When I was teaching high school from 1996 to 2001, I was part of a teacher learning community where we looked at our students’ assignments and used protocols to dive deeply into how that student work could give us direction for our own professional improvement. We called that “doing the work.” Although I had already been teaching for seven years when I joined that group, those five years of looking at student work with my colleagues changed my life. And not only my professional life. Using the protocols helped me learn to listen more closely in my personal relationships, to understand more deeply what I was thinking and feeling and to lead with more authenticity.
In 2001 I finished my doctorate and moved into higher education administration, starting out as an instructional consultant, basically an instructional coach for professors. From 2001 to 2009 I attended annual national meetings where we were all “doing the work” in different places across the country. I worked in both higher education and K-12 with others who were using faculty learning communities to strengthen teaching and learning. I found those meetings to be the most energizing and important events of my year. Seeing how educators across the country were improving their own practice for the benefit of every student was inspiring.
During those years, my work shifted from coaching in the pedagogical realm to working in curriculum, building structures for learning that would help every student succeed while also supporting small liberal arts colleges as they expanded opportunities for growing Hispanic student populations. Along with my own professional journey, the national meetings, also evolved. The conversations became more intentional about ensuring that every student had access to high quality learning experiences and the support they needed to thrive. Each year I left inspired to continue the work with new tools and fresh approaches to practices I already valued.
Since that generative and productive time in my career, I have been drawn into executive leadership at small colleges. Although I still teach occasionally, most of my work now focuses elsewhere. I work with colleagues to make sure we have the systems, structures and support systems in place so our students can graduate well prepared and on time. And I still find, all these years later, that professional learning communities provide the best environment for helping us understand what our students need and how we can respond in ways that improve their learning.
And that is why I am coming back to Fall Meeting in October. I know it will be inspiring to work with colleagues who are looking at student work together and to hear what educators are doing in schools and organizations across the country. But I also know it will deepen my own learning and strengthen my understanding of how I can be more effective in helping every student succeed. I have decided to return to Fall Meeting to be with other educators who believe every student deserves the opportunity to thrive and who understand the urgency of removing barriers that stand in the way of student success. A wise friend I worked with in the early 2000s often reflected on the words of Asa Hilliard when she asked us, “We have the knowledge, skill and capacity to teach all children, but do we have the WILL?” I am coming back to Fall Meeting to hear the many ways people are answering that question today. I look forward to seeing you there.
– By Ross Peterson-Veatch
