North Carolina School Executive Competencies
Jessica Currin
Competency Description
Communication Effectively listens to others; clearly
and effectively presents and
understands information orally and
in writing; acquires, organizes,
analyzes, interprets, and
maintains information needed to
achieve school or team 21st
century objectives
Change Effectively engages staff and
Management community in the change process
in a manner that ensures their
support of the change and its
successful implementation.
Conflict Anticipates or seeks to resolve
Management confrontations, disagreements, or
complaints in a constructive
manner
Creative Thinking Engages in and fosters an
environment for others to engage
in innovative thinking.
Artifact/Summary
Admin Memo
SHS Master Calendar
As principal resident at Sanderson High School, I
have helped create and maintain clear structures
for communication with the staff. I am
responsible for gathering information, creating
the admin memo, and sending it out each week
to the staff. This memo includes important dates,
events, shout outs, and information the staff
needs to know for the upcoming week. I also
created a master calendar for staff that includes
scheduled meetings for the year.
LHMES PLT and Special Schedule
LHMES PLT Agenda
During my first year of grad school, I helped the
staff at Lincoln Heights Magnet Elementary
School change their PLT process. I worked with
each PLT to deliver professional development as
well as county and school PLT expectations. I
created an agenda that would support their work
in PLTs.
Weekly Staff Checkout
As the principal resident at Sanderson, my
principal mentor and I discussed different ways
to gather feedback from the staff about issues or
concerns. We came up with the idea for a weekly
staff checkout google form. This form allowed
staff to submit issues or concerns anonymously.
Only the admin had access to the results from
the form. During our weekly admin team
meetings, we discussed the questions/concerns
and shared information/answers with the staff
through the weekly admin memo.
MTSS PD and Protocol
As principal resident, I worked with the API and
our district MTSS coach to create and deliver
professional development about the MTSS
components. The majority of our staff did not
know the MTSS components. We used a jigsaw
and gallery walk protocol to have groups read
about a component and come up with how this
component is currently being implemented at

Customer Focus Understands the students as
customers of the work of
schooling and the servant nature
of leadership and acts
accordingly.
Delegation Effectively assigns work tasks to
others in ways that provide
learning experiences for them and
in ways that ensure the efficient
operation of the school.
Dialogue/Inquiry Is skilled in creating a risk-free
environment for engaging people
in conversations that explore
issues, challenges or bad
relationships that are hindering
school performance
SHS. We then had teachers brainstorm what it
would look like, feel like, and sound like if this
component was being fully implemented at SHS.
Student Ally Database
At SHS, our students are our most important
asset! Without them, our work would be
meaningless. The staff works hard to build
relationships with all students. We want each
student to have a positive connection to at least
one staff member. As a staff, we created and
had each student take a student ally survey. This
survey allowed each student to list up to three
staff members they could go to for anything. We
compiled the data and shared with the staff. The
staff could search for their name and see who
thought of them as an ally. We used this
information to see which student did not have an
ally and then take steps to intentionally connect
with that particular student.
SHS Duty Schedule
Tardy Duty Assignments
As principal resident, I worked with one of the
assistant principals at the beginning of the year
to create duty schedules. These schedules took
in to account each individual teachers’ schedule
as well as balancing duties across staff
members. These schedules ensured safety and
security for our students.
Weekly Staff Checkout
Circle Keepers Training
As the principal resident at Sanderson, my
principal mentor and I discussed different ways
to engage staff members in conversations that
explore issues or concerns. We came up with
the idea for a weekly staff checkout google form.
This form allowed staff to submit issues or
concerns anonymously. Only the admin had
access to the results from the form. During our
weekly admin team meetings, we discussed the
questions/concerns and shared
information/answers with the staff through the
weekly admin memo.
At the beginning of the year when I was principal
resident at Ligon Magnet Middle School, I
attended the WCPSS two-day circle keepers
training in order to help manage the
social-emotional needs of our students. This

Emotional Is able to manage oneself through
Intelligence self-awareness and
self-management and is able to
manage relationships through
empathy, social awareness, and
relationship management. This
competency is critical to building
strong, transparent, trusting
relationships throughout the
school community.
Environmental Becomes aware and remains
Awareness informed of external and internal
trends, interests and issues with
potential impacts on school
policies, practices, procedures,
and positions.
Global Perspective Understands the competitive
nature of the new global economy
and is clear about the knowledge
and skills students will need to be
successful in this economy.
Judgment Effectively reaching logical
conclusions and making
high-quality decisions based on
available information. Giving
priority and caution to significant
issues. Analyzing and interpreting
complex information.
training allows students and staff to engage in
conversations in a safe environment. I look
forward to using this practice when I am a school
leader.
Emotional Intelligence
Shout-Outs!
During my principal residency, I worked hard to
build authentic relationships with each staff
member built on care and trust. I used
information I learned in Dr. Wirt’s Emotional
Intelligence training as well as Daniel Goleman’s
Emotional Intelligence ​to help me manage
myself.
I helped staff members at LHMES manage
relationships through the sharing of “shout-outs”
where we celebrated each other.
LEA Training
Student Due Process Training
As principal resident, I participated in several
trainings such as LEA training and Student Due
Process training to stay informed of policies and
practices that impact the school environment on
a daily basis. It is important for me to continually
participate in professional development
opportunities to strengthen my skills and
understandings.
Reading Apprenticeship Walkthrough Tool
It is imperative that students have the skills
needed to be successful in the ever-changing
21st century. Literacy is a skill that is critical for
students to possess and it must be incorporated
across all disciplines. As part of my problem of
practice, I worked with the biology teachers at
SHS to incorporate the Reading Apprenticeship
program in their lessons. This program
emphasizes the importance of literacy skills in all
content areas at the secondary level.
SHS 2018 TWC Results
Prior to my mentor principal moving into the
leadership role at SHS in September, she and I
looked at recent data to make decisions about
what issues we would work on first. After
analyzing TWC results, academic data, discipline
data, and conversations with teachers, it was
decided that we would focus on building a
positive culture, communication practices, as

Organizational Effectively plans and schedules
Ability one’s own and the work of others
so that resources are used
appropriately, such as scheduling
the flow of activities and
establishing procedures to monitor
projects.
Personal Ethics and Consistently exhibits high
Values standards in the areas of honesty,
integrity, fairness, stewardship,
trust, respect, and confidentiality.
Personal Proactively and continuously
Responsibility for improves performance by focusing
Performance on needed areas of improvement
and enhancement of strengths;
actively seeks and effectively
applies feedback from others;
takes full responsibility for one’s
own achievements.
Responsiveness Does not leave issues, inquiries or
requirements for information go
unattended. Creates a clearly
delineated structure for
responding to requests/situations
in an expedient manner.
well as student discipline.
SHS Master Meeting Calendar
SHS Staff Site
I am an extremely organized person and keep
track of all my tasks in my personal calendar
each day. I understand that each day is
unpredictable and not all tasks can be
accomplished each day. I learned to frontload
my week with walkthroughs and observations. I
created a master meeting calendar for the staff
so they knew at the beginning of the year when
important meetings were scheduled for the year.
I also helped maintain the SHS staff site each
day with up to date information.
Observation Feedback
As a person and school leader, I strive to model
honesty, integrity, fairness, stewardship, trust,
respect, and confidentiality each day. It is
important for my actions to reflect my values at
all times. During post-conferences, it was very
important to be honest with feedback while
maintaining trust, respect, and confidentiality.
Due to the sensitive nature of observations, this
artifact is only accessible by NCSU program
evaluators.
Magnet Tour Feedback
During my first year of graduate school, I was the
magnet coordinator at Lincoln Heights Magnet
Elementary School. As a brand new magnet
school launching our program, it was essential
that I continuously sought and used feedback
about our program. I created a magnet tour
feedback survey and sent it to every person that
came on a tour. I used this feedback to
continuously make changes to my practices
Weekly Staff Checkout
As the principal resident at Sanderson, my
principal mentor and I discussed different ways
to gather feedback from the staff about issues or
concerns. We came up with the idea for a weekly
staff checkout google form. This form allowed
staff to submit issues or concerns anonymously.
Only the admin had access to the results from
the form. During our weekly admin team
meetings, we discussed the questions/concerns
and shared information/answers with the staff
through the weekly admin memo.
Results Orientation Effectively assumes responsibility.
Recognizes when a decision is
required. Takes prompt action as
issues emerge. Resolves
short-term issues while balancing
them against long-term goals.
Sensitivity Effectively perceives the needs
and concerns of others; deal
tactfully with others in emotionally
stressful situations or in conflict.
Knows what information to
communicate and to whom.
Relates to people of varying
ethnic, cultural, and religious
backgrounds.
Systems Thinking Understands the Interrelationships
and impacts of school and district
influences, systems and external
stakeholders, and applies that
understanding to advancing the
achievement of the school or
team.
Academic Language PD - Ligon
During the summer of 2019 when I was principal
resident at Ligon Magnet Middle School, I
worked closely with one of the assistant
principals and an academic language coach from
WCPSS to use academic data to design our
professional development plan for the year. We
decided that academic language across
disciplines was a focus that was needed at
Ligon. We assumed responsibility for planning
and delivering this professional development to
the staff throughout the year. We created short
and long term goals around student achievement
while planning this professional development
plan.
Remote Learning Q&A Google Sheet
During the COVID-19 pandemic, our staff was
very uneasy and had lots of questions regarding
the implementation of remote learning. The
admin team collaborated and met virtually most
days to discuss the most recent information from
DPI and WCPSS. I created a question and
answer google document and sent it out to the
staff so they had a central place to put any and
all questions. The admin team reviewed the
questions daily and gave the most up to date
information/answers we could share. We made
sure that staff knew there would be hiccups and
mistakes made during this transition and we
wanted them to know that was OKAY!
Crisis Team - Student Death
Student Recruitment Tours
Understanding the interrelationships of school
and district influences is an important
competency for school leaders to possess.
When we had a student death at SHS, I saw
firsthand how many different people come
together to make necessary decisions while
supporting our school community. We got word
that a student had died at 10:00 one evening and
the crisis team immediately went into action. We
worked with the WCPSS crisis team to set up a
staff meeting for the following morning. We
worked with the WCPSS communications
department to send out a district-approved letter
to families. We worked with our school crisis
team to organize what teachers would say to
students and when they would read a prepared
statement.

Technology Effectively utilizes the latest
technologies to continuously
improve the management of the
school and enhance student
instruction.
Time Management Effectively uses available time to
complete work tasks and activities
that lead to the achievement of
desired work or school results.
Runs effective meetings.
Visionary Encourages Imagineering by
creating an environment and
structure to capture stakeholders
dreams of what the school could
become for all students
Our SHS student recruitment tours required
systems thinking to include a variety of voices to
attract new students. We used staff and students
from different departments and clubs to give
information and answer questions from
prospective parents and students.
Virtual Staff Meeting
Through Dr. Lodge McCammon’s training, I
learned skills and strategies to flip instruction for
staff and students. One example of this was
when I created a virtual staff meeting for the
SHS staff. I realized while creating our February
faculty meeting agenda that we did not have a lot
of information to cover and it may not be the best
use of everyone’s time to come together for 15
minutes. I approached my mentor principal about
creating a virtually recorded staff meeting and
she told me to go for it. I recorded the few
presenters sharing their information and then
used iMovie to put together our virtual faculty
meeting. The staff was very appreciative.
Biology PLT Agenda
Meeting and Activity Log
Time management is a strength of mine. It is
important for a school leader to manage their
time to complete the myriad of tasks and
meetings. The biology PLT agenda is an
example of how I structured a meeting with the
biology teachers to ensure the most efficient use
of everyone’s time. It is critical to honor
everyone’s time.
My meeting and activity log shows the variety of
experiences I have had during my principal
residency.
Personal Vision Statement
Establishing School Culture
My personal vision statement is how I will lead a
school to ensure a positive environment where
all students succeed at high levels!
My school culture plan is how I will build a
positive school culture and capture the voices of
all stakeholders during my first year as the
school leader.