This was our first full week trying out the Challenge Sprints structure. I’m enjoying having more time with students and doing more facilitation when I’m at school, especially because it is a specific kind of facilitation that I’m really interested in. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to be able to try out these tools …
Piloting Wings: Challenge Sprints pt 1
At ALC Mosaic, we’ve mostly used “Roots” and “Branches” to distinguish between our locations and the programs/ages that they serve. However, in that separation, there’s also some distinctions in how our ALC model is applied. These variations in application — what a Self-Directed Education looks like — are based on what is developmentally effective, needed, …
#AgileEdu Compass
Agile in Education Global Scrum Gathering
Last week I spent four days in Orlando, FL collaborating with a dozen other folks who are working with Agile practices in Education at the Scrum Alliance Global Scrum Gathering. Most of us met for the first time on Sunday morning, then the group almost doubled in size on Monday, adding even more new faces …
#OneCampus Journey
It was about two years ago when Nancy and I started planning the first ALF Summer. We needed to find a space that would work for the program, and Mosaic needed a bigger space for the school, as it was outgrowing the double-wide trailer where it all began. Nancy found a great church rental in …
How to Know When It’s Right to Collaborate With Someone
“Hey, I’d love to collaborate with you!” For people who love to please others, are mostly inspired by the endless possibilities they see, or feel like they are overwhelmed and lacking too many abilities they need — it can be easy to welcome in too many people/too much collaboration. Then, it just becomes more work …
Getting an Education
This week I was pleased to finally nail down the dates (and one of the locations) for Peter Gray speaking events in NYC and Charlotte. I love Peter’s work and I’m super excited about having connected with him and some other great folks he’s working with these last few months. I hosted a couple of tours …
Scaling Trust: A ∆-Up to Change-Up
The ALC educational model is emergent, meaning it is constantly “coming into being”. Just like people, especially young people. When you build a framework for something that is supposed to serve people, by nature, it needs to be emergent. We’re just starting to realize this in our organizational, management, and general business practices. ALC is …
What I do: Part Deux
A year ago at our first ALF Weekend (October 2014) we did an exercise where we each mapped our work by answering the following questions, all in an ALC/ALF context: What do I do? What gives me juice? What do I want to do? What actions will I take to make these things happen? A …
ALC Membership: Sharing the vision, spreading the model, and supporting startups
When I decided to join @artbrock’s Emerging Leader Labs to develop the culture, vision, and brand of the ALC project, I brought with me a strong motivation to address the various challenges I experienced working in the alternative education world. I’ve written about this before so I won’t go into too much detail – but …