Practices of an Innovative Teacher Leader
A practicing teacher describes his leadership role in a school, the Academy for Global Studies, a program that might be considered a “school within a school.” His experience provides insight for those working in teacher leadership roles as well as a model for incorporating global studies into a school curriculum.
Josh Amstutz is a teacher in the Academy of Global Studies (AGS) at Winton Woods High School in Cincinnati. This is a public school with 1200 students. Three hundred students participate directly in the AGS program. Josh’s educational background includes BA and MA degrees in integrated mathematics from Capital University and the University of Cincinnati. His instructional load includes teaching a combined physics and pre-calculus course called Pre-Calculus Aligned Physics (PCAP) and three College Credit Plus Courses via Cincinnati State at Winton Woods.
How would you describe starting your teacher leadership role in a school?
My educational leadership role at school is unique and has been crafted into its current form over the past 13 years. I feel that, in order to be a leader, one has to immerse themselves in all perspectives of the role itself as well as take chances to take steps into the unknown. Ever since I started in education, I knew that I wanted to push limits as far as they would go in order to provide amazing opportunities for kids and for educators. My own passions have helped to develop my leadership role, as a result. My pathway to become the leader that I am at our school began back in my second year of teaching at the Academy of Global Studies at Winton Woods High School 12 years ago. I had a passion for global culture and travel and took on the role of planning an international trip to Switzerland for our students as well as participating in our annual 9th and 10th grade experiences to Little Rock, Arkansas and Washington DC at the time. These travel leader positions were immensely helpful in understanding the systems that existed at my district and allowed me to work with individuals at the building level as well as at the central office. The learnings were invaluable and, because I ask many (but pertinent) questions to make sure all rules and legalities are followed, I got to know the secretaries and people in positions of change very well! This included our director of teaching and learning, our district treasurer, the secretaries who worked for the treasury department, our building leadership, and our central office staff, and the superintendent.
Once started, how did your leadership role grow?
Two years after the development and successful execution of these trips ( in addition to many more) our superintendent and high school principal who helped to start the Academy of Global Studies (AGS), left. I was asked by the guidance counselor who took over the AGS program to voluntarily produce content for our global seminar courses and to continue pushing forward for our trips. This lends itself well to another piece of my leadership role that is extremely important, tenacity. I volunteered my time to develop the necessary plans and materials to showcase the benefits of them to our school so that the district would once again help AGS to provide opportunities to our kids, even though, at the time, all resources had been taken away. Following this year, the guidance counselor left and I made a push to the district, as a result of all of the efforts from the previous years and the benefits our district was now seeing from our students, to make a teacher leader position for AGS. The district agreed and allowed me to have the bell during our global seminar classes as a "facilitator" bell and gave me a small stipend. Each year after this, my goal was to grow the program and engrain AGS in every aspect of the Winton Woods (WW) community. From organizing community service events to participating in global competitions to transforming how we celebrate the accomplishments of our kids and our teachers, I did everything that I possibly could to showcase our school.
Please describe your current leadership role with specific items and opportunities.
That brings me to my current leadership role. Five years ago I got the district to create an "Academy of Global Studies Coordinator" position which is, in essence, a department head position for global education. My role is to make sure that all of the teachers for each of the global seminar classes (9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th) have all the resources they need in order to conduct global activities with their students. My global education "facilitator" bell occurs during the 0 bell time slot in the morning in order to help aid in all global activities. I have taken upon myself to highlight all of the amazing work that our teachers and students do and try to run behind the scenes. From a student perspective, my goals are to provide real life experiences to kids to expand their knowledge of global education on their pathway to becoming global citizens. Below are some of the items and opportunities that are included in this orchestration during 0 bell and on my own time:
Run a professional adult - student mentoring program for all 325 students within AGS twice a month providing globally relevant activities to mentors and connecting them to what the students are learning about at each grade level on a bi-weekly basis
Organize speakers (both from the community, internationally, and from the Greater Cincinnati Area) to speak on a monthly basis to our students to expand their horizons of careers, culture, and career opportunities
Work with the World Affairs Council to provide and recruit kids for global opportunities which include the Academic World Quest Competition, International Summit on Education, and hosting / taking part on a student panel for International Delegates who visit Cincinnati through the U.S. Department of State.
Plan travel experiences for our 9th (Detroit, MI), 10th (NYC), 11th (DC), and 12th (Chicago) grade classes which connect to their learnings as global citizens via the Sustainable Development Goals or SDG (which takes a BULK of my time!) All students in each grade level have the opportunity to have experiential learning via domestic experiences which are tied to the topics taught in each grade level of global seminar. I plan these trips independently in order to reduce the cost for the students. Payment plans are set up for parents who cannot afford the price of the trip starting at the beginning of the school year. Prices of these trips are all-inclusive aside from some meals and all trips are 3 days long ranging from $400 for the 9th grade trip to $550 (the most expensive trips) for the 10th and 11th graders.
Orchestrate and organize virtual exchange opportunities which currently connect our students to those in Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Taiwan, Sweden, Israel, Colombia, and Argentina.
Work with our 12th grade students to develop and enact their capstone projects to take action locally on the SDGs.
Work with our 11th grade students to produce new and innovative ideas for capstone projects their senior year
Help to support student initiatives such as our International Coffee Bar, and Garden Tower Project which required a grant to be written alongside students to be able to make their dream become a reality.
Research, study, and push out study abroad / hosting and travel experiences to students in the form of small presentations throughout the year for interested individuals. This includes me working with our local chapters of AFS and Rotary Club International.
Create and run our "Intercession" Program which occurs quarterly and allows students to choose a topic that both they and a teacher are interested in which they then learn about during intercession days throughout the year.
Communicate on a weekly basis with parents to inform them of what is going on within AGS
Handle any disciplinary issues which occur during 0 bell to help restore the students' faith in themselves, in the system, and in their friends and teachers (thankfully this doesn't happen often in 0 bell (however that is not the case, in general at Winton Woods High School, throughout the school day)
Write and find grants for upcoming projects
Send out opportunities and emails to individual students and teachers based upon my individual knowledge of them and their passions
Communicate with our principal in charge of AGS what is going on within the Academy to keep them informed.
Run PD sessions on global education to keep us current!
What has been your approach to creating a school culture that values innovative teaching practice, such as your AGS program?
In order to create and sustain an environment and culture that celebrates creativity, it is imperative that every voice is heard and every teacher and student feels valued. This is surprisingly simple to do IF done consistently. My methods have always been to treat individuals as humans and active members of the system rather than treat people in a hierarchical manner. I personally say hello to every teacher every day in order to help them know that they are needed, they are wanted, and that they matter. Every day when students come into school, I meet them with a smile on my face and say good morning. If I am not there in the morning because I am out with sick kids of my own, the students always ask why I wasn't in my usual post! I say good morning to the secretaries, security guards, and administrators as they come in the building in order to wish them well for the day. All of these interactions help to create a social generative field where members feel trusted, respected, and important. Although this is already well-known in education, in my experience, it often is executed well at the beginning of the school year and then dies out as the school year progresses. As a result, I tend to ramp things up as the school year ends and make it MORE of a point to make these interactions happen. In addition, every day, the students come into class listening to global music. They are allowed to get breakfast, sit and hang out in the hallways and in the booths, and then promptly get to class when it is time. Allowing the students that freedom is extremely beneficial in building that mutual trust that exists between staff and students.
As a leader of this, or any program, how do you engage individuals?
In addition, it is imperative to not just push out new opportunities and information to the masses but to send them out to individuals who you think might be a great fit. This has been a helpful strategy in ensuring that more students and teachers take advantage of more opportunities. This is true both on the AGS side of our high school as well as the other population of our students. Parallel to this strategy is ensuring that the students are in a constant reminder of why they are in AGS and what they are to be doing. This is why, each year, we post visuals of the SDGs of tools used for system awareness, and of global ideas and opportunities.
The last piece of my answer is to encourage teachers to take risks. Throughout the year, I am in constant communication with each seminar team. They know that the sky is the limit and that if they have an innovative idea or practice that they want to include in 0 bell, I will do everything in my power to ensure that it takes place and happens. From organizing trips to downtown Cincinnati for AP Human Geography to switching up how Model UN is run in our 10th grade global seminar class to including off-the-wall activities to help teach the SDGs, my team knows that, regardless if the activity or experience goes well, that I will support them with 100% of my being. Every opportunity and risk taken results in learning which will ALWAYS be best for teachers and students.
What challenges or obstacles do you face in your leadership role, particularly in regards to school change and improvement?
I seek to overcome. I feel that this is my biggest strength as a leader because I never will accept that something "simply can't happen" unless there is a valid reason behind it. Even after this, I will do everything in my power to remove the limitations which exist in order to ensure that the original initiative or idea can take place. This has helped me in the obstacles which have been presented to me throughout my time at Winton Woods. The list of obstacles and reasoning behind them can be found below:
Teacher attrition. Due to the differences in leadership styles at the building and central office level that exist, many teachers are leaving not just our school, but the profession. They can get more money for less work and stress if they leave education. In the past 10 years, the attrition rate has been MUCH lower in AGS versus the entire high school due to our family-based atmosphere and culture we have created. In fact, many state that, if AGS weren't in existence, they would leave the district.
Contrast in leadership styles / change in leadership. Many of our leaders at the building level are not the same type of systems thinkers as myself. Organization is often lacking and communication is done last minute. Due to these uncertainties, it is extremely difficult to move the dial on our projects and incentives and, unfortunately, many times I have to ask for forgiveness rather than permission. Part of this is due to the fact that our assistant principals are in constant flux. In the past 13 years, there have been 12 assistant principals that have been new to our building.
Communication itself. Although communication is getting a little better, our district either over communicates information which masks what is actually needed and happening, sends communication last minute on major district and building initiatives, or "hides" communication within the context of communications on issues or developments which are known to be controversial. This is extremely taxing as a leader of teachers and even more frustrating as someone who operates on efficiency and systems in my own classroom.
Equity. One of the biggest hurdles is the idea of equity. Due to the inconsistent building leadership that we have (in my opinion), many in our school think that AGS has unlimited funding and that everything is given to us. Teachers not a part of AGS sometimes believe that this is inequitable and, instead of pushing forward to provide more opportunities for their students, they try to bring AGS teachers and students down. This has led to our building administration purposefully not highlighting accomplishments within AGS in order to prevent teachers from getting angry and it appearing as if we don't offer opportunities to all when all of the opportunities awarded to AGS students are also communicated and pushed out to the other teachers in the school to provide to their students.
Budget. We operate on a $0 budget. All money that is spent for our program is either raised by grants or done via teachers taking advantage of global opportunities which supply them with free memberships.
Lack of administrative support. If you ask any assistant principal or our building principal, they only have a basic knowledge of what AGS is and would not be able to tell you what our students do, why they do it, or what the SDGs are. Even though all of these items are communicated at the building level, there are "bigger priorities" in the building that, in the opinions of the leadership team, are more important than knowing what goes on within AGS. There is, however, to me an unwritten agreement. As long as I present an idea to the admin team and do all the planning and paperwork for the event to happen, they will usually say yes as it does not add anything additional to their plate. I believe that this is a result of our leadership team knowing that I will do everything in my power at all levels of the district to make things happen for our kids, even if I get a "no" the first time around. The issue is that, after this initial go-ahead, the admin team rarely ever attended any AGS events and usually do not greet our international guests as they come into the building.
Time and compensation. Most of what I do for AGS is done outside the school day. It is exhausting but is also my passion. This is true not just for me, but now for the many teachers on my team who are taking on additional leadership roles to better AGS, our staff, and our kids.
Advertisement and Awareness. Because of the lack of acknowledgement at the building level, many in our community don't know that AGS exists. So far, despite many attempts, there is no signage at the high school even saying that we exist. This impacts our students because their accomplishments are going unrecognized on a daily basis.
What types of professional development are needed to support teacher leadership?
PD is essential in continuing what we do. This padlet is a current list of opportunities that we have available to students and teachers. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs, will unfortunately not be met in 2030 as planned if things continue the way they are. As a result, we need to continue learning about the new and innovative ways that people from countries around the world are moving the dial on each SDG. This includes the beginning of AI and must be addressed at the high school level and below! Attending PD's, being a part of fellowships, and learning from others is the best way to stay current and improve the curriculum we are teaching our students. The same activities that we have done to promote global citizenship even three years ago are now obsolete because of the changing climate, changing political landscape, and changing base of technology that is accessible to all.
In my opinion, the BEST PD for a teacher is to become a Fulbright Teacher for Global Classrooms Scholar. This opportunity alone has transformed my educational career and has impacted AGS on an extreme scale. The benefit of the program is that it not only includes a graduate course on global ed that is currently based upon what is happening in the world that year, but also connects one to a plethora of educators from across the country who have enacted a multitude of ideas and initiatives at their own schools and communities. These connections are the reason why I have been able to spearhead so many programs and initiatives at our school!
Please add a little about how to find info on the Fulbright program.
More information can be found on the Fulbright offerings at their website here. Fulbright Teacher Exchanges range from year-long to short term commitments. The most popular programs for teachers looking to expand their global mindset are the Fulbright Teachers for Global Classrooms experience which is a year-long commitment, the Fulbright Distinguished Awards in Teaching Research Program which can last from 3-6 months, and the Fulbright Distinguished Awards in Teaching Short-Term Program which lasts from 2-6 weeks.
What advice would you offer a colleague serving in a role similar to yours?
The best advice that I can give a colleague serving in a role like mine is to be resilient in the most positive of ways. I firmly believe that everyone who entered education did so to benefit kids in some way, shape, or form. Sometimes these values can be perturbed and misconstrued; however, the phrase “assume positive intent” has gotten me through many hard conversations with individuals who may not agree with a plan or proposal that I have put together. Assuming positive intent allows educators to see both sides of a story and enhances the chance of finding common ground. The field of global education is not the norm in the education system within the United States of America. Therefore, those in roles similar to mine have to be advocates, innovators, confidants, and trail-blazers in the field all while maintaining a full set of responsibilities and duties while at school. We are not alone. Even though it may seem like we are operating in silos, at times, all we have to do is lean on others whose passion lies with global education and we can be refueled and ready to last for many more weeks, months, or years to make the positive changes in education that we want to see!
