10-03 - ARP Focus

Okay, I planned on being very organized and developing a well-thought out plan before beginning, but things just started rolling. Carpe Diem! I began by running my ideas by the tech support person in our department. She was excited and could immediately see the possibilies. She volunteered to learn Tapped In so she could supply support and become a part of this community. It was interesting to see that she really wanted to be a part of this and was interested in help to build "something." I felt great because I found someone who was also interested in forgaging into new areas and creating something new. Already this action research project has begun to build relationships for me and that's exactly what it's suppose to do. Since mentioning this to Anne yesterday, we're already building a more personal relationship. How does that make me feel? Good, and hopeful and validated. I can do this. People are willing to help. People want to be involved.

I began to think about some suggestions from my learning circle group regarding how to get this off the ground. We talked about starting smaller and gradually expanding to include more and more of the staff. I've thought about these smaller communities within the division: the supervisors, the professional development committee, the special projects committee, the new staff members. Today we had an induction meeting with the new staff. I approached two of the new teachers and one of the new counselors with this idea. They were also excited about this. They loved the idea of connecting with each other without the fear of being judged by mentors or supervisors. I was able to get a feel for what they might be looking for. This was a fantastic day and I've built a lot of trust between myself of some of the staff.

At the end of the day, on my long drive home, I thought about what Madre said to us at VirtCamp. People are looking to belong. They want to share stories. This is going to be a great project!! I'm finding her wisdom to be true.

I hope to spend some time this weekend reviewing some of the literature that I found and beginning to work on my questions and a plan of action. It's hard to work on this through the week - evenings are so short and I'm so tired.