Oct 26
This past weekend, I attended the Innovate West Conference hosted by Connect Charter School in Calgary. It is a conference I’ve wanted to attend in the past because of the positive reviews it has received from previous participants from our division and elsewhere. Attending with me was my Deputy Superintendent, Brian Macauley (@macauleyb) and Director …
Oct 22
The following post was published in the Lethbridge Herald on October 22, 2014. On Sunday, I returned from a conference sponsored by Educational Research Development and Innovation (ERDI). This organization invites approximately 50 superintendents from across the country, twice a year, to meet and discuss education trends and topics from a national perspective with a …
Oct 13
Last week, we held our annual division wide professional development day. Over the past number of years, we’ve morphed this day to be far more engaging for our staff through self-selection, the utilization of expertise within our division and a focus on professional dialogue around learning. We’ve also been able to incorporate an edcamp or …
Sep 19
Earlier today, I completed my first round of continuous improvement plan reviews. These reviews, lasting about an hour each, were scheduled with the administrative teams of each of our 14 schools. In these first meetings, the focus was to engage in a dialogue about their upcoming year. Over the three-day period, many of my senior administration team were …
Sep 15
There is no doubt that most school curriculum is jam packed with far too many outcomes. It is eye opening to read just what has been placed on the school curriculum plate over the years. Author Jamie Volmer expresses it well in his article, “The Ever Increasing Burden on America’s Public Schools.” While every addition has merit, we’ve long …
Sep 07
Earlier this year, I took my 75-year-old father on a golf weekend. At the same time, my daughter, was halfway around the world volunteering and teaching English as a Second Language in Bali. The connection…FaceTime! While sitting in the hotel room and deservingly resting after playing 36 holes of golf, my father and I conversed with my …
Aug 27
The following is the abbreviated text of my opening address to our staff. Before I begin my opening comments, I want to take time to welcome to our Holy Spirit family, St. Michael’s Bow Island . Over the past couple of years our borders have continued to expand through parents desiring Catholic Education and using the …
Jun 04
The following article was published in the Lethbridge Herald on June 4th. This is my last submission to the Lethbridge Herald for the 2013-14 school year. With the month of June arriving, the end of the school year is not far behind. This will be my last superintendent’s column for the year and so I …
May 01
The following article was written for and published in the Lethbridge Herald on April 30, 2014. A couple of weeks ago, I attended a conference in Saskatoon hosted by Educational Research and Development Corporation (ERDI). This organization brings together about 50 superintendents from across Canada twice a year. Our plenary keynote was given by Queen’s …
Apr 13
I was born in the early 60’s and grew up in a traditional family setting for the time. Dad worked and for the majority of my school days, especially when I was young, I had a stay-at-home mom. We always had time for family supper and found time to attend church. I had a fairly …