Starting a Local Forum
The key to starting a local forum is YOU! Your interest, enthusiasm, and knowledge of what Teacher Forums are and do will make all the difference.
Schedule an appointment with your District TOY Coordinator and/or Superintendent.
Make sure to explain the difference between a Superintendent’s Cabinet and a Teacher Forum. A forum is goal and solution oriented, not a gripe session. All stakeholders (teachers, superintendents, liaisons, etc.) must remember that the forum will only entertain issues that can be addressed with solutions that benefit students. Forums provide opportunities for positive growth experiences.
Be able to articulate how having a local forum will support the district’s goals and meet the needs of students. Cite examples of what other Teacher Forums in SC have been able to accomplish, such as instructional fairs, mentoring new teachers, legislative issue forums, back-to-school celebrations, leadership advisory panels, parent education nights, etc. Network with active Forums in your region and learn what they have accomplished.
A key point to make with your Superintendent is that teachers who are given opportunities to lead and make decisions that impact students while sharing with their colleagues feel empowered, respected, and know that what they think really matters. Teacher morale will improve, and superintendents can rely on these professionals to keep things POSITIVE! Forums that make suggestions for change do so after careful consideration of how this change can be accomplished and the rationale for the change.
Having a district office liaison (such as the DTOY Coordinator) who is supportive will be crucial. That liaison must be willing to allow you and your teachers to make decisions about the direction your Forum will take.
Enlist other Teachers of the Year from your district to serve on a leadership council to help you get started. This may include past and present district honor roll teachers. You will need their creativity and advice when planning for meetings.
Include past and present school TOYs in your forum. It will be helpful to have continuity in leadership from year to year so ideas, work, and momentum are not lost but built upon each year. Involve enough strong leaders so that success isn’t tied to one person’s effort. All forum members need shared experiences and responsibilities so they feel ownership. Build capacity!
Contact businesses in your community to help sponsor functions. Local restaurants, chambers of commerce, car dealerships, and other businesses may be willing to support your organization.
Don’t try to tackle too much, too soon. Choose one thing to focus on at first. How can teacher leaders best benefit your district at this time? Choose that area as your focus for the first year. Build in some objectives and goals that the forum can readily accomplish on its own. Dialogue over important issues is a catalyst for strategies and waves of change! Once stakeholders see your forum as a positive, goal oriented organization, support will likely follow.
Continue efforts to ensure commitment of school board and administration.
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! Don’t give up! Continue to learn more about Teacher Forums in SC, and you will likely find ways that your district can improve through the strength and expertise of communities of teacher leaders.
The State TOY and CERRA staff are willing to help you get started and maintain momentum! You are not alone!
Remember that teacher leadership impacts student learning! Believe that accomplishments are worthy and worth working for. You are in the business of empowering teachers, and that can only be accomplished by lifting them up with status, knowledge, and access to decision making.
For additional assistance:
Contact Suzanne Koty, Program Director, at [email protected].
Visit https://www.cerra.org/district-teacher-forums.html for more information.
Schedule an appointment with your District TOY Coordinator and/or Superintendent.
Make sure to explain the difference between a Superintendent’s Cabinet and a Teacher Forum. A forum is goal and solution oriented, not a gripe session. All stakeholders (teachers, superintendents, liaisons, etc.) must remember that the forum will only entertain issues that can be addressed with solutions that benefit students. Forums provide opportunities for positive growth experiences.
Be able to articulate how having a local forum will support the district’s goals and meet the needs of students. Cite examples of what other Teacher Forums in SC have been able to accomplish, such as instructional fairs, mentoring new teachers, legislative issue forums, back-to-school celebrations, leadership advisory panels, parent education nights, etc. Network with active Forums in your region and learn what they have accomplished.
A key point to make with your Superintendent is that teachers who are given opportunities to lead and make decisions that impact students while sharing with their colleagues feel empowered, respected, and know that what they think really matters. Teacher morale will improve, and superintendents can rely on these professionals to keep things POSITIVE! Forums that make suggestions for change do so after careful consideration of how this change can be accomplished and the rationale for the change.
Having a district office liaison (such as the DTOY Coordinator) who is supportive will be crucial. That liaison must be willing to allow you and your teachers to make decisions about the direction your Forum will take.
Enlist other Teachers of the Year from your district to serve on a leadership council to help you get started. This may include past and present district honor roll teachers. You will need their creativity and advice when planning for meetings.
Include past and present school TOYs in your forum. It will be helpful to have continuity in leadership from year to year so ideas, work, and momentum are not lost but built upon each year. Involve enough strong leaders so that success isn’t tied to one person’s effort. All forum members need shared experiences and responsibilities so they feel ownership. Build capacity!
Contact businesses in your community to help sponsor functions. Local restaurants, chambers of commerce, car dealerships, and other businesses may be willing to support your organization.
Don’t try to tackle too much, too soon. Choose one thing to focus on at first. How can teacher leaders best benefit your district at this time? Choose that area as your focus for the first year. Build in some objectives and goals that the forum can readily accomplish on its own. Dialogue over important issues is a catalyst for strategies and waves of change! Once stakeholders see your forum as a positive, goal oriented organization, support will likely follow.
Continue efforts to ensure commitment of school board and administration.
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! Don’t give up! Continue to learn more about Teacher Forums in SC, and you will likely find ways that your district can improve through the strength and expertise of communities of teacher leaders.
The State TOY and CERRA staff are willing to help you get started and maintain momentum! You are not alone!
Remember that teacher leadership impacts student learning! Believe that accomplishments are worthy and worth working for. You are in the business of empowering teachers, and that can only be accomplished by lifting them up with status, knowledge, and access to decision making.
For additional assistance:
Contact Suzanne Koty, Program Director, at [email protected].
Visit https://www.cerra.org/district-teacher-forums.html for more information.