I entered the Michigan State University Master of Arts in Education program with ambitious aspirations of one day making the seamless transition from classroom teacher to educational administration.  My drive towards becoming an administrator myself stemmed from my work with Chicago Public Schools. My passion for teaching and learning had evolved into a desire to help others, as best I can, through macro-level work with schools.  I had dreams of using my graduate degree and the skills acquired through coursework within my concentration area to help transform urban schooling in the field. I was motivated to take what I had learned through my studies and complete necessary certifications needed to become an administrator while simultaneously developing improvement plans for struggling urban schools.  While these goals were broad, I planned my coursework and educational experiences around adult learning and concepts of urban schooling. My initial goals are as stated:

• Complete a Type-75 certification exam to become a certified educational administrator in Illinois.

• Design and apply school improvement plans for struggling Title 1 institutions within Chicago Public Schools.

     My educational and professional journey took many twists and turns both in and outside of the classroom.  As my graduate experience acted as a catalyst for a growing passion in administrative work, my field experiences with Chicago Public Schools spurred a new interest: professional development and leadership in schools.  I began a part-time position as an instructional leader & development coach with a non-profit organization in Chicago called Teachers Supporting Teachers.  TST is built on the concept of teacher empowerment and the mobilization of teacher leaders within their own schools.  The MAED program allowed me to use what I learned through my coursework and apply it to my field experiences with TST and distributed school leadership.  Through taking courses focused on concepts of adult learning, the learning society, and professional development, I have developed revised professional goals that focus on concepts related to coaching and development.  The commitment to these new goals are a reflection of my learning experiences both through my academic coursework and professional experiences.

• Design and apply teacher leadership and development programming, rooted in best practices, to mobilize and support teacher leaders within their respective schools.

• Formulate and support programs designed to shift schools from traditional models of leadership to teacher-facilitated, distributed forms of leadership and development.

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     When reflecting on my original goals for the MAED, my passion for teaching and learning as well as my commitment to the betterment of urban schooling at the macro-level has remained the same.  The path for how to facilitate this betterment, however, has been altered as seen through the evolution of my goals. My previous understanding of what it meant to help schools grow and succeed was inappropriately fixated on the traditional classroom teacher to administration route.  While I do someday wish to take the Type-75 exam, I now wish to work more closely with the design and application of teacher leadership within various schools, not just my own. This is where my goals have changed. I believe that the most effective programming and coaching comes from authentic, teacher-led development.  In order for urban schools to motivate and retain their best educators, they must break the mold of traditional models of trickle-down leadership from administration. I know that by continuing my own commitment to my personal education and professional learning, I can take a more non-traditional approach to administration through distributed leadership and professional coaching.