A Picture of Strong Leadership

Believe it or not, the image in the photo is that of strong leadership. Perhaps an explanation is in order.

Beginning in early January with Magnets and More and ending on the last Friday of February, magnet recruitment season is in full swing for Duval County Public School. At Julia Landon College Preparatory and Leadership Development School, the principal, Dr. Kelly Coker-Daniel, takes an active role in each recruitment activity along with other leadership team members. On rare occasion, Dr. CD is unable to be present for a tour and other leadership team members fill in for her. At the end of a recent tour when Dr. CD was at another district meeting, a parent remarked, "It is a sign of strong leadership when the principal doesn't have to be in the building to see what a good principal she is."

Leadership by example cultivates a picture of strong leadership.

Leadership in Action

One of our favorite things at Julia Landon is having visitors in the building. Giving our students an opportunity to share what they're learning and to demonstrate their leadership skills is important to us.

Recently, Dr. June Levy, representing American Education Solutions (AES), and Mr. Gary Bryan, representing the Duval County Magnet Office spent some time visiting with a group of teachers and students. As a recipient of federal grant monies to begin a new magnet program, implementation of the new program at Julia Landon is reviewed by AES and then reported to the Department of Education in Washington, D.C.. Dr. Levy will visit our school three times during the school year as the report is being prepared. During her last visit, she and Mr. Bryan visited the 8th grade Leadership in the Global World elective class as students explained their learning process and presented examples of their work.

These same students will present their work during the Leadership Symposium later in the spring. Watch for the date and time so you can be present and experience leadership in action by our 8th grade students.

Great Minds Come Together

Students from Julia Landon College Prep and Leadership Development School have just completed this year's Science Fair Competition.

Students have worked for weeks researching problems, searching for possible solutions, creating experiments, and testing hypotheses before presenting their findings to classmates and teachers. The best of the best projects from each science class were entered into the final competition. After careful scrutinizing from independent judges, winners from the school competition will make last minute adjustments to their work and be entered in the Duval County Regional Competition. Good luck! Now that Science Fair is over, what's next? History Fair!

MEETING Tomorrow's Leaders Today ...

On Saturday, January 10, 2009, it was reported that 7,000-8,000 excited children and their parents crowded into the Exhibition Hall of the Jacksonville Fair Grounds to experience Magnets and More. Parents were treated to smorgasbord of educational opportunity delights as they prepare to make enlightened school choice decisions for the coming year. Along with each Dreams Begin Here magnet school, Julia Landon College Prep and Leadership Development School was there to answer questions and welcome prospective students. In the photo, assistant principal Dr. Nekeshia Cummings is seen discussing our magnet theme with a group of parents. Behind Dr. Cummings is another group of parents watching a video presentation created by our students. From 11 A.M. until 3 P.M., membership team leaders and Student Ambassadors answered questions and distributed more than 900 pieces of print information as they demonstrated leadership by example.

Business Partners Assisting Students

Just before our Winter Break, members from the Downtown Chamber of Commerce spent time in the Julia Landon auditorium reviewing Leadership in the Global Community projects. Students from Ms. Peacock-Preston's 8th grade leadership class have been working on their culminating projects for the class and are ready to add the finishing touches. Business Partner members, each with experience and expertise in multi-media presentations, reviewed individual projects with students and offered meaningful suggestions as students prepare their work for the spring Leadership Symposium on May 8th. We thank our Business Partners from the Downtown Chamber of Commerce for demonstrating leadership by example.

Thanksgiving Synergy

Our Covey Habit for the last two weeks has been synergy. Synergy means that we can accomplish much more when we work together as a group than we can when we work alone. The photo at the left is an example of synergy in action. On Friday, November 21, our coaches challenged their P.E. classes to bring a food item to share with a needy family during the season of Thanksgiving. The photo represents a small portion of the food items which were gathered over a two day period which will be shared with not one, but three families. Thanks to the leadership of our coaches and the synergy of our students, three families will have a brighter Thanksgiving than they might otherwise have had. This is just one more example of the kind of leadership by example that happens on a daily basis at Julia Landon. Happy Thanksgiving.

Learning by Doing

ILT Matthew MacLeod, Drug Demand Reduction Regional Representative, from the National Guard has been teaching a series of leadership classes with our 7th grade students. ILT MacLeod (far right) is pictured with a group of students involved in an activity putting loyalty, honesty, and integrity into practice. Students are learning the importance of setting the right example for others by the way they lead their own lives. Loyalty, honesty, and integrity are qualities we expect in those who would be leaders, and practice makes perfect.