When schools, businesses, and practically the world shut down in March 2020 no one really knew what would be coming next. Months later schools across the country are preparing for a year like no other. It doesn’t matter if you are on the west coast, east coast or in a rural town in the middle of the country, the school that you left in March, is not the same today. 


I am currently an elementary school principal and we are a week away for our first day of instruction with students. The instruction will look familiar, but the set up will not. We are opening in a 100% distance-learning format and just saying those words give parents, teachers, and administrators the chills. 


Leaders of our districts and schools can often feel alone, but now in a distance learning model, you may feel that you are on the edge of a cliff, with no one around. It takes time, but gradually if you look around, you may notice how beautiful of a view you actually have. Below are strategies that I have found to be useful in finding the opportunity, the joy, and the excitement that distance learning, hybrid learning, or in-person learning have to offer. 



Relationships Are Still #1


Relationships, Relationships, Relationships. Those three words have been uttered countless times as three things that matter the most in education. The focus on relationships does not go away when you move to a distance-learning format. A few ways to build relationships from a distance as a leader:


  • Video Messaging- I provide weekly video messaging to our students. I do this by reading books, having conversations, and reviewing real-life things that they can relate to. Recording the content around the campus and then posting these videos into all of our Google classrooms. If you haven’t already done so, make sure your teachers have you join the classroom as a co-teacher. This allows me to post and make announcements or just say hello. 


  • Averaging 90 emails a day. People have questions. People want answers. I don’t blame them. I want the same thing, but I have had to realize that there is not always an answer. Picking up the phone and taking the communication off of email and into a conversation allows me to get real with the person on the other end. 


  • We hear about parents worried about sending their children to school with the fear of COVID19. Our staff also have those fears. We must remember what school is all about. THE PEOPLE and our staffs are people that experience those same feelings. Giving them grace, support, and time can help so much. 


Clear and Consistent Communication:


Have you ever received a really long email, that doesn’t really say anything? Those are the emails that need to be avoided ALWAYS, but especially now. The fear that we talked about in the relationship section is real and debilitating to so many. By providing clear and consistent messaging it puts people at ease. As human beings, we want to be in the know, we thirst for it. 


  • On Monday morning as my day starts, I start jotting down notes. Throughout the day I build upon those notes to create a letter to the community. Then I send those notes to staff to inform them and see if they have additions before sending the communication out. By doing this, our staff has been informed and can help with questions that might arise from communication. Depending on what is happening during the week, this may have to happen again and again through the course of the week. While sending an email is the primary delivery tool, I also post to our social media and website, so it is easily accessible. 


  • Fridays are a day that allows me to reflect on what has happened during the week. I think about the instruction, the learning, and the people that I have witnessed throughout the week. Then as I walk the building I record a quick message about the week and send it off to my community. This puts a face and a sound to the message. Those that think that all messaging can go through email, you are wrong. People need to see you. They need to hear from you. This Friday segment is now known as the ‘The Sheehy Scoop’. 


Create Partnerships


When I think about the partnerships in education, my mind usually goes to the relationship that parents have in the education process.  Parents enroll their children in schools. Ensure they are attending classes. They are completing their assignments. Their behavior is matching the expectations of the school. Somewhere along the line in our society, the school and parent partnership has been severed. If you don’t believe me, visit Facebook or any other social media platform and look up distance learning. The internet is filled with parents saying it is not their job to help educate their children. It is not their job to teach their kids. It is not their job to “home school”. Somewhere along the line, we have created us vs. them mentality and we NEED to change it. 


  • Parent Ed Camps- Many educators participate in yearly ed camps. The sessions are short and you get tons of professional development in a quick format. Our school decided to take that model and design one for parents. We wanted parents to understand what was happening in our classrooms, so they can help with the partnership at home. The first one we held, FLOPPED. A few parents came, but not as many as we had hoped. There was a flaw in our design. We weren’t meeting them where they were. Now is a perfect time to change that. We are now creating video content to release our own parent ed camp, but digitally. By doing this, we are helping the partnership by growing the skillset of our parents, so they can help their children, our students. 


  • Host parent nights. Open up a Zoom call, provide a space for parents to come and build relationships, and grow together. Invite staff as well and have a list of talking points. Not only do our students need that face to face interaction, so do our parents. 


The 2020-2021 school year is set up to be a year like no other. Within the framework of what is on the horizon with all the unknowns, I am excited. I am excited about the opportunity that this has provided us. It has forced us to try something different. It has forced us to look at our priorities and create new goals. You have a choice to make. Are you going to rise up to the challenge or are you going to try to retreat to the past? You can lead from a distance. I believe in you and I know that together we can achieve anything in education.


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