Here it is! GLP’s summer reading list is ready to go--whether at the beach, in your office or snuggled up, we think you’ll find these books are as entertaining as they are inspiring and informative. And all are highly readable. We hope you enjoy these books as much as we did. Please let us know what you think! And if you missed out on our list from last summer, check it out here.
Creative Confidence: Unleashing the Creative Potential within us all - Tom and David Kelley
My neighbor in South Carolina is Brian W. Foster, a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Marines, responsible for 720 Marines and oversight of a complex air base. Brian has seen combat duty in Afghanistan and Iraq as well as operated within the hierarchy and bureaucracy of Washington, serving our country with courage, intelligence, loyalty and distinction. Last month, after a 21-year career, he officially relinquished his command.
This is part four of a blog series focusing on the skills required for headship in today's changing world. Here are links to part one: The Competent Leader, part two: The Good Communicator, and part three: Being the Decider.
Beyond the daily realities of working with lots of kinds of people that have individual strengths, weaknesses, and agendas, a leader may find that the hardest thing in the daily work is getting meetings together and running them productively. In schools, where inclusion and involvement are deeply valued, this challenge can be particularly frustrating—and meetings are often the most relied upon solution.
A Vision for the Future: Why and How
Here is a link to part one of our summer reading list!
August is here and many of us are finally taking some serious time away to relax and reflect before “back to school” is our reality. It’s a great time to read two books we believe are “musts” for imagining what can be in the new year. Full disclosure: The authors of both books are valued colleagues and friends. Nevertheless, we believe they’ve succeeded in clearly articulating answers to the most essential questions of WHY and HOW for the kinds of changes we need to make if we want to develop healthy and well-prepared students for the 21st century.
For Students and Educators:
Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption
Many of the schools we work with are actively examining how to best address challenging topics around diversity, inclusion, and identity—in their communities and in our society. Recently, questions related to racial inequity and justice have arisen in the national conversation. As educators facilitate these discussions within their schools, they may want to consider Stevenson’s excellent book, Just Mercy. This is a highly readable and accessible text, offering both historic perspective and the basis for meaningful, values-based discussion. We recommend adding it your reading list.
This is part three of a blog series focusing on the skills required for headship in today's changing world. Here are links to part one: The Competent Leader and part two: The Good Communicator.
(Jim Mooney, the deputy director of a multistate independent school organization, visited me in South Carolina, and we continued our summer conversation on school leadership.)
As we moved from our discussion on effective communication, Jim plunged right in: “The single biggest complaint I hear about headmasters and heads of school concerns the host of issues around making decisions, rolling them out, and moving forward.”
This is part two of the blog series focusing on the skills required for headship in today's changing world.
Jim Mooney and I continued our conversation (see the preceding blog) about the challenges of leading and managing independent schools. We discussed the nature of a group of “competencies” important for leadership success. In doing so, Jim and I move from the general issue of competence to the specific traits, skills, and habits associated with good leadership. The first of these is the importance of effective and encompassing communication. Jim pointed out that the subject is essentially endless, “everything ties into communication,” so we needed to keep our discussion focused specifically on effective practices for school heads, not an exploration of the wide world of communication issues and challenges.
his is the first in a blog series focusing on the skills required for headship in today’s changing world.
Recently I was sitting out on my porch looking out on the Okatie River and catching up with an old friend. I was in the first days of recovering from a May orthopedic procedure that would keep me off my feet and housebound for the month of June waiting for literal marching orders from my doctor. From this procedure and considerable travel beforehand, my blog writing had taken a holiday as I pushed through the late spring, getting increasingly comfortable with my inner consultant, so to speak. However, having this chance to “talk shop” was a welcome break from the daily routine of recovery—watching the tide rise and fall on the Okatie River—and our conversation stimulated this blog offering—and the series to follow.
Here it is! GLP’s summer reading list is ready to go--whether at the beach, in your office or snuggled up, we think you’ll find these books are as entertaining as they are inspiring and informative. And all are highly readable. We hope you enjoy these books as much as we did. Please let us know what you think! And if you missed out on our list from last summer, check it out here.
