Professional Learning
Dr. Phil Schlechty’s Influence to Continue Through Educators and PAGE Professional Learning By Craig Harper, PAGE Director of Communications
P
AGE and the world of education lost a great thinker and treasured friend when Dr. Phil Schlechty passed away in early January. Schlechty was the founder and leader of the Schlechty Center. His teaching — on student engagement, teacher and leader collaboration, and intentional design of meaningful work that leads to profound learning — forms the foundation of all professional learning at PAGE. “Phil’s research, thinking and student engagement framework formed the bedrock of my approach to education transformation since I first heard Phil speak more than 25 years ago,” says PAGE Executive Director Dr. Allene Magill. “I will miss my conversations with Phil. I learned so much from ongoing discussions about teaching and engagement. He never stopped observing and asking questions.” Phil and his associates at the Schlechty Center began their partnership with PAGE 15 years ago. George Thompson,
from the start. “Along with the rest of us, Phil was proud of our partnership with PAGE,” Thompson says. “Phil was also proud of PAGE for becoming a national example of how a professional organization cannot only help educators grow, but serve as a catalyst to improve the lives of children and families. Using professional learning as a platform, PAGE demonstrates both the academic and community-building purposes of public education that Phil talked and wrote about. ... He was proud that our partnership with PAGE is grounded in mutual beliefs and commitments.” ENGAGEMENT PRECEDES LEARNING
Dr. Phil Schlechty, founder of the Schlechty Center
president of the center and a former Gwinnett Public Schools superintendent, has been closely involved with the work
PAGE and Schlechty Center Beliefs • Help leaders understand how their role helps create a focus on students and on the quality of experiences provided to students and staff. • The best way to increase student achievement is to provide students with work that engages them and results in a profound grasp of knowledge. • The best way to attract and retain great teachers is to ensure that they are engaged in their work and love their jobs. • Professional learning focuses on leadership at all levels, from the classroom to the boardroom.
6 PAGE ONE
As educational leaders reflected on Phil’s influence on their practice, several themes emerged: Phil made people think about why they held their beliefs about education and learning. He was constantly learning himself and checking his thought process. He made himself available to everyone who cared to engage with him. Participants at conferences or meetings — whether an experienced superintendent or a first-year teacher — would find themselves deep in conversation (or debate) with Phil regarding education. “By listening deeply, Phil would frequently lift gems of wisdom from others, and he made sure to give them credit, on the spot, publicly or privately, or in print,” says David Reynolds, director of impact studies at PAGE. “The fact that he sincerely sought the opinions of others to help him tweak his own thinking, or at least how he communicated it, shows how much Phil valued learning.” Ricky Clemmons leads the High School March/April 2016
