June 2026 Board Quick Tips | Time for Communication, Reflection & Preparation
Take time in the coming weeks to celebrate your school community's achievements and reflect on the year's successes and challenges. Remember that after the last school bell rings, there's still a bit of work to do. Families are looking for clear communication at the end of the school year and throughout the summer. School websites and social media platforms can be some of the most powerful tools schools have to keep families…
Use AI to Build Your Entire PD Roadmap for Next Year
My name is William Grube. I’ll be speaking about AI at EdCon on June 22. As you work through the “Identify PD Goals for Next Year” section of the MASSP June Principal’s Checklist, this article gives you a process you can use with AI to build a year-long PD scope and sequence. Principals know what needs to improve next year. The problem is turning scattered ideas, staff feedback, district goals, walkthrough trends,…
MASSP Region 1: Innovation in the 906 – Rooted in Community, Driven by Purpose
Innovation in education is often synonymous with new technology, devices or digital platforms. While those tools certainly play a role, across Michigan’s Upper Peninsula – Region 1 of MASSP – we are seeing a different and more meaningful definition take shape. Innovation here is not simply about what we use, but why we use it. It is about meeting the needs of our students in ways that are relevant, authentic and deeply…
M&Ms the Dynamic Duo: Leading through Legacy, Loss and Purpose
It all started with a phone call from my Executive Director, Ms. Lamis Srour, asking me to call her back when I was alone in a room. My heart immediately started racing. My mind quickly wandered. Did I do something wrong? Why does she need to speak to me privately? I dropped everything, walked into my office, and let her know I was ready to call. When I got her on the…
Stewards of Time: Why Michigan Principals are Prioritizing Hallway Visibility
For Michigan’s secondary school leaders, recent years have brought a sobering reality to the foreground. According to 2023–24 MDE data, while statewide attendance has seen a slight uptick to 90.8%, chronic absenteeism remains a significant hurdle. For high school principals, these numbers aren't just statistics; they represent empty desks and crowded hallways. We often treat "attendance" and "behavior" as two separate silos. But if you look at the daily reality of a…
Member Spotlight | Furkas Puts Students and Staff at the Center of Her Leadership
After more than two decades as a classroom social studies and English teacher, Jennifer Furkas made the move to administration, eventually becoming the Riverview Community High School Principal. “I still am really not sure how I became an administrator,” she said. “I think God just opens doors that you really kind of least expect and puts you in places that he wants you to be in. And yeah, so here I am.…
Regulation is Outpaced with Emerging Nicotine Innovations and Exposing Youth to Increased Public Health Risks.
Commercial tobacco companies[i] continue to transform their products, allowing them to evade regulation and policies. Circumventing regulation increases allurement to new and emerging tobacco products among youth, leading to addiction, adverse health effects, and rising public health concerns. Since 2007, electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS)/e-cigarettes have nearly tripled in nicotine strength (6% or greater), dropped in price by 70%, and have increased e-liquid compacity by twenty-nine times.[1] Historically, there has been low…
Representing Michigan, Returning from Washington, D. C., Inspired
When I was boarding the plane for the National Education Leadership Awards Conference, I had no idea what to expect. Upon arrival, I took a look at the conference schedule and saw very little “sit and get” and a lot of networking sessions. As a naturally introverted person, I was immediately concerned. However, that concern quickly evaporated when I started talking to the other award winners at the conference and realized I…
Leadership Lives Here | Building the Bench: Celebrating Districts Growing Leaders From Within
By Heidie Ciesielski, MASSP Associate Director of Leadership Preparation and Certification In a time when the education job market is lean and the search for strong administrator candidates is more competitive than ever, some districts are choosing not to wait for leadership talent to appear from the outside. Instead, they are building it from within – identifying promising educators, investing in their growth, and providing scholarships to aspiring leaders enrolling in Path…
To Graduation and Beyond: Helping Students Stick the Landing After Commencement
Commencement is a beautiful lift-off. Caps fly. Names echo. Families cheer. For a few shining hours, everything feels complete. But here’s the truth we don’t say out loud enough: Graduation is not the finish line, it’s the runway. Right now it might feel like a narrow balance beam. As principals, part of our leadership responsibility is not only to help students take off, but to ensure they can stick the landing in…