The Christian Science Monitor – Peg Tyre
“When newly minted principal Krystal Hardy took over Sylvanie Williams College Prep elementary, a charter school in New Orleans, she had a vision. The children’s academic progress had faltered and disciplinary infractions were on the rise. A former classroom teacher turned instructional coach, Ms. Hardy was appointed principal so she could work closely with her relatively young, inexperienced teachers. Her vision was to help them be the best they could be. Hardy, who just entered her 30s, had a strategy for implementing that vision, too. She had assigned daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly goals for her 35 teachers – 10 of whom are new to the school – written out and color-coded, clear and crisp. Every school day was planned around maximizing opportunities to provide guidance to her staff. She bobbed in and out of classrooms, observing the teachers, giving them oral and written feedback, checking and rechecking their lesson plans, and providing them with targeted professional development.”(more)