SchoolAdvancement

Before starting back into articles that deal with systems thinking, a contact at a school recently asked why I call my approach to systems thinking “Tetrahedronics.”  I thought it would be helpful to explain where this idea came from, as it also explains why SchoolAdvancement’s logo is essentially a tetrahedron. A tetrahedron is commonly known […]

Several years ago, I attended a regional meeting of schools that are members of the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI), and picked up a brochure that described the 5 Essential Elements of an Effective Christian School.  I post them here not just to encourage you to evaluate your faith-based school against these benchmarks, but […]

There is a famous quotation attributed to Albert Einstein that goes, “We cannot solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”  While that makes sense when you think about it, if you think a little longer, that becomes a very frightening thought.  Usually, to solve a problem, we try to “do” something that’s […]

Irony: Recent research proves that music education improves the brain’s preparedness for all education because it makes both sides of the brain work together.  Learning to play a musical instrument further enhances brain activity, creating neural pathways across the corpus collosum, the bundle of neurons that connect both halves of the brain.  It’s been said […]

What is the purpose of a school? The answers span the gamut, from learning for learning’s sake, providing the education necessary for an individual to be employable, to, in the case of Christian school, raising up disciples to continue to build the Kingdom of God.  Since one of the reasons for education today is to […]

If you have a computer, you have a filing system – whether you know it or not. If you’re a “spatial” person, you may keep many of your files on your Desktop – not the top of your desk, but the “homescreen” on your computer – remembering where they’re placed, so that you can retrieve […]

You’ve probably heard the saying, “You can’t fight the system.”  Well, the truth is you can, but for the majority of the times that one may try to, the effort is an exercise in futility. But this article isn’t about keeping on fighting against all odds to prove a point, or to raise awareness. It’s […]

Before getting into this month’s article, a comment about last months, “We May Know What We Want to Do, But Do We Know What We Need To Do?” I found “The Blog of Steve Schwartz” via an eNewsletter from Jeffrey Gitomer, noted author and sales coach, and one of the posts on the blog is titled, […]

When I was an adjunct professor, one of my students in my Web design class asked me to define “creative,” because they said they weren’t very creative. I didn’t believe that. Everyone is creative. 1984-1985 was my first official year in the classroom, and I gave my 7th grade students an exercise. Each student was […]

You’re probably thinking this is going to have something to do with computers for each child in the classroom, BYOD, or perhaps a shadowing program to help increase enrollment. No, this article deals with a group of schools getting together to split the cost of a Director of Advancement so that these several schools can […]

An interesting thing happens when you start to think about systems thinking, especially in light of systems that you’ve heard about before. If you find three things, you start to look for where they intersect to come up with the emergent property of the system. If the three can create a fourth, what happens if […]

When I attended Seton Hill University in Greensburg, PA for my Master of Education degree, the experience was different as an adult learner than it was for me when I was an undergraduate student some 20 years prior to that time.  Back then, I was a commuter, really didn’t pay much attention to campus life, […]

Last month’s Tetrahedronics article detailed the 5 things one needs to succeed – a mentor, students, supporters, passion and dedicated commitment. I received some comments about other things that are also necessary, since several readers thought the list was incomplete without them. Analyzing the suggestions brought the number down to three additional traits – a compelling […]

A few years ago, my supervisor’s supervisor suggested a book to read called “Talent is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers From Everyone Else” by Geoff Colvin. Mr. Colvin is Senior Editor-at-Large for Fortune magazine. In it, he makes the argument that what separates the successful professionals from the rest of the pack is “Designing […]

For many school administrators, the school year has just ended, or, the end of another school year is just a couple of weeks away.  For Diocesan administrators, though, the summer is one of the busiest times of year – hiring new principals, allocating financial aid, and reconfiguring school alignments, etc. Whether you’re starting to wind […]

Last month’s post about ARMED goals seemed to hit upon some nerves…which is a good thing!  It’s only when “disruption” occurs that learning can take place. For the last 60 years, psychologists have extensively researched the theory of “Cognitive Dissonance,” which is the discomfort experienced when the mind has to simultaneously hold two or more […]

I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase, “Let’s think outside the box.” If we’ve already tried doing that with unsatisfying results, then perhaps the time has come to “dream” outside the box rather just “think.”  Of course, thinking outside the box can be done a couple of ways.  Are you thinking linearly, or systemically?  That’s another […]

A few years ago when I began this series of articles on systems thinking, one article was titled “Catholic Schools: ‘Foundational’ to the Parish.”  In it, I made the bold suggestion that if a parish-based Catholic school closes, that sends the message that the next closure or merger may be that of the parish itself. […]

According to Kory Kogon, Franklin-Covey productivity expert and co-author of “The Five Choices to Extraordinary Productivity” (Simon & Schuster, 2014), the phenomenon of “operating on autopilot” and using time unproductively is widespread today.  An international six-year study by Franklin-Covey found that 40 percent of respondents indicated they spent 40 percent of their time on things […]

When I saw that Matthew Kelly was coming to speak as a part of the Day for Catholic Men in the Diocese of Pittsburgh several years ago, I was excited. He also authored “Rediscovering Catholicism,” but anyone who speaks about “dreams” as a religious experience is someone I have to hear. If you’ve seen some […]