ASCD Leader to Leader (L2L) News is a monthly e-mail newsletter for ASCD constituent group leaders that builds capacity to better serve members; provides opportunities to promote and advocate for ASCD’s Whole Child Initiative; and engages groups through sharing and learning about best practices. To submit a news item for the L2L newsletter, send an e-mail to constituentservices@ascd.org.

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Add #ASCDL2L to your tweets and follow the feed to share news and resources with your fellow ASCD leaders.

Your To-Do List: Action Items for ASCD Leaders

• How are we doing? Tell us what you think about the L2L newsletter. This short evaluation will only take you a couple of minutes to complete. Please let us know what you think; your feedback is extremely valuable!
   
• Sign the Whole Child Petition. Your signature on the petition sends a message to Washington leaders to focus on what really matters―our children―by asking them to create a President’s Council on the Whole Child. Sign the petition and spread the word – we have until February 18 to get 25,000 signatures!
   
• Have you seen a whole child approach to education in action? Whole Child Programs continues to seek your submissions for schools, districts, and communities that have been awarded or recognized by constituent group leaders, so that they may be included on the whole child approach examples map.  Please review the criteria and complete the submission form to send your suggestions to wholechild@ascd.org. We would like this to be an ongoing process, so as you continue to recognize schools, districts, and communities that are doing great work in whole child education, please consider sharing with us.
   
• Register for ASCD’s Annual Conference. ASCD Annual Conference takes place March 24-26, 2012 in Philadelphia, Pa. Discounts apply for purchasing a pre-conference institute registration or sending a team. Details about meetings and events for ASCD leaders are listed below. Learn more and register for ASCD Annual Conference at ASCD.org.
  
  
• Interested in running for elected office? Go to www.ascd.org/nominations to access the application form and information about the open positions in 2012. Applications are due January 31, 2012.
   
• Call for Nominations Committee Members: Current ASCD Leadership Council members are invited to submit their names for possible service on the 2012-13 Nominations Committee. Please contact governance director Becky DeRiggefor a copy of the application form, which includes qualifications for service. Leadership Council members may also submit the names of other qualified individuals.

ASCD Emerging Leader Patricia Dickenson Guest Posts on EdWeek Blog

This month ASCD author and EdWeek blogger Rick Hess is taking a break from his Straight Up blog and giving a few new voices the chance to be heard in the education sphere. Patricia Dickenson, a 2011 ASCD Emerging Leader, won an ASCD competition for one of the guest slots, and she is posting this week.

·         Read Rick’s introduction.

·         Patricia’s first post: Justice for English Language Learners

·         Patricia’s second post: Reform for English Language Learners

Please feel free to share and comment, and keep an eye out for Patricia’s third post at the end of this week!

Jamaica ASCD Connected Community Partners with Local School

The Jamaica ASCD Connected Community is partnering with John Rollins Success Primary School to host their third annual Math Olympics on April 5, 2012. Twenty five schools will engage in this event, themed “Moulding Minds into a Fountain of Numeracy.” The Math Olympics is designed to engage students and hone their math skills through a series of projects aligned to meet learning goals.

Good luck to Jamaica Connected Community in executing this unique event!

Events

• Illinois ASCD presents Common Core Standards Made EASY! (PDF),The Key to Infusing Technology in the Classroom (PDF), and Implementing the Common Core with Common Sense Strategies (PDF)
  
  
• Missouri ASCD is currently planning two conferences (spring and summer) on the Common Core State Standards.
   
• Tennessee ASCD presents their summer institute

Other News

• Check out Illinois ASCD’s newly revised website: www.illinoisascd.org
  
  
• Read 2011 Outstanding Young Educator Award Winner Brad Kuntz’s latest Education Update column on project-based learning.
  
  
• What will you do with the new year as an educator? Brian Nichols, 2010 Outstanding Young Educator Award Winner, shares his thoughts in two blog posts on ASCD EDge: “A Second New Year”and “Making the Most of Mistakes.”
   
• As a classroom teacher, what do you do when your classroom is bare and the school supplies you received are long gone? Christie McWilliams, a 2011 Emerging Leader, shared her tips in an Educational Horizons article titled, “Spend Less and Get More: How to Stock Up on Your Classroom Without Breaking the Bank.” Congratulations to Christie!
   
• 2011 Emerging Leader Darwin Spiller was recently featured on the cover of Texas School Business. Congratulations, Darwin!
   
• Check out 2010 Emerging Leader Jason Flom’sreview of the ASCD Member Book Insights into Action on his Ecology of Education blog.
   
• OYEA Winner and ASCD Board of Directors member Marc Cohen is currently blogging from the board’s trip to Thailand. Check out his posts, “A Few Reflections” and “School Visits and a Trip to the Ministry.”

Healthy School Communities Updates Canadian Edition of the Healthy School Report Card

ASCD has released a second Canadian edition of its Healthy School Report Card action tool. Developed by ASCD's Healthy School Communities, the publication was coauthored by prominent experts in the fields of health and education: David K. Lohrmann, Sandra Vamos, and Paul Yeung. 

The newly updated Creating a Healthy School Using the Healthy School Report Card: An ASCD Action Tool, Canadian Edition, and accompanying online scoring and analysis tool, offers a practical strategy for structuring your school environment to support the development of students who have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to make healthy choices. Updated to reflect current research, new standards, and best practices in Canada, the second edition of the action tool guides you through the four steps of the process with rationale, tips from successful participants, and easy-to-use tools. Read the full press release on ASCD.org.

Throughout December and January onwww.wholechildeducation.org: Assessment

We focus extensively on test scores and far too little on the whole child. We often choose one-size-fits-all fixes while ignoring solid research about the infinite ways students learn and children develop. The true measure of students’ proficiency and college-, career-, and citizenship-readiness must be based on more than just their scores on state standardized reading and math assessments.

We shouldn’t simply teach to the test. We need to teach for understanding, and assessments are tools to gauge that understanding. When used effectively, assessments can facilitate high levels of student achievement by providing ongoing information about students’ grasp of key concepts and how to enhance their learning to help them meet or exceed academic requirements. States, districts, and schools should provide a more comprehensive picture of student achievement through multiple assessments of and for learning. Join us throughout December and January as we take a look at how assessments can serve a whole child approach to education and inform—not drive—school improvement efforts.

Download the first in a series of Whole Child Podcast episodes on assessment, “Assessment 101,” to hear from Nancy Frey, professor of literacy in the School of Teacher Education at San Diego State University and co-author of several ASCD books; Tom Whitby, adjunct professor at St. Joseph’s College and founder of #Edchat; and Peter DeWitt, principal of Poestenkill Elementary in New York, consultant for the International Center for Leadership in Education, and author of the Finding Common Ground blog for Education Week. As always, visit the Whole Child Blog to read engaging posts from diverse writers, leave your comments, and get free resources on multiple sources and measures of assessment.

 Something to Talk About

Ravitch: Whose Children Get Left Behind?via ASCD Inservice

Changing the Poisonous Narrative via ASCD Inservice

The Power of Student Feedback via ASCD Inservice

Check out the most-clicked stories from ASCD SmartBrief.

Association News

Educators Nationwide Urged to Sign Petition Calling for President’s Council on the Whole Child—ASCD urges educators nationwide to sign a petition today asking President Obama to create a President’s Council on the Whole Child. The petition was launched today through the White House’s We the People petition tool. Read the full press release on ASCD.org.

ASCD Announces Complete Schedule for 2012 Virtual Conference—ASCD announces the complete schedule for the association’s 2012 Virtual Conference. The 2012 Virtual Conference will run concurrent with ASCD’s 67th Annual Conference and Exhibit Show March 24–26 in Philadelphia, Pa. Read the full press release on ASCD.org.

ASCD and Pearson Partner with Renowned Education Researcher to Create Leadership Development Program for School Principals—ASCD and the education services and technology company Pearson announced a partnership to develop a comprehensive online leadership program for school principals and leadership teams. Read the full press release on ASCD.org.

New PD Online® Courses from ASCD Support Educators Implementing Common Core State Standards—ASCD announces the release of seven new PD Online® courses for educators integrating Common Core State Standards into classroom instruction. Read the full press release on ASCD.org.

Classroom Instruction That Works Returns in Second Edition with New Research, Insight, and Framework—ASCD is honored to announce the debut of Classroom Instruction That Works, 2nd Edition, by McREL’s Ceri B. Dean, Elizabeth Ross Hubbell, Howard Pitler, and Bj Stone. Read the full press release on ASCD.org.

New ASCD Book Offers Educators Practical Leadership Strategies and Inspiration—ASCD is pleased to announce the publication of its latest book, Insights into Action: Successful School Leaders Share What Works, by award-winning educator William Sterrett. No one is more intimately acquainted with the daily challenges that a school leader faces than a fellow educator who has “been there, done that.” In this important new book, Sterrett shares strategies pulled from his experiences as a principal and teacher leader, as well as practical, effective strategies for leadership success from remarkable education leaders and innovators such as Carol Ann Tomlinson, Richard DuFour, Baruti Kafele, and James Popham. Read the full press release on ASCD.org.

Largest School District in Delaware Partners with ASCD to Build Capacity —Christina School District, the largest school district in the state of Delaware, has chosen ASCD as its new professional development partner. With approximately 16,800 students and more than 2,500 staff, Christina School District serves the city of Newark and its surrounding suburban areas, as well as a portion of the city of Wilmington. Read the full press release on ASCD.org.