Learning Together

I am honored and humbled to serve as Gates Chili's Assistant Superintendent for Instruction. As a member of the Gates Chili family for nearly 15 years, I understand firsthand what it means to be a Spartan and the pride felt throughout our learning community. I have had the privilege to learn and grow as a teacher, coach, and administrator alongside so many hardworking administrators, faculty, staff, families and community members who are dedicated to our students.

The district’s continued focus on cultivating the power of relationships and being responsive to the needs of all learners directly aligns with my beliefs as a leader. I believe our role as educators is not to prepare students for something, but more specifically help students prepare themselves for anything. The most powerful thing we can do is empower our students to own their learning and provide them with the knowledge and skills to pursue their passions, interests and future.

I look forward to working collaboratively with administrators, faculty and staff to strategically and intentionally build on the foundation that Mrs. Stehm established during her tenure. Together, through the continued development of engaging and relevant curriculum, instruction and assessments, we will provide an equitable education that represents all students.

Over the next several months, I will be visiting buildings and classrooms, meeting with staff and students, and attending school and community events. My goal is to learn more about the strengths and needs of our school community, so together we can take the necessary steps to maximize student learning.

I look forward to partnering with you on this journey.

Respectfully,

Troy D. Olin

Email: Troy_Olin@gateschili.org
Twitter: @TroyOlin

Beginning July 1, our department underwent some staffing changes and some roles have shifted. See below for a snapshot of each administrator as well as updates from their respective areas.

I have been in Gates Chili for over 20 years, working in a variety of roles including as an elementary School Psychologist, Special Education Administrator, and Coordinator of Early Childhood programs. Over the years I have had the opportunity to assess and counsel students, consult with parents, teachers and community partners, push into classrooms to teach SEL lessons, develop a standards-based early learning curriculum, and advocate for and create meaningful programmatic change.

Thinking back to my early years as a school psychologist, I had a workspace in a small room off the girls locker room at Florence Brasser. As a young professional, I remember feeling excitement as I hung homemade red curtains on the window. I remember trying to soak in as much craft knowledge as possible from the master teachers in the building, while also identifying ways I could influence the processes in the building to allow better outcomes for students and teachers.

As I transition into this new position focusing on elementary programming districtwide, my sentiments are similar to those from that first year with the red curtains. I am incredibly excited to work with teachers from prekindergarten through fifth grade to support consistency in elementary programming and I see great opportunity for things we can accomplish together in the years ahead.

As an educator, I have a deep respect for child development, for the cognitive and social phenomenon that is teaching and learning, and for the incredible power and talent of our teachers. One of the best parts of this new role for me is that I will get to know and support all teachers P-5 across the district. I am smiling now as I think about visiting your classrooms this Fall to learn more about your work, challenges, and small triumphs– I cannot wait.

We have many opportunities ahead to shape the priorities and focus of the elementary instructional program in Gates Chili, and I am looking forward to working with you to do so.

Enjoy the remaining weeks of summer and see you soon!

-Erin

Email: Erin_Ugine@gateschili.org
Twitter: @ErinUgine

This summer elementary students from across the district are participating in a three-week Summer Learning Program designed to help students transition back to school in September. Students are spending time getting reacclimated to classroom routines and to the joy of learning alongside peers. Our teachers are also learning and growing their own pedagogy by implementing arts integration lessons that support the Gates Chili Rigor Framework.

One component of rigor in Gates Chili is providing Authentic Learning experiences for students. During a recent summer lesson, entering first graders sorted and classified objects into categories and then created useful products (new and unique objects), that they shared with an audience (their classmates). Teachers were pleased with how well students from four different buildings were able to think critically and communicate with one another during the lesson, and with how engaged they were throughout the task. Multiple math and literacy standards were reinforced throughout as well.

I have been teaching, learning and leading in the Gates Chili school community for more than 20 years, and I am excited to continue this work with a focus at the secondary level.

As many of you know, my experience over the years has been gained through in a variety of roles, working with teachers and staff members at every level and curricular area. I began my career in Gates Chili teaching at Neil Armstrong Elementary School. After nine years, I transitioned into the role of Building Math Teacher at Florence Brasser Elementary School. I also provided technology integration support to teachers and coordinated our elementary summer programs for several years. When my position moved to the district office, I began focusing on curriculum development and support for our K-12 programs and teacher leaders. Over the years, I’ve had many opportunities to provide professional development, lead curriculum work, and collaborate with instructional departments.

Whenever I’m asked what I am most proud of in Gates Chili, or why I love working here, my answer is always the same: it’s our faculty and staff members. I have a unique perspective because I’ve been able to build strong relationships with so many of you, but I truly believe that we have the best of the best. Each day you put our students first and continuously search for innovative ways to support their personal and academic growth.

If you have worked closely with me, you know that my priority is to develop rigorous curriculum, assessment and instruction to support student growth. The Office of Instruction Team is ready to take the next steps with you as we work to create equitable opportunities for our students.

Email: Katie_Coon@gateschili.org
Twitter: @Kscoon1

One component of rigor in Gates Chili is Inquiry-Based instruction. This summer some of our secondary students had the unique opportunity to engage in our summer program focused on STEM tasks and activities. Students interacted with their teachers and peers to answer questions and respond to challenges that were posed to them. While visiting these classrooms the enthusiasm and active participation that students were demonstrating was evident. Teachers posed questions like, "What kind of wearable technology can you design?" and "How long can you make your marble track?" Students responded by engaging in sustained inquiry to answer those questions. At times, we would visit the classrooms and they would be silent! Other times student were buzzing with excitement, checking out the designs of other students and making adjustments to their own. Be sure to follow @dorothybrenneis on Twitter for pictures and videos of some of this in action!

In a few weeks, we’ll be welcoming our students to their “first day of school.” For me, this marks the honor of 23 “first days” spanning six school districts as a teacher, coach, school building administrator and school district administrator. As I reflect on those two decades, I am reminded that this profound, stimulating and at times, trying, profession is one of the best out there and that is because of its human factor. I would be remiss if I didn’t express my amazement of and admiration for the collective efforts of our entire school community and the countless examples of professionalism, generosity, compassion, flexibility, and grace that unfolded over the past eighteen months.

This year begins my third year at Gates Chili. Pressing ahead, I am filled with hope and enthusiasm, especially as we make strides to increase our awareness of and act on issues related to diversity, equity and inclusivity. Each one of our students deserves to be seen and known. They all are value-added members of our school community whose strengths, interests, talents and experiences helped shape who they are, how they learn, and how they contribute to our greater community. These attributes are assets to their learning potential and should be maximized as such. Capitalizing on these assets across our learning environments brings to life our belief that teaching and inspiring excellence is an equitable and accessible expectation for all learners – students and adults alike.

Email: Suzanne_Goff@gateschili.org

Another component of rigor in Gates Chili is Culturally-Responsive teaching and learning. As it is important for our students to have rigorous learning experiences, our adult learners are afforded the same high-quality opportunities in Gates Chili. Since the beginning of July, staff have had access to over 30 differentiated, research-based and data-driven courses and trainings focusing on gamification in the classroom, reimagining assessments, developing Social-Emotional competency through restorative practices, child abuse symposiums and youth mental health first aid protocols. Experiences have been varied – in-person, remote, asynchronous, individualized, grade-level or departmentally-focused, small groups, large workshops, and conferences – intended to accommodate diverse learning styles and interests. Our second CR-SE Base Training cohort started this summer, too, with over 25 staff representing all schools along with central office administrators. These adult learners have been working to make meaning of concepts like equity and inclusivity with the goal of applying this new learning to their areas of responsibility this fall.

In Gates Chili, “Excellence for All Learners” comes to life through an intentional focus on both academic and behavioral rigor within our curriculum, assessment and instruction framework.