Initiating and Sustaining Change

This past weekend I was fortunate enough to present at the 2013 Annual ASCD Conference in Chicago.  This conference is one of my must attend events of the year and I use it as an opportunity to develop new presentations based on my leadership experiences at New Milford High School.  Since we have initiated and sustained quite a few changes that have transformed the teaching and learning culture at my school I felt that sharing the "why" and "how" would benefit others that have experienced difficulty with or are looking to begin the change process.  

Keys to Sustaining Change from Eric Sheninger

The presentation itself focused on key elements, behaviors, strategies, and initiatives that aided our pursuit of meaningful change to benefit our learners and greater school community as a whole. Change does not have to be an illusive process that is frustrating and takes too long to come to fruition.  The general keys from my experiences leading change through collaboration with key stakeholders are as follows:

1. Determine what needs to change and why
2. Address reasons why change is so hard
3. Identify specific roadblocks and ways to overcome them
4. Develop an understanding of the keys for implementing sustainable change and begin the process poised for success
5. Make the changes and see them through 

Even though this has worked for us it is by no means a full-proof blueprint for change in educational systems.  In your experiences what would you add to this presentation and why?

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