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.

The 2020 Washington Great ShakeOut is coming soon! We are all experiencing what happens in times of a statewide threat to our schools. Even in times of COVID, that means: “Drop, Cover, Hold on!” The official date and time is October 15 at 10:15 am, but any date that works for you and your school community is fine. Make sure you involve your families!

Each year, AWSP’s Advocacy Advisory Council has the opportunity to select a state-level public servant who has demonstrated support of principals and the principalship in the education of all students. For 2020, the Council selected Representative Lisa Callan as AWSP’s 2020 Torch of Leadership Award winner. Representative Callan is a Democrat representing the 5th legislative district, which includes Issaquah, North Bend, and the surrounding areas.

In this episode of AWSP News, we discuss one of the strangest experiences in education history ever, our brand new membership portal, virtual school-wide programs for your school, our ASB Practices in a Virtual World, a survey about the realities of principaling during COVID, our SMART START professional learning series, the AWSP Leadership Framework Version 3.0, the Inclusionary Practices Project 2020–21 Grant Funding Application, our 2020 Torch of Leadership Award Winner Representative Lisa Callan, and our Save Cispus Campaign.

Here are some fun days in August and ways to use them with your students, staff, and families.

The 5th Annual School Safety Summit was held on June 12 of this year. Annual Summits are designed to be participatory. Over the years, we have had targeted presentations on specific funding issues, safety topics, and studies mandated by the legislature. Some excellent recommendations have come out of the Summits, and some notable legislation has been proposed – and passed.

To assist school and district leaders with specific, evidence-informed guidance and operating procedures for keeping school communities healthy during school reopenings, a number of nationally recognized and trusted school health organizations have come together to develop a playbook for school reopening — “Planning for the Next Normal at School: Keeping students, staff, and families safe and healthy.”

After a crazy sprint to wrap up the school year amidst all the change due to COVID-19, including putting on our first-ever virtual conference, we're going to shut our doors for a few days to relax, recharge, and rest up. Some of us will still be checking email periodically, but we'll be officially closed until Wednesday, July 8th. In the meantime, you can email each of us or our webmaster account and we'll get back to you as quickly as we can.