Educational Leadership - Model The Way, Walk The Talk

Summary: Join C.T. and guest Kirk Koennecke, CEO Superintendent of Indian Hill Exempted Village School District in Ohio, as they discuss how Indian Hill’s IH Promise shapes a culture of whole-child development and leadership. This conversation highlights how the district uses student voice, common leadership language, and industry best practices to build problem solvers and leaders from kindergarten through high school, empowering both students and staff to thrive in a changing world.

Key Takeaways:

• Indian Hill’s “IH Promise” is a strategic commitment to whole-child development, focusing on growing learners who are problem solvers, critical thinkers, and leaders at every grade level.
• The district gathers student feedback from kindergarten through 12th grade using developmentally appropriate methods like surveys, focus groups, and roundtable discussions to ensure student voice shapes learning priorities.
• A common leadership language is taught across all grade levels, scaffolding skills in problem solving, character, and decision-making that evolve as students progress.
• Hiring and retaining “the world’s finest” educators is central, with personalized professional learning that empowers staff to model leadership and problem-solving for students.
• Indian Hill integrates best practices from industry leaders and executive coaching models (e.g., Blanchard, Covey, Maxwell) to inform educational leadership and prepare students for real-world success.
• The district emphasizes leadership and communication skills as essential, enduring “soft skills” that support lifelong success amid rapidly changing technical demands.
• Project-based learning and localized curricula allow teachers to embed leadership language and skills in relevant, contextualized ways.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

1:25 Background on Indian Hill Exempted Village School District and Kirk Koennecke

3:15 The IH Promise: A Strategic Commitment to Whole-Child Development

5:30 Gathering Student Feedback (K-12)

8:48 Making Feedback Actionable in the Classroom

11:06 Building a Common Leadership Language

14:29 Hiring, Attracting, and Retaining the World's Finest Educators

18:53 Modeling the Way and Walking the Talk: Leading by Example

21:08 Applying Best Practices from Industry

27:16 Navigating Rapidly Changing Technical Demands

30:11 Adapting Best Practices to the Education Context

35:01 Staff Response and Buy-In

Connect with CT: linkedin.com/in/cheetung

Connect with Kirk Koennecke: linkedin.com/in/kirk-koennecke-493798176

Music Credit: Shake it Up - Fesliyanstudios.com - David Renda



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