Fearless Conversations School Leaders Have to Have
- Irving C. Jones Sr. - Instructional Leadership Consultant and Lecturer, Houghton Mifflin and Harcourt, Senior Instructional and Leadership Coach
- Vera Blake - Educational and Business Consultant
Foreword by Bill Daggett
To meet the needs of today’s learners, fearless leadership is required to support and empower the adults who work with these learners. Anchored in research, Fearless Conversations is a guide to recognizing and using strategies that encourage staff to work at their full potential, build trust, and strengthen collegiality. Strong, courageous, focused, collaborative leadership is a win-win approach for all stakeholders. Readers will find
• interviews and case studies to illustrate effective practice
• strategies to help them move from traditional methodologies toward stronger transformational leadership
• vignettes and examples to ignite additional thinking to facilitate achievement for all students
Written for aspiring, new, and experienced school leaders, this is a must-read for anyone who wants practical strategies that they can use immediately to build a culture of learning and improve academic achievement for all students.
Linda Pincham, Associate Professor
Roosevelt University, Chicago, IL
Lynda C. Wood, Ed.D, Retired Superintendent
Southfield Public School District, Southfield, MI
"Successful school leaders set the tone, climate, and culture for their teams, departments, and schools; Jones and Blake have a firm grasp on this notion and provide effective and practical strategies for leaders of learning to accomplish this. As challenging as educational leadership is today, Jones and Blake approach this topic with “hopeful realism” and an understanding that fearless conversations are essential if school leaders hope to enhance instruction, improve student results, and build capacity among stakeholders. In Fearless Conversations Leaders Have to Have, Jones and Blake draw on their many years of successful experiences and provide leaders and aspiring leaders sound advice on range of topics necessary for helping students including honing goals and purpose, developing relationships with stakeholders, utilizing data, and implementing professional development. With an eye on 21st century skills, Jones and Blake convey the urgent need for courageous leaders to leverage these areas and others in the pursuit of continued refinement and improvement in teams and across schools. By providing helpful examples of schools addressing these needs as well as reflective questions to assist readers and leaders, Jones and Blake hit the mark on helping school leaders find a balance between good management and effective leadership."
"Jones and Blake take proven strategies from the field and provide you with a structure to work and lead with the wisdom and creativity needed today in our schools. We can’t build the future for our students by perfecting the past and this book provides the compass points we need to follow on the journey. Our profession needs more books like this!"
