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What is The Assistant Principal?
The Assistant Principal is a set of professional development opportunities for assistant principals (and other instructional leaders). There are three components:
- The Assistant Principal Podcast comes out each Thursday afternoon. Each episode is about 30 minutes long and covers a wide range of topics. You can get a flavor for what we've done by going to the podcast page here. The podcast is of course free!
- Quadrant2 is our NEW bi-weekly professional development micro-journal. We deliver Quadrant2 via our email list, which you can join here. Quadrant2 focuses on a specific issue or topic for a full semester and slowly builds your understanding and capacity. You can also learn more on the Quadrant2 page here. Quadrant2 is free.
- APEx stands for Assistant Principal Exceleration (yes that is an intentional play on words). This fall we are relaunching a completely redesigned version of APEx in which we are emphasizing the community aspect of professional development. You can find out more here. APEx is a paid community with exclusive content and events.
Is this only for assistant principals?
No, not really. I emphasize assistant principals for several reasons:
- This is where my passion is. I spent 13 years leading, designing, and teaching in principal licensure programs, so everything related to APs is close to my heart.
- APs are the forgotten leaders in schools. Most others (principals, instructional coaches, teachers) have their own groups and PD events, but APs are frequently isolated and there PD is often lacking.
- APs are often stuck on the treadmill of the urgent, especially when it comes to dealing with discipline.
- Most APs want to be instructional leaders, but have few opportunities and little training to help them.
- Moving into the principalship requires those instructional leadership skills.
How do I know if these opportunities are right for me?
I have a unique approach to content design. There are about ten assistant principals (and aspiring ones) that I know very well and respect even more. When I design content, I design it to support those ten people, to meet their needs, and help them move forward in there journey. SO, if you have similarities with those ten APs, then the chances are pretty good that these opportunities will be useful for you. Here are the things that set those ten people apart from others, and if you share most or all of these things, then you should definitely begin taking advantage of what is here:
- They are passionate about their work and their lives!
- They want to be instructional leaders.
- They prioritize their own professional development.
- They are positive and upbeat.
Those bullet points describe me! What do I do to get started?
- First, check out the podcast. On that page you will find direct links to all of the episodes and some recommendations on which ones to begin with. Listen to a couple episodes and if you like it, subscribe via your preferred app. Links are on the podcast page. If you enjoy the podcast, you might also want to subscribe to Quadrant2 (see below).
- If you already subscribe to the podcast, or you are 100% certain that you want more, you can subscribe to our NEW micro-journal, Quadrant2. Actually, it is so new that we don't have the link posted, but it will be here in mid-June. If you absolutely, positively, can't wait, you can email me directly at frederick@frederickbuskey.com and I will get you set up. You can learn more about what to expect with Quadrant2 on its page here.
- If you love the podcast, and you love the idea behind Quadrant2, you might want to take a closer look at APEx. APEx is a paid community and professional development site, If that doesn't scare you away (😉), go to the APEx page here to learn more.
What if those bullet points don't describe me?
Education has always been a challenging profession, but the past two years have been absolutely brutal. Maybe you are worn out, beaten down, frustrated, angry, or just exhausted. Or all of them! I have some suggestions for you:
- Be gentle on yourself. The truth is that most of aren't as chipper as we were two years ago. It's okay. Be kind to yourself. Maybe add the link to this page into your calendar and revisit us a couple of months from now.
- Listen to this episode of the podcast. Just this one. Then figure out what you want to do next.
- Email me. Yes, seriously. I want to make a difference and to support people who are out there doing the hard work. Let me know what's on your mind and how I can help. If i can, I will. Email me. Seriously. frederick@frederickbuskey.com
Why am I still scrolling?
I have no idea. Maybe you can't stand the thought of missing something or leaving something undone? Okay, just for you, here are four buttons. Click one of them to end this little game! 🤣 🤣 🤣