LGES Student Lighthouse Team 2020 - 21
LGES Student Lighthouse Team 2019 - 20
LGES Student Lighthouse Team 2018 - 19
LGES Student Lighthouse Team 2017-18
LGES Student Lighthouse Team 2016 - 17
LGES Student Lighthouse Team 2015 - 2016
Transforming LGES to a Leadership Culture 2016-17
The LGES Leader In Me Journey
Our journey to becoming a Leader In Me school began in 2013. As a school we were grappling with the effect of the instructional shifts due to Common Core. While we were going through through the necessary adjustments to align our practices with the new State Standards, a new revelation occurred.
For our students to be successful, not only with the increased rigor in the Elementary School classroom, but in High School and beyond, it was imperative that they learn the "life skills" identified by parents, educators, and employers alike as essential. Skills like goal setting, planning, time management, prioritization, listening to others' ideas, collaborating, leading a well balanced life with time for personal renewal, etc. How could we teach those skills in a day already packed to the limit?
School Social Worker Mrs. Ann Moellman was working on mapping Character Education to embed these concepts within our ELA and Social Studies curriculum, so these concepts could be taught without putting "one more thing" on the plates of the classroom teachers. This proved to be a challenging task - what to include at what grade, in what content area? She had the opportunity to present this idea and the challenge it was to a consultant who was visiting our school. The consultant suggested looking into The Leader In Me, and put Mrs. Moellman in touch with a Western New York elementary principal whose school was implementing TLIM. She recommended that we read the book "The Leader In Me : How Schools Around The World Are Inspiring Greatness One Child At A Time" by Stephen Covey. After reading the book Mr. Conway was interested in learning more about TLIM.
In May 2013 a group of educators from LGES attended a Leader In Me Symposium in Buffalo, NY where we visited Leader In Me Schools, met fellow educators who were implementing it, heard from students from these schools and listened to several education thought leaders speak.
It was clear to the LGES group that TLIM did more than teaching character, it created a positive culture where students were empowered to "own" their education, and were given opportunities to find their strengths through personal leadership.
Mrs. Moellman was given the opportunity to "pilot" TLIM during the 2013-14 school year, and the Second Grade team was excited to participate. It was amazing to see how well the students grasped the 7 Habits and began to apply them in their lives. Parents noticed the same was occurring at home too. In early 2014 the LGES Educational Cabinet, the shared decision team also read and discussed the Covey book.
With support from Lake George CSD Superintendent Patrick Dee, Mr. Conway, teachers and parents, LGES entered the competitive grant funding process, to apply for funding to cover most of the cost of bringing TLIM into our school. We were awarded the grant by the I Am A Leader Foundation, and began our whole school process with a Vision Day on March 20, 2015. In August 2015 many staff members participated in 7 Habits Signature training with FC Senior Consultant Gary McGuey, and on September 3rd our second training, Launching Leadership happened. Our Student Lighthouse Team began meeting in January 2016 and we ended our year with a wonderful celebration of leadership on our first annual Leadership Day held June 3, 2016.
Leader In Me Update for School Year 2016 - 17
It's now the 2016 - 17 school year and we are in our second year of implementing TLIM. This year's focus is on building the momentum already generated as a school and as individuals. We have set a schoolwide WIG (Wildly Ambitious Goal) and students are setting personal and academic WIGs and tracking their progress. Soon there will be a public scoreboard so all can see our progress as a school toward our WIG!
Our Student Lighthouse Team is also in its second year and is planning a major project to beautify the front entrance to our school. All students have meaningful leadership roles within their classroom communities as well.
We are on the way to Empowering Leaders and helping each other find personal greatness !
“We only get one chance to prepare children for a world none of us can possibly predict, what are we going to do with that one chance?”
- Principal Muriel Summers
At Lake George Elementary School great really does happen!
It happens because we have a highly committed and professional staff, an outstanding curriculum, superb resources for our students, and visionary leadership. This vision affirms the potential in each one of us for life-long growth and change. This is why we were chosen in 2015 by the I Am A Leader Foundation to receive grant funding to further our vision to develop our students not just academically, but to empower them to find their own genius in our rapidly changing world.
"Leadership is communicating someone's worth and potential so clearly that they are inspired to see it in themselves."
Stephen R. Covey
It happens because we have a highly committed and professional staff, an outstanding curriculum, superb resources for our students, and visionary leadership. This vision affirms the potential in each one of us for life-long growth and change. This is why we were chosen in 2015 by the I Am A Leader Foundation to receive grant funding to further our vision to develop our students not just academically, but to empower them to find their own genius in our rapidly changing world.
"Leadership is communicating someone's worth and potential so clearly that they are inspired to see it in themselves."
Stephen R. Covey