Taking The Leid

DAYTON-When the students of Dayton Elementary School achieved their reading goal, Principal Katie Leid spent the day on the roof.

"The kids brought me lunch up there," she says. "It was so much fun."

Fun is part of Leid's agenda at Dayton Elementary, and also as President of the Elementary School Principals Association of Washington (ESPAW). Leid's yearlong term as president began in April. She will preside over four board meetings throughout Washington state.

During board meetings, Leid and the other members of ESPAW share ideas on how to include fun in their curriculum. A principal from one school dressed up as Elvis for an assembly and sang, Leid says, laughing. One time, Leid and several administrative assistants dyed their hair three different colors.

But this is serious fun.

Leid set three goals to help to raise student achievement at Dayton Elementary, and to encourage principals throughout the state to do so as well. Her goals are to dream, to play, and to inspire.

"In our time of educational cutbacks, one of the things we need to do as principals is to help inspire our teachers to do whatever needs to be done to improve student learning," Leid says. "No matter what."

Technology plays an important role in Leid's presidential platform. What can we do to make learning fun and inspiring? What will schools look like in 2040?

Dayton Elementary has Smart Boards, which are interactive white boards with wireless mice. Students can answer questions with a click, which provides instant feedback for teachers.

"We need to find a way to engage them using technology, because that's where the kids are," Leid says. "[They] already think we are dinosaurs with technology."

Leid also hopes to incorporate cell phones into the classroom. Approximately 50 students had cell phones last year. Leid believes students should be able to use the phones for research if a computer isn't available. Students may also eventually be able to text answers to teachers.

ESPAW has helped Leid promote innovation at Dayton

Elementary.

"One of the reasons I got involved is because we're so isolated," she says.

Leid, who also served as a regional director for ESPAW for four years, says that being able to see what's happening at the state level has proved invaluable. Sharing news about policy changes and new learning methods with teachers helps her communicate the immediacy of what needs to be done to improve student learning.

Leid also cherishes the contacts and friends she has made through ESPAW. If she has a question or concern, she calls another ESPAW member.

As a President of ESPAW, Leid is involved with education on a national level. She recently went to Washington, D.C., with other executive officers of the Association of Washington School Principals (AWSP), which includes an elementary group, as well as middle school and high school principals.

The President-elect, Acting President and Past President of each group attends the National Association of Elementary School Principals' National Leaders Conference. Together, they "go to the hill" to lobby.

The group of principals focused on the important points of reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). ESEA is an extensive federal statute, which was originally enacted in 1965 by President Lyndon B. Johnson. The government has reauthorized the act every five years since then.

The current reauthorization is the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, created by President George Bush. ESEA is four years overdue from being authorized. Why?

"It's very political," says Leid.

The Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) measurements involve a number of punitive components that concern Leid. By 2014, 100% of all students, in all 50 states, must pass gradelevel exams on math and reading.

"That's never going to happen," says Leid. "There's just no way that all students can pass."

Leid says that even some of the most intelligent students are having trouble with the exam.

"They don't want to explain their work," she says.

A school has three options if some students fail the exam. In all three scenarios, the ESEA calls for eliminating the principal. In larger districts, the principal can be moved to another school. In smaller towns, such as Waitsburg and Dayton, there is nowhere to transfer. It is also difficult to replace a principal in rural areas.

" By all means, we should be held accountable," says Leid. "But we should base it on what we're actually doing - on the core competencies."

Washington State recently passed Senate Bill 6696, which provides for a new principal and teacher evaluation. Leid says the principals and teachers are taking a proactive approach implementing the new evaluation system. Kennewick and Pullman are running pilot programs.

Leid speaks about the new evaluation options with evident enthusiasm. She notes that her staff and teachers are always telling her to get a life. She laughs and says, "This is my life!"

Hugs from children, she says, affirm that her work is worth it.

"There are some kids that come in everyday and say 'thank you'," she says.

Leid has always worked with children in some way or another, but she had an unusual path to becoming a school principal. She grew up in Waitsburg, and married her childhood sweetheart when she was 19. She raised her family. The year her youngest son graduated from high school, Leid received her college diploma.

"My parents both died before I got my degree," she says, with tears in her eyes. "At some time, I think they thought their youngest daughter wasn't going to amount to a thing."

She regrets that her parents aren't able to see her now, Leid says, "Education was so important to them."

Leid was a teacher for eleven years. She taught elementary school in Pullman, and at the American School in The Hague, Netherlands. She was also a teacher in residence at the University of Washington for a year, where she taught science methods. Leid has served as the principal of Dayton Elementary for seven years.

Most people her age are ready to retire, she says, but Leid still feels passionate about working in the education field.

"It's absolutely the best thing I've ever done," she says. "Every day is a joy. It gets me up in the morning. Great people. Great kids."