fun Back into Curriculum. He has authored a children's picture book that was released January 2019 titled Benjamin’s Visit to Principal Reads Office…again! (available at www.archwaypublishing.com)
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