Running head: Professional Assessment 1

Professional Assessment and Growth Plan

Vanessa Lebrasseur

ECC 509: Preparation for Professional Growth

Master of Education in Leadership

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Effective and successful leaders possess admirable skills which enhance their vision and

the way they lead their team. Great educational leaders hold a commitment to lifelong learning,

and they’re always keeping themselves, and their team, accountable for advancements. As a

leader, you have the ability to inspire and enhance your team's educational experience so that

they want to continue optimizing school success and personal growth. Being a school leader,

you should always have excellent communication skills and clearly articulate your vision with

your team every chance you get. Doris L. Wilson (2011) states “The principal consistently

communicated the vision for the school, and it was discussed at the opening of faculty meetings”

(p. 2). Having your vision clearly articulated will help your school achieve success. Making

sure your team feels heard and supported is crucial to building a positive school culture.

Providing them with opportunities to be heard and having open, concise communication will

allow the school to work towards a common goal; your school’s vision.

Successful leaders take the time to self- reflect to quickly identify their strengths and

areas of growth. Personality testing is an adequate way to define different areas to develop and

find the areas where you consistently excel. Asking for feedback from your team or colleagues

is also a great way to grow, although it can be difficult, it is an authentic way to learn about your

leadership style.

Our principal holds many of the above qualities. She is always reading about the latest

research and is extremely knowledgeable. One area that I admire the most is how well she can

keep a calm demeanor in any situation. During a professional development day, we worked on

the True Colors workshop as one of our team building activities. True Colors workshop is a

personality test that puts your personality traits in 1 of 4 colors. The test gave our team a

fantastic opportunity; it allowed us to understand each other from another level. My principle
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was green and that signifies “Psychological research has shown the color Green to have a

calming effect, and many Greens demonstrate a composed demeanor using mind over emotion to

orchestrate and solve the mysteries of life” (Lowry, n.d, para. 8). Green couldn’t have been more

accurate for her, sometimes it is difficult to know what she is thinking, but I think this quality is

essential in a leadership role. She is someone who will process everything that is said and will

answer confidently. This shows me that no matter the question asked, she takes it seriously.

Our vice principal is orange “Orange encourages a playful atmosphere of activity and

movement” (Lowry, n.d, para. 6). Our vice principal is always full of positive energy and gets

conversations flowing. I believe that both of their personality types complement each other in a

work environment.

Blue and gold were very close together when I completed the True Colors workshop.

Blue signifies “The figure of speech referring to “True Blues” takes on the meaning of

friendship, helpers, “there when you need them” individuals that will go the extra mile for

others” (Lowry, n.d, para. 9). This color does perfectly explain the way I am as a friend and

person. I can be sensitive at times and feel very empathetic for others. I want to make sure that

everyone around me is happy. Although blue holds many important qualities, there could also be

areas of growth when it comes to having a leadership role in a school. I will have to be green at

times and keep a calm demeanor in certain situations. I will have to understand that not

everyone will agree with decisions I make or will try to challenge me in different situations.

Gold signifies “The expression “Solid Gold work ethic” conjures up an image of

someone who is very responsible… on time, organized, fulfills their obligations with stellar

dependability, efficiency and thoroughness” (Lowry, n.d, para. 7). I believe that this color is an

excellent example of my work ethic. I am always fully prepared, and I’m known to be very
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organized. Gold has enhanced my leadership roles within the building. The True colors

workshop was a great way to understand your colleagues.

To dig deeper, I completed the 16 Personalities test and identified as The Consul. As a

consul I tend to be very extroverted, I’m easily excited, I love meeting new people and being

around others. The consul personality trait means that we tend to be highly practical and down-

to-earth. Just like my True Color workshop, the 16 personalities test also identified how I could

be sensitive and empathic. It also brought up how consuls are decisive, thorough and highly

organized which is a strong area for me.

As I continue to attain different leadership roles around my school and division, I find it

very important to self-reflect and look for areas of strengths and improvements. An important

personality trait that I possess and that I believe will benefit me in a leadership role is how I can

work with anyone. I love meeting new people, collaborating and can quickly adapt to different

personalities. I continuously visit with staff members as I think it’s important to build

relationships and make connections. “Don’t wait for someone to come to you. Instead, get out

and get involved. Just think of yourself as the ice cream truck of your school!” (Whitaker, 2013,

p. 98). Finding something heartwarming in every individual I meet, is essential to me. Making

strong connections will help you build trust and honest friendships. Another strength that I

possess is the ability to be flexible and implement new innovative research in my classroom. I’m

a dedicated lifelong learner, and I’m always open to trying new and practical ideas. During

various acting admin duties, I have been able to identify some other strengths such as making

decisions on the spot, being able to work in fun and challenging environments. I’m also a very

organized person who enjoys being busy with many different duties. Being proactive and

motivated is an area that will be beneficial in an administration position as you are assigned
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many different responsibilities. I also like to take the initiative and I’m always looking for ways

to grow.

It’s important to identify your strengths but to grow as a leader you must identify your

areas of growth and build upon them. An area of growth for me that I will have to possess as an

administrator is being able to facilitate conversations and being the head of meetings. I have

been trying to grow in this area by taking the initiative and looking for opportunities to improve.

I am now part of the assembly committee where I have a strong lead, and I’m the teacher advisor

for my school, I’m leading our CRM meetings, I am a technology coach, and do acting admin

duties. I am also a Freshgrade coach, Freshgrade is our new online portfolio software that we

have implemented at our school. I support teachers with their questions and provide ideas for

assessments. Having these different responsibilities has helped me grow as a person, an

educator, and a leader. I feel a lot more confident when I stand in front of a group or leading

assemblies.

A personality trait that I will have to work hard on is not being so vulnerable. I tend to

wear my heart on sleeve and can also be sensitive. There will be times in my career where I will

have crucial conversations and deal with conflicts. I want to make sure that these conflicts will

be constructive to advance our team towards our goals. In the book called The Five

Dysfunctions of Team, it states, “People need to weigh in before they buy in” (Lencioni, 2010,

audiobook, track 4). If my team has those constructive conflicts, that will show me that they are

comfortable and have trust in our team. I can already see growth in this area, but I will need to

continue working on it. Being an administrator, you need to stay strong. You will have to

accept criticism and have crucial confrontations.

I’m excited and look forward to life long learning and advancement in educational
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leadership. I will hold an unwavering commitment to build on current responsibilities in the

areas of leadership to strengthen and improve communities in schools. As an aspiring leader, I

will continue to involve myself in administration duties, professional development and

leadership opportunities. I want to find ways to keep growing in the areas that are challenging

for me.
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References

(©2011-2017 NERIS Analytics Limited). (nd). 16 personalities. Retrieved from

https://www.16personalities.com/profiles/a58f5e23873b1

Lencioni, P. (2010). The five dysfunctions of a team: A leadership fable. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-

Bass A Wiley Imprint.

Lowry, D. (nd). TRUE COLORS® INTL. Retrieved from https://truecolorsintl.com/about-us/what-

is-true-colors/

Whitaker, T. (2013). What great principles do differently: Eighteen things that matter most. New

York, NY: Routledge.

Wilson. L. D. (2011). Successful education leadership at high performing schools. US-China

Education Review 8(3), 393-398.