Teaching and learning has been part of my life, for most of my life. I have walked the halls of a school, everyday, since the age of 5- as a student, a teacher, a reading coach and now a principal.
I chose to do PRN for my preparation work to become a principal because I didn’t want a disconnected experience. Having real-world practice, with coaching and support was a priority. As a reading coach, who provided job embedded professional development to teachers through cognitive coaching for many years, I saw the impact this model had on building capacity to teach, collaborate and lead. Acquiring my knowledge, behavior and skills to be a leader for equity, through a high-quality mentored residency program, allowed me to experience immediate opportunities to grapple with the challenging dilemmas leaders of equity face, from the very first day and this is what I believe prepared me to secure a job in leadership as a principal, immediately following the program.
One of my fondest memories of PRN includes preparing for and participating in our mid-year and final exhibitions. It was an incredible opportunity to witness my PRN peers’ journey through leadership. We were all striving for a vision of equity and yet everyone’s experiences and paths were different. Each of us had our strengths and our areas of growth within the leadership standards and being able to give and receive feedback through this process was a powerful way to gain perspective and grow.
My biggest take-away from the experience is that reflection will bring tremendous growth. The PRN teaches you how to harness continuous reflection- through interactions with peers, mentors and others for continuous improvement. It nurtures self reflecting practices and guides you to embrace a growth mindset, two extremely important dispositions needed to lead for equity.
My advice for anyone interested in the Principal Residency Network is to trust the process and reflect often. If you authentically engage in the journey, it will not only prepare you to lead for equity, but it will also bring you a year of tremendous growth. You will gain a powerful network of support and make friendships that will last a lifetime!
Curious? What might your PRN leadership journey look like in the near future?