Every now and then, a conversation with a student becomes profound and life-changing. A conversation where you leave the conversation a different person than when you entered. Where students teach you a lesson that you never knew you needed to hear. That sums up a conversation I had with a student this week.

We are clearly in some of the most challenging times of our careers. And, quite frankly, you probably never envisioned leading your school in and through these circumstances. We hear you. AWSP has been supporting school leaders since 1972 and continues to make the necessary changes to provide the relevant, timely, and personalized support you need. Just as COVID has impacted members like you, COVID has impacted AWSP in many ways. At our recent annual September AWSP and Foundation Board meeting, the board made a difficult decision to terminate our Chewelah Peak Learning Center contract with the Department of Natural Resources and ESD 101. This was by no means an easy decision. Word is spreading quickly about both the action related to Chewelah Peak and the precarious position of our Cispus Learning Center because we officially launched our “Cispus Forever” Campaign this week. This state (and national) campaign is focused on both the short-term survivability of Cispus (in response to COVID) and the establishment of an endowment to forever secure the future of Cispus. We have to start somewhere while we work to build an endowment that will help us weather future storms like COVID.

Our Principals Month celebration continues with a special surprise: We’re offering a brand-new workshop on inclusion absolutely FREE to AWSP members. How to be 'ALL IN' as an Inclusive Leader is a 5-part series with international film-maker Dan Habib.

Every fall, the Association of Washington Student Leaders holds a Fall Leadership Conference. With obvious travel restrictions and complexities at the beginning of the school year, we decided to shift our conference course.

Picture it: The buses roll into the learning center and kids begin to pile out of the buses with luggage in hand. Surrounded by trees and fresh air, each student knows they are about to take on the outdoors. They're in a place where no one has an advantage, only a fresh start to explore what everyone has to offer. Accelerated learning is about to take place.

In this episode of AWSP News, we discuss National Principals Month, a brand-new workshop on inclusion absolutely FREE to AWSP members, our “Lead Out Loud” series for Assistant Principals, our WELL Summit (Women Leading and Learning), our Stay Smart Network, AWSL’s Fall Conference, a message from former Governor Christine Gregoire, our brand new AWSP Leadership Framework Version 3.0, OSPI’s Safety Guidance for updates on leading during COVID, our Cispus Forever campaign, and our Principals Month prompts.

Check out this new resource, share it with your teacher-librarian, and begin a conversation about how you can work as a team to impact student learning: Let's Talk: A Conversation Starter to Help Future Ready Librarians Build Collaborative Relationships.

October is Disability History month. Washington public schools are required to conduct or promote educational activities that provide instruction, awareness, and understanding of disability history and people with disabilities. The activities may include, but not be limited to, school assemblies or guest speaker presentations.

​When we talk about comprehensive school safety and safety planning, we consider the four main areas of threats and hazards: natural, technological, biological and human/man-made. It feels like we are experiencing all four of these threat and hazard areas at the same time right now. Here are some resources to help you work through these challenging days.

October is National Principals Month. Principals and APs, you are a beacon of hope for your entire school community. And, if there has ever been a time in our history where hope is essential, it is now. Don’t ever underestimate the power and influence of your leadership, nor the hope that you can breathe into the lives of both your students and your staffulty. As your professional association, you can count on AWSP to continue shining a bright light on the life-changing work of principals and assistant principals throughout and beyond this October’s National Principals Month. The world needs to know about your incredibly hard, yet amazingly rewarding work.

In this edition of AWSP News, we discuss National Principals Month, our great professional learning opportunities, our Lead Out Loud Assistant Professional Learning series, this week's board meeting, your brand new AWSP Leadership Framework Version 3.0, a message from our board president, Cameron Grow, the passing of Ruth Anderson, and our Cispus Forever campaign.

Eatonville School District students and teachers were met with multiple challenges on the first day of digital instruction as we launched a new school year in a Distance Learning model. Multiple power outages were noted district-wide due to strong winds, powerful fires created unhealthy smoke, and technology issues raged on. In spite of the variety of challenges, all Eatonville School District students, staff, and parents persevered and overcame these issues.

Many thoughts ran through my mind when we found out this summer that our kids would be starting school virtually. While it didn't feel like we had control over much of the situation, we had control over one thing in particular - the space in which they would learn. It was time to make space! Making space. It's something that each and every one of us who has any role or part in education has had to do in the midst of the pandemic. Making space, both physically and mentally, is exactly what school leaders have been doing these past several months.

We all try so much to follow state and district procedures, laws and policies when it comes to the expenditure of public funds and public meetings. And it is a challenge when we are in person, let alone over the internet video conferencing. So many of our rules and procedures have been thrown out or shelved…you are not alone.

"Where do we even start?" At AWSL, we have received this question from buildings throughout the state as they enter the fall in a myriad of different learning environments. Creating a culture and engaging the school community has been woven into student activity programs for years. Kick-off assemblies, freshman orientation, homecoming, fundraisers, and creating a sense of belonging amongst students and adults have created unique opportunities across the board for schools.

Quick, informative, and just in time - AWSP’s brand-new Lead Out Loud Series for assistant principals will help you amplify your voice on the leadership team. In this four-part workshop series, we’ll cover self care, student voice, diversity, equity, inclusion, and conversations about participant-selected hot topics. All sessions will be held virtually.

This next week, Attendance Clerks are invited to attend a peer to peer discussion session on Monday, September 21 to discuss challenges and solutions. Additionally, AWSP and OSPI will be hosting a special Principal Attendance Office hour on Thursday, September 24.

A lot must be considered when teaching indoors safely this year. If the concern is a constant strain, mix it up.

In this edition of AWSP News, we discuss our upcoming Building Effective Leadership series, our new “Smart Series”, our “Lead Out Loud” series, AWSL's Fall Programs, our annual ASB Finance Practices workshop, some OSPI resources for suicide prevention and to help support the mental health of students, a chance to talk about the realities of principaling during COVID, and our Save Cispus campaign.

Missed the webinar? You have the option to view the recording. Register and watch the AWSP and OSPI partnership meeting with School Leaders and Attendance Clerks on Attendance Guidance.