Celebrating 10 years of transformation

On the heels of last month’s successful bargaining agreement with Fife Education Association in which a new three-year contract was approved in record time, Fife Schools is taking the opportunity to mark a milestone achievement by celebrating 10 years of transformation. The spirit of working together that graced the contract negotiations deserves notice according to Fife Superintendent Dr. Steve McCammon, as this dynamic illustrates how the district has grown over the past decade.

“Considerable mutual respect and collaboration contributed to getting this important contact done in such a professional and respectful manner in these difficult economic times,” he writes in this month’s “Vision” (see page 7).

Whereas in 1995 Fife teachers were involved in a bitter strike – the longest teacher strike in the history of Washington public education – today McCammon is proud to say that it took just a day and half of negotiations to get the new contract finalized. What brought about this evolution?

For the past decade Fife Schools has been operating under the guiding principals put forth by Dr. Phil Schlechty, CEO and founder of the Schlechty Center in Louisville, Ky. Author of numerous books on public education and the current Horace Mann League’s Outstanding Educator (among his other accomplishments), Schlechty’s vast knowledge of what works and what doesn’t work in school systems led to a major transformation in Fife Schools.

He writes, “If student performance is to be improved, there are at least three ways to approach the problem: work on the students, work on the teachers or work on the work. Unfortunately, the first two have thus far produced unimpressive results. The key to improving education lies in the third alternative: to provide better quality work for students – work that is engaging and that enables students to learn what they need in order to succeed in the world.”

The climate in Fife Schools changed dramatically once Schlechty’s teachings were put to work. For as long as McCammon has been superintendent of Fife Schools he has been leading this movement to transform the district into one that has uplifted the meaning of “teacher and student” to unprecedented heights. “It took all the animosity from the strike and put those energies where it should be – we made the focus on the work of the students,” McCammon said. “We’ve been a shining star of that work in Fife. We’re that little school district everyone is looking at.”

The Schlechty Center program was such a success in Fife that the center produced a 35-page report “Fife Public Schools: Changing the Quality of Student Experiences the Fife Way.” Schlechty says he upholds Fife Schools as a national model and encourages other problem school districts around the country to look to Fife for answers. “People say to me where can we go to see happening whatever is happening and I say the best place to watch is Fife. People say it’s a small school and I say but it thinks big.”

“The Schlechty framework has provided a focus for sure, but the real success of our district has been about leadership at all levels,” McCammon explained. “It has been the hard work and dedication of teacher leaders, administrative leadership, board leadership, Fife Education Association and the support of our community.”

Bringing the district’s principals and teachers, staff and administrators, the school board, parents and students into this movement through inspiring the troops rather than coercing them, McCammon found that Fife teachers and its leadership wanted change to happen and that this change begins with them. A crystal clear vision of, and firm grasp on, the core business of Fife Schools emerged: to produce work that engages students – work that is so compelling that students persist when they experience difficulties – work that is so challenging that students have a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction when they successfully complete it. To attain this goal, the school board, teachers and administrators work together to make time for teachers to meet during the school week and plan engaging lessons during WOW Academies (Working on the Work).

Elaine Smith is Fife’s WOW coordinator. “Our teachers are very appreciative of this intentional gift of time,” she said. “By having this time to collaborate in thoughtful ways they know they are creating much more engaging assignments for their students to see the value in it both as a collegial team and in the results they see in deeper student learning.”

“It all boils down to trust,” said Fife School Board Vice-President Bob Scheidt. “That the school board creates capacity so teachers have the time and place for that work to be done has been a huge benefit for the students.”

“Trust has become such a huge issue since the strike,” said Deputy Superintendent Jeff Short, who has been with the district since 1975. “Regaining that trust and openness across the district was huge.”

Visit http://www.fifeschools.com to view a short welcome video from Schlechty as he shares his thoughts on Fife’s celebration.

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