The Pulse of the Profile: Is it More than a Poster?

This week in CONNECTIONS:

THE PULSE OF THE PROFILE | You’re all in on your district’s Profile of a Learner—but is everyone else? Do they truly understand it, and is it being leveraged effectively? How can you find out?

This week, we’re sharing a simple yet powerful idea from Jeannie Rohrer in Carroll County to help you gauge understanding and ensure the Profile is making an impact.

HAPPENING IN THE FIELD | See what Henry County’s Authentic Learning Architects are up to, learn how JCPS is bringing the community along for the student Journey to Success, and find out how one principal used Leader in Me as the anchor for their Profile of a Learner.

WHAT’S ON DECK | Thinking differently about time, classroom routines that build agency and an invitation to submit a proposal for our summer AI conference…details in What's on Deck.

CONNECTIONS

February 2025 | Issue 17

The Pulse of the Profile: Is it More than a Poster?

A school district’s Profile of a Graduate (aka Portrait of a Learner) is more than just a vision statement. It’s a promise to our communities and our learners that the time they spend with us in schools will ensure they are equipped with the skills, knowledge, and mindsets they need to thrive. But launching this kind of initiative is only the beginning.

The real challenge for district leaders lies in ensuring that educators, students, families, and the broader community not only understand the vision but actively integrate it into daily learning experiences and interactions with students each day. After all, it’s those PoG competencies - durable skills - that we know are so important for our students’ success.

Is it having the impact it should?

How might you know whether the Profile of a Graduate is gaining traction? Sure - there are many informal ways like classroom visits and conversations. But systemically, are teachers weaving PoG competencies into daily classroom routines and instruction? Do students see its relevance to their future? Is their experience with school different than before? Are parents and community partners engaged in meaningful ways? Or, is it just one more poster hanging the wall?

Staying connected to these insights is essential for turning aspiration into action. The key is not just setting expectations but continually assessing perceptions, identifying gaps, and fostering a culture of shared ownership.

So, how can leaders effectively keep their thumb on the pulse of their district’s Profile of a Graduate impact?

Carroll County district leader Jeannie Rohrer had an idea.

As a district team, Jeannie and her Carroll County colleagues worked last summer to build understanding of the why behind their newly revised Profile and provided time for teachers to plan for how they might intentionally incorporate those PoG competencies - along with their academic standards - to create rigorous, meaningful learning experiences for students. Now that some time had passed, she needed a way to gain insight into where they were on the journey and what next steps might be needed.

Quick and Simple

Ultimately, Jeannie decided on a series of short surveys that principals might give teachers time to complete during PLC or faculty meetings. The survey questions would be grouped under these four categories:

Teacher Awareness
The Student Experience
Evidence of Learning
Needs/Next Steps

Samples of questions included -

How often do you talk about competencies from the Profile with your students? (Every day, once a week, once a month, very rarely if ever)
How often do you provide time for students to reflect intentionally on the competencies? (Same choices as above)
Describe a time when you intentionally brought the competencies to life in your classroom.
How has incorporating the Profile into your planning impacted the day-to-day experience of your students? (Choices could be from Significantly to Not at all.)
Share an example or two of the kinds of evidence students are uploading into their digital collection of PoG artifacts.

The Results are In

As of today, surveys have been given and results have been carefully analyzed (and nicely summarized, thanks to ChatGPT!) As you might guess, Jeannie got some feedback she would’ve predicted and some that was more surprising. Overall, she gained key insights that are informing their next steps - insights that she wouldn’t have had without the survey responses. Now, Jeannie and her colleagues are drafting an action plan specific to their teachers’ feedback.

How are you gauging the understanding of district or school-level initiatives by those who are implementing? Do you have a way of systematically gathering feedback? If not, how might you go about it?

If you’d like to know more about Jeannie’s survey in Carroll County, you can find her at jeannie.rohrer@carroll.kyschools.us. You can find a draft of her survey here. If you’d like to create your own, let us know how we can help!

JUST A SIMPLE SHIFT | Henry County Instructional Coach Megan Mahoy brought the Henry County Authentic Learning Architects together to share their learning last week. This past summer, Henry County launched this cohort of teachers anchoring them in simple shifts aligned to the Transformations. Their charge was to apply one or more Transformations to an existing lesson, assessment or unit. Along the way, Mahoy served as a thought-partner and coach. Their reflections this week illuminated the power of simple shifts. One teacher shared her students’ reflections after making shifts toward collaboration. They agreed that this was a much better approach!

A COMMUNITY INVITATION |

Proactively keeping those outside the school community connected to the work happening inside is key to any initiative’s success. JCPS is sharing invitations across social media networks giving community members opportunities to learn more about and get involved with their students’ Journey to Success.

LEADER IN ME: LEARNER PROFILE CONNECTIONS | Alecia Dunn is a former KY elementary principal (Bates Elementary, JCPS) who found great success using Leader in Me to bring her district’s Profile of a Learner to life. Recently retired, Alecia now works with Franklin Covey to make even strong connections between LIM programming and those durable skills often found in Learner Profiles. You can learn more and find Alecia’s contact information here: Leader in Me: Building on the Graduate/Learner Profile.

BEYOND THE BELL: RETHINKING SECONDARY SCHEDULES | | March 6 | 9:00-3:00 pm EST | Tired of the 7-period day? What would your students say? Is that schedule working for your teachers? During this special Design Studio, we’ll explore entry points, prototypes, and rapid design cycles to find new ways to use and organize time so that our students are truly equipped for the world today. Register here!

HOW MIGHT WE RETHINK TEACHER-LED CLASSROOM ROUTINES TO INSPIRE STUDENT AGENCY? | April 17 | 9:00-3:00 pm EST | Join us this spring to learn how even the simplest of classroom routines can cultivate agency in your students. Register here!

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS | We are seeking dynamic, engaging speakers and presenters for AI for Kentucky Educators: Launch 2025! This premier event kicks off a yearlong series that will equip educators with cutting-edge AI tools and strategies to enhance teaching and learning.

If you have innovative insights, practical solutions, or research-backed approaches for AI integration in education, we invite you to submit a proposal.

📅 **Event Date:** June 4, 2025

📍 **Location:** Shelbyville Conference Center, KY

🎯 **Audience:** Teachers, librarians, administrators, and education leaders

**Topics of Interest:**

✅ AI-powered teaching tools

✅ Ethical AI use in education

✅ AI for personalized learning

✅ Time-saving AI strategies for educators

📩 Submit your proposal today!**

Questions? Contact Adam Watson at awatson@ovec.org.

Let’s shape the future of AI in education—together! 🚀 Learn more and register here!

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