Final Reflection

Meghan Carter
Minnesota State University Moorhead

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 Final Reflection

When I began the Educational Leadership program in the Fall of 2018, I had recently

rediscovered my passion for environmental education and working with students in higher

education. Throughout my undergraduate career, I thought that I wanted to be on the research

side of conservation; I wanted to be out in the field collecting data, making observations, and

writing about my research. Through many challenging experiences and internships during my

undergraduate program I decided to shift my focus towards education, more specifically

environmental education. I have worked at a nature center, in an early childhood care center, and

even outdoors at parks and nature preserves across North and South Dakota. While completing

my communications and engagement fellowship at Audubon Dakota, I decided to enroll in a

master’s program that would give me the teaching and leadership skills I lacked. Thus, my

2 journey in the Educational Leadership program began. I knew that I wanted to purse more
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leadership roles upon completion of my program, and this program exceeded my expectations. I

desired to learn how to design curriculum, understand law and policy, and learn how to provide

educational programs for a diverse audience, to name just few – I feel as though I have truly

grown as a leader through this program. Below are my reflections for each MN Core

Administrative Competency, and how the Educational Leadership course work, my practicum

experience, and my work as an educator has drastically improved from my pre-assessment I

completed for ED 695A.

Leadership

Leadership has been a constant theme throughout all of the courses I have taken at

MSUM. Every course highlighted a new topic of leadership or provided me with an opportunity

to identify my leadership skills. When I first began the program, leadership was an area of
 growth I intended to focus on. I chose to enroll in the Educational Leadership program because I

was seeking to grow as a leader -- not a manager. Especially as an educator, this program

provided me the unique opportunity to develop in my career while also improving as teacher and

mentor to other students in higher education.

Perhaps one of the most important leadership lessons I learned was discovering my

leadership strengths and utilizing those strengths to be a better co-worker and program facilitator,

whether it's inside or outside of the classroom. I have always been someone who seeks to resolve

conflict and prefers to find a common ground when problems occur. Additionally, my leadership

style pushes me to collaborate with others. I value the opinion and ideas of my peers as well as

understand that I cannot do it all. Successful leaders need to build a team that supports their

weaknesses and inspires creativity. This program exceeded my expectations; I am more

3 confident in my ability to be a leader. So much so, I have been promoted at work and have taken
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many more leadership roles within my organization.  

Organizational Management

My experiences in class, during my practicum, and in my personal life have taught me a

lot regarding the management of an organization. In class I developed an appreciation for the

complex organizational structure that higher education institutions require. From administrators,

to student affairs professionals, and professors, each department functions within their own

budgets, plans, and management structures. Throughout my practicum experience, I was

introduced to the organizational structure that funds and facilitates student programs like the

MSUM Oceanarium. As a student led club, the Oceanarium is eligible for funding from the

student activities funds in addition to funding from the Biosciences Department. Unfortunately,

due to the Oceanarium's status as a student led club, funding is not always guaranteed, especially
 when there are budget cuts. To help manage the budget of the Oceanarium, I assisted the student

volunteers with submitting a grant for funding and helped them build connections with local

community groups to bring educational programs to the Oceanarium as a way to increase

revenue. Budgeting is challenging task for managers. My practicum offered me first-hand

experience in growing in this competency and learning new skills as a manager. 

Diversity Leadership

Leadership of higher education institutions should cultivate diversity. Higher education is

no longer singularly dominated by one gender and cultural background. Through my classes, I

was introduced to the history of higher education institutions. I believe it is no coincidence that

higher education has evolved and continues to do so due to increased diversity on college and

university campuses. As a female minority member myself, I understand first hand the positive

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impacts diversity can have for an organization. Additionally, leaders support diversity because

increased diversity often benefits organizational changes. Similarly, many higher education

institutions value inclusion, likely for a this reason. As a society, education is the foundation of

democracy. Diversity in turn provides opportunity for all groups. Without inclusion, there is no

change. Change, especially within an educational system, supports new developments and

discoveries. 

Policy and Law

My initial assessment of my own competency in policy and law was not good: I felt I

knew very little about policies and laws. So, I was hesitant to enroll in courses where policy and

law were the focus. For example, ED 631: Educational Law and Organizational Structure of

Education was a challenging but rewarding course. I now feel like I have a solid understanding
 of educational law and policy. The legal briefs and analysis I conducted throughout the course

provided me with a firm understanding of why particular laws exists and how this aspect of

education continues to change with current educational issues. I would not consider myself fully

competent in this topic quite yet, because I have yet to personally deal with any legal or policy

issues directly.  Now, I am more aware of these issues and feel much confident in my

knowledge regrading laws and policies. 

Political Influence and Governance

Although I do not have a traditional classroom teaching background, I do work

consistently with teachers and school administrators for my educational programs.

Understanding the politics of the educational system is a skill I had been introduced to but had

yet to view those politics from the perspective of a leader. All school systems have their own

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culture, much like every office or business does, and knowing how to navigate the culture and

politics of an educational system allows one to understand how particular groups will be

impacted. An understanding of an institution's policies includes the ability to persuade

stakeholders and administrators with the reasons as to why the development of a program is

beneficial and would align well with the existing policies. This ability to negotiate, as a leader,

will help me to build both programmatic and financial support. 

Communication

My communication skills have often been a weakness of mine. As a leader, I lacked the

confidence to speak up and voice my opinion or argue a concern. As a leadership competency, I

looked forward to developing my communication skills and abilities throughout my classes.

Additionally, my transition from communications and engagement fellow to assistant gave me

 opportunities to utilize the presentation skills, problem solving strategies, and facilitation skills

that I have developed throughout my classes.

As a leadership competency, clear and consistent communication is vital to success. This

creates transparency and ensures that messages being shared are understood. Furthermore, I

discovered that my leadership strengths are often at their best when I am leading a project or

program that I am passionate about. Utilizing those communication skills even during a less

exciting time will be valuable to growing my communication competency.  

Community Relations

Between my Educational Leadership classes and my work as the Communications and

Engagement Assistant for Audubon Dakota, community relations is a competency I have grown

in. As a communicator for a non-profit organization, transparency in our work is paramount.

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Similar to higher education institutions, building and maintaining community support will help

non-profit programs grow. Additionally, through a consistent presence on social media, regularly

published press releases, and events open to the public, a positive image can be relayed to the

community. The educational leadership program has pushed me to be a leader in community

engagement and outreach among my co-workers. Throughout my course work I discovered that

positive community relations lead to successfully articulated goals and increased support for an

organization's work. Community outreach is even more important for growing the outreach and

education programs at Audubon Dakota. Growing public support has helped me find more

volunteers and financial support for our conservation programs. 

 Curriculum Planning and Development for the Success of All Learners

With my non-traditional teaching background, my experiences with curriculum planning

were very limited when I began the Educational Leadership Program. Prior to beginning the

program I had assisted with developing educational nature-based programs for both school aged

children and adults at the Dodge Nature Center during my Naturalist Fellowship. I contributed to

the design and implementation of educational nature-based programs.  In order to ensure that

school groups would return every year, each program was designed to meet curriculum

standards. More specifically, each program consisted of a curriculum and planning guide to

ensure teaching goals were met and activities were completed. This was my first introduction to

curriculum planning.

In combination with my prior knowledge of curriculum planning and development and

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educational leadership coursework, I have been able to successfully create and implement

programs for all learners. For example, the ED 793 course covered topics regarding multi-

cultural curriculum reform; thus, I take into consideration the various ethnic cultural groups'

backgrounds when creating and presenting programs, so they can be accessible. I plan to

continue to grow in this competency by assisting with the development of bi-lingual outdoor

education programs at Audubon.

As a non-traditional classroom teacher I value the use of technology, even when teaching

outdoors. Understanding how technology can impact outcomes and differentiate learning was

one idea I had not considered. Programs like iNaturalist and ebird have been integrated into my

curriculum planning and have helped make my programs more accessible and interesting.  
 Instructional Management for the Success of All Learners

Having limited prior experiences of curriculum development, the Educational Leadership

classes gave me a new appreciation for curriculum development and the ability to include

diversity in program lessons. My practicum experience helped me to demonstrate my complete

understanding of this competency. By taking on a leadership role in program design for the

MSUM Oceanarium. Before creating programs for the Oceanarium, I conducted research to

determine the best methods and activities for integrating curriculum into my outreach programs.

Additionally, my practicum experience introduced me to utilizing technology that was either new

or uniquely utilized to support my instruction in a novel way. For example, I introduced students

to iNaturalist and Canva in order to better support my instruction. 

As a non-traditional classroom teacher, I value the use of technology, even when teaching

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outdoors. Understanding how technology can impact outcomes and differentiate learning was

one idea I had not considered. Programs like iNaturalist and ebird have been integrated into my

curriculum planning.  

Human Resource Management

As a volunteer manager and recruiter for Audubon Dakota, I have been exposed to the

world of human resource management. I have worked along side volunteers and sat in on the

hiring process for seasonal employees. Additionally, as a leader it is critical to incorporate staff

development course and events, so coworkers can hone their skills and improve their

productivity and performance.

My educational law course taught me the proper protocols and legalities that go into

hiring coworkers and working with volunteers. My seminar course introduced me to the various
 personality types and structures of organizations. With the knowledge I learned from the course,

I now have a much better understanding of how to approach staff development, personnel

recruitment, and develop trust. Successful leaders need their people to trust in their leadership, so

the organization can work together as a cohesive unit. 

Values and Ethics of Leadership

Education is arguably the cornerstone of a well-functioning democratic society.

Throughout my various leadership roles, I would characterize my leadership with the adage:

"lead by example."  As a leader, my values and ethics alone do not guide students. Rather,

students observe and emulate my behavior. Dissonance between what I say and what I do is

directly reflected by the behaviors and attitudes of my students. I try to assist all of students with

developing into caring and informed citizens by not only teaching stewardship and respect for all

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by practicing these imperatives myself. The ED 634 course taught me, even though it is

often difficult or maybe not the easiest thing to do, doing what is right is in my best interest and

in the best interest of my students. 

Judgement and Problem Analysis

From the beginning of my educational leadership program, I have viewed this competency as

one of my strengths. As an outdoor educator, I am always prepared to adapt and am willing to be

flexible with programming if a problem or "situation" were to occur. This was perhaps one of my

favorite competencies to study and practice. Through the ED 632 course, I learned to step back at

times, especially during my outreach programs, and allow the students to form their own

opinions which can help identify if anyone is struggling.

 My practicum experience in the MSUM Oceanarium pushed me to explore and utilize

new technology in analyzing problems. I learned how to develop new outreach programs for a

diverse audience using programs like iNaturalist and ebird. I also discovered new ways to find

and fix a problem in my organization. 

Safety and Security

The final competency focuses on safety and security - an absolute strength of mine. I

implemented new safety policies and procedures for tours and outreach programs during my

practicum experience in the Oceanarium, due in large part to the course work I completed in

courses like ED 630. Leaders play a critical role in the safety of others and need to know how to

identify potential threats or hazards. Safety is always critical but even more so in educational

programs facilitated outdoors. Outdoor education program designs should include some aspects

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safety protocols and rules, so students know what is expected of them from the get-go. My

coursework provided me examples of what those safety protocols should look like. When

students participate in a program outdoors and with live animals, they should feel a sense of

security knowing safety is a top priority because we covered rules and guidelines before the

class. Ultimately, I want to create a safe learning environment, so that students can feel

comfortable enough to participate and learn.     

Conclusion

In these past two years I have experienced a remarkable amount change, both

academically and personally. I began a journey on a new career path and started and finished my

master’s degree. I have grown as a leader and educator, through my course work I have

developed a new found appreciation for curriculum and program development, higher education,
 and of course leadership. I love teaching and I especially love to teach about the natural world.

The communities we live in and the educational system is complex and often times difficult to

navigate, but I have learned how to adapt to a diverse community groups and a constantly

changing educational environment. I truly am looking forward to utilizing what I have learned

throughout the Educational Leadership program as an environmental educator and leader.

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