Reframing Suburbantown K-12

Description of Organization

Kitsap Middle School is a unique school, during its development designers were able to plan for the future and build a school which can grow as the local population grows. KMS is located in the Suburbantown School District in a large, growing community in Kitsap County. The district is comprised of four elementary schools, a middle school and a high school which serves a student population of just under 3,700. Each school has a building leadership team and a PTA to help promote learning for all. Students are actively encouraged to participate in a variety of extra-curricular activities including music, sports and academic programs. KMS currently serves 1,100 of these students housed in a single facility. The building itself is divided into two “wings” with offices in each: the Blue office representing the 6th and 7th grades while the Gold office represents the 8th grade. (Blue and Gold happen to be representative of the school’s colors.) The school is located between an industrial park and farmlands, is maintained in a prairie grasslands format, and is across a field from the local Fireman’s Baseball Park. This setting attributes the concept of being a small town school in a growing metropolis. KMS was restructured during 1993-1998 because of an increasing continuation of population. KMS is unique in that it has a new wing that is designed to be able to be expanded further by going up instead of spreading out. The foundation is in place with a future vision that KMS may actually become two schools housed in one building. In 1995 the classrooms were restructured within the houses to incorporate the “house” policy that has demonstrated effective in other middle school settings. Each grade level is partitioned off by its place in the school. The 7th grade consists of a “U” shaped hall that circumscribes the building holding the 6th grade. The 6th grade is comprised of two connected corridors. And the 8th grade is located in the new “Gold” wing which are rooms located on both sides of a large oval. It is joked, but accurate, that the distance from the last classroom in the Gold wing to the front office is over 1/8th of a mile.
KMS is the only middle school in the district and is fed by the four elementary schools as well as the local parochial schools. The majority of students come from middle or upper-middle class families, although a good portion of these students come from a rural or farming background. There are approximately 400 students at each grade level. These students make up the three houses in both 6th and 7th grade while the 8th grade is designed in two houses, (as part of the method to introduce students to the high school format the class sizes in the 8th grade are larger.) Being a middle school in Suburbantown the student population is mostly white with the most significant area of diversity being students’ with special educational needs. Approximately 23% of the student population are students identified with need special educational services, there is another 11% of the population which has demonstrated some time of supplemental need without being identified with specific learning disabilities.

The staff is not diverse either, with all members being able to be categorized as white. The administrative members consist of a principal and two associate principals, all white males. The teaching staff consists of 88 teachers, 11 cross categorical special education teachers, and 9 paraprofessionals. The diversity gets even less here whereas the entire 6th grade teaching staff is comprised of woman, there are 2 male teachers in the 7th grade, and 5 male teachers in the 8th grade. The special education staff including the aides has only 2 male teachers. The KMS staff is a young staff, with only 10% being teachers with over 5 years experience. Traditionally the turnover rate has been low with the exception of a lot of changes in the last two years. Approximately 12% of the current staff hold masters degrees in their fields while an additional 17% are pursuing advanced degrees.

Kitsap Middle School is rich in technology. The school has two Information Media Centers, (IMC) both of which house computer labs for research. The Blue IMC is the more traditional book laded IMC, whereas the Gold IMC house more of the electronic media components. Each grade level has their own Macintosh based computer lab with network and internet access, there exists a networked PC based lab in the Gold wing as well as the technical applications department having two computer labs, (a Macintosh and a PC lab). There are also two mobile labs of 15 Macintosh laptops each that are on a wireless network which can also be networked to the existing wired network. All teachers have at least one computer in their classroom, and the Learning Center also has a small banks of Macintosh computers for doing writing assignments or other lab work.

Frame by Frame Organizational Analysis

The four organizational frames as outlined by Bolman and Deal (1997) in their work Reframing Organizations were utilized to bring perspective to Kitsap Middle School. For each of the frames both qualitative and quantitative data were collected. The qualitative takes the form of school records, schedules, handbooks etc the quantitative data however was inconclusive. The data was gathered utilizing a survey (Appendix A) that was distributed to the staff members via their in school mailboxes. Out of the one hundred plus survey sent out only six were returned. Perhaps this is a demonstration of what Bolman and Deal (1997) view as “Uncertainty and turbulence” in the development of hierarchal forms of cooperation and coordination.

Structural Frame Analysis

The Structural Frame identifies how a school is organized through its physical sense as well as philosophical underpinnings. It addresses the goals, hierarchy, specialization and delegation of responsibility within the organization. The importance lies inn not only understanding the established linear chain of command within the organization but also the unspoken chain of command, the lateral exchange of information, (Bolman & Deal, 1997). The Structural Frame involves allocation of work to be performed, and the establishing of roles and responsibilities.
There are a variety of artifacts gathered to support the Structural Frame concepts. The Staff Handbook, Student Handbook, union contracts, and the school calendar were the most readily available. These artifacts outline policy, expected procedures, code of conducts etc. Within the structured governing body of KMS we have our Professional Resource Team, (PRT). This team holds representatives from each house as well as parents and is the decision making body for changes or new implementations concerning the teachers as a whole. This committee was formed after our current principal took office in response to ambiguities concerning the shared vision of the KMS mission. The overarching motto is “Reaching for Excellence Together” and the KMS Mission Statement “educate by meeting the diverse needs of all students in an environment which fosters high expectations and mutual respect for diversity through learning experiences that can be applied throughout life.” These philosophies are what drive the educational practices at KMS. Teacher assignments and duties are other qualitative artifacts. At KMS the teachers are divided by house assignments (academic) and Coordinated Arts (non-academic). The Coordinated Arts teachers include those teaching Family and Consumer Education, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Band and Chorus, music theory, technical applications, art, computer, Health Applications and physical education. Each house teacher is assigned to their grade specific house. Members of the house share common planning time. (The planning times coincide with the Coordinated Arts house classes: therefore 6th grade has 7th and 8th hour as their planning time, this then is when Coordinated Arts has the 6th grade students with 7th grade having 4th and 5th, and 8th grade having 1st and 2nd hours. This is more confused by whether it is a Blue or a Gold day in which the students would have different classes. For example 7th hour on a Blue day a student may have health in Coordinated Arts. Whereas, on Gold days that child may have Multimedia Art Concepts.) Minutes from all house meetings are published and provided to all the other houses to be shared during their individual team meetings. Theoretically, this would allow all the houses to further bind into a stronger more integrated larger team. While we do share student concerns and successes, it is the exchanging of ideas or planning outside of the house that is detrimental to the process of team building at KMS.

Because Coordinated Arts planning time does not coincide with any planning time from any of the houses. This means that information published and shared does not readily get to the Coordinated Arts staff in an efficient manner. Furthermore, often the Coordinated Arts teachers are left out of student concerns because of confidentiality, and yet these Coordinated Arts teachers deal with these students on a daily and hourly basis. This leaves the Coordinated Arts team out of the loop as it were for brainstorming, developing cross-content lessons or modifications.

Unfortunately, for all the teamwork that is taking place the proposed quantitative data is inconclusive as it represents approximately only 6% of the staff surveyed.
The theoretical precepts behind the Structural Frame indicate that KMS is on a positive track as they do attempt to meet the needs of their students through their missions and belief statements. The concern is that as some frames were developed others were allowed to rot. This being the division between perceived academics and non-academics and the difficulty in bridging the two. Currently KMS has sought to resolve this issue by including a position that works directly at bridging these two educational elements. However the position has not seen a favorable light perhaps because the mission is to integrate or bridge the two. These are areas that the PRT and other KMS committees have taken a glance at, further communication, team building exercises and collegiality need to be present to keep this division from becoming a distressing influence on the KMS mission.

Human Resource Frame Analysis

The Human Resource Frame deals with the hiring and training of staff members, preparing and supporting employees, and other aspects concerning the well being of the people within the organization. The needs of the individual and the needs of the organization should be inextricably intertwined. When individuals are able to find work that is satisfying and meaningful organizations then have the talent that they find necessary to be successful. Too often, however, these two do not work together. Conventional wisdom suggests that social needs and interpersonal styles arte substantially influenced by experiences early in life, (Bolman & Deal, 1997). “Those patterns do not change quickly or easily” (p143). Often the talent is hired by someone else located in the district office that is seeking to fulfill a need with a body. This body then does not find the meaningful or satisfying work and then the dance of retention and retraining and rehiring etc takes place. To break this cycle is the ultimate goal of a good leader, (Pellicer, 1999). The leader needs to undergo this challenge, to perceive the needs of the individual as well as the organization and to find that balance.

For the 2001-2002 school year KMS undertook the challenge to make sure that the students’ needs came first. This was done through surveys to the district, parents, families of upcoming and ex-students. What was discovered was a need for a safe place which provided the students’ educational, emotional and physical needs while supporting their character development, (Appendix B). This has further been implemented in the KMS vision: We believe that middle level education should …

• foster a successful transition from childhood into young adulthood by guiding the development of ethical character,
• develop responsibility and accountability for self,
• recognize and practice respect,
• provide experiences that attain and apply knowledge,
• engage students in a variety of activities,
• build upon social, physical and mental health.
  

Qualitatively, samples of the KMS student and staff newsletters contain examples of how employees, students and parents are perceived. This information, while previously used, also contains information concerning the Human Resource Frame. Part of this structure is the Study Skills program which is held on Tuesdays and Thursdays directly after school. Here students can receive assistance regarding homework and other study opportunities under the direct supervision of certified teachers who have volunteered to assist. Peer mediation is often utilized at both the student and staff level concerning crises which occur in the volatile atmosphere that is the emotionally charged field of working with or as adolescents. Guidance counselors, and teachers are available as counselors for the students, KMS has a unique charter which has teachers who have formed relationships with students to more or less a mentor in making sure that the student meets his or her requirements throughout the school year, again this is a voluntary position. KMS has a plethora of after school activities, clubs and social gatherings, where even this year they have incorporated a “social” that included a dance instead of the singular dance.

Parents are valued as important resources as they too volunteer to work in the classrooms, some have come to provide the staff members with cookies, cakes, etc to demonstrate their support. The relationship between parents and teachers is very strong, awards are presented back and forth at almost a humorous pace. Parents take an active role within the PTA, and are often volunteering to assist in after school activities as well as in school activities. KMS offers classes and in-services for parents to attend and welcome them to the regular scheduled staff development days.

Unfortunately, as stated earlier the proposed quantitative data is inconclusive as it represents approximately only 6% of the staff surveyed.

Our principal is often heard stating that we must look for the good, that kernel of goodness that must exist in all things. This ideal parallels Pellicer’s sentiments when he addresses what a good leader should be “it is critical for leaders to believe there is a world of good to be found in every one.” While one could argue what and how some of these elements are indeed good for the organization the school has been successful in its endeavors, mistakes will always be made but it is to the stature of the organization when these mistakes are corrected instead of fretting about and bringing the whole works to a braking stop. Perhaps more development in staff understanding, correlation of visions, and support will stem the tide of turnover currently in effect at KMS.

Political Frame Analysis

The Political Frame is concerned with securing resources to accomplish the objectives of the organization. Leaders must become savvy about how to get resources for the programs they support, they must learn the language of compromise, shared resources, and alliances. Often conflict begets change and change is necessary for any type of growth. Conflict management becomes the major leadership responsibility within the Political Frame. It is the politics an organization must deal within, and not necessarily those political concepts within the structure, (Bolman and Deal, 1997).

The Suburbantown School District utilizes site-based management, this gives the political power to the building principal who has to compete with all the other district principals in front of the school board. Often the school board will have it’s own agenda which makes the principal’s plan difficult at best. Sometimes the political arena is purely based on how a school member perceives or “likes” an individual proposing.

The biggest barrier to the change process at KMS exists in not the political atmosphere within the district and school board but rather in how the union perceives any change. While it is imperative for an individual to have questions and solutions at hand these concepts are often not welcomed by the union. As a political force the union is the one stabilizing mechanization that can stop the change process at KMS. An interestingly enough the union is strongly supported by the KMS staff. This may be a call in response to the fears of change that must take place in any growing organization. Regardless, this fear factor often is the “no” negotiation.

Symbolic Frame Analysis

The Symbolic Frame represents those stories and relationships that are felt or understood without clarification within the organization. It is the unwritten or unspoken rules, the “culture” within the organization , that governs the every day. In the change process, it is assigning meaning that is the most difficult and the most significant concept, (Bolman and Deal, 1997). Too often vision becomes unfocused or blurry because the Symbolic Frame was not given thought during the visionary implementation. Each symbol within the organization means something different depending upon the perspective of someone. The core assumption of the symbolic frame are often overlooked. These are (Bolman & Deal, 1997):

• What is most important about any event is not what happened but what it means.
• Activity and meaning are loosely coupled: events have multiple meanings because people interpret experience differently.
• Most of life is ambiguous or uncertain – what happened, why it happened, or what will happen next are all puzzles.
• High levels of ambiguity and uncertainty undercut rational analysis, problem solving and decision making.
• In the face of uncertainty and ambiguity, people create symbols to resolve confusion, increase predictability, provide direction and anchor hope and faith.
• Many events and processes are more important for what is expressed than what is produced. They fiorm a cultural tapestry of secular myths, rituals, ceremonies and stories that help people find meaning, purpose and passion.
  

What this means is that the reality is not what is but what is perceived. Truth then becomes how something wants to be remembered instead of exactly how it happened. This is too often the case when teachers will get together and discuss “the legends” from their teaching experiences. The Legends are how that particular teacher remembers the student. This also happens from the students’ point of view. Often the students remember a teacher, class, situation in the highlight that they focused it on. Two students can have very different views from the same experiences. For example, at KMS there exists many different computer labs with vying operational software platforms. When the PRT decided to buy new PC based computers they forgot that it was the vision of others who had brought in the Macintoshes. And by there dismissing the symbolism of the Macintoshes they dismissed the intellectual, emotional, and professional understanding of those who could relate to that symbol of technology advancement. KMS puts a high emphasis on spirit day going so far to incorporate the school colors into everyday activities. The fact that every other day is either a Blue or Gold day as a way of discerning what the school schedule is reflects upon this notion of symbolism. Our principal finishes the daily announcements with a “Saying for the day” and those students who can remember or recite it for him are given rewards. The fact that houses represent themselves with artistry and imagination and playful competitions are held across houses also is infused with that symbolism.

Our overt symbolism reflects the care and understanding of the KMS mission to our students. But what is not so overt is the myths, traditions, and stories held by our staff members as well as students. Too often change is seen as a method for erasing those stories and myths. It is important to understand what these stories are and how important these symbols become to the people who hold them in esteem. If you ignore the symbols referred you often anger people and even they may not know why. What is important is to acclimate new people to the histories, the heroes both regaled and fallen, who have gone before. Sometimes it is that quiet guy in classroom 102 who tends to shy away from everyone that you realize was the mythical hero of a change gone by. Bolman and Deal suggest , (1997) “Symbols embody and express an organization’s culture… it embodies accumulated wisdom from those who came before us.” (p217). The strength is in the details, we are only as strong as our weakest link. Pellicer (1997) states that the successful school is the one that focuses on the details.

There is a saying that states that the people who really control the school atmosphere are the secretaries within the offices. These are the details we forget, the symbolism we must latch onto, those minute details that determine who and what we are. We forget that when we believe we do not have time for “spirit day” or that it is too silly, we forget that this is the school and experiences of our students and by not observing this rituals we are saying that our students are not important. Everyone is important and we must remember as the leaders within the organization, and teachers are the leaders within the school structure, that many eyes, many identities, many future philosophies hinge and what we say and do.

An Integrated View of Kitsap Middle School

KMS stands as a model for other schools to follow. As we reach across the Structural, Human Resource, and Political frames we can see our school is currently in a flux state of “settlement”. This is to say that those teachers who have been with our school for ten or more years, are not looking forward to change. The interesting and most perturbing issue concerning this change is that these teachers have metamorphosed into an autonomous stage of education. KMS has as an entity moved into a corner where finger pointing and blame are the common occurrences. Things do not work well, or as assumed or planned because of the fault of others. We often have clashes between departments as to who is responsible or who is in control. It is an ironic state of affairs since our school is one with the behavior and emotional development of children in mind.
The KMS collective pedagogy is to establish comforting and rewarding relationships with our students in an intellectually rich and social environment. And yet, our school itself is divided by cliques and relationships and departments all vying for the control of this act or that emphasis. As with our students who we try to teach to not be manipulative or exploitive we tend to manipulate and exploit our causes inside our own educational department, again the trouble between “coordination and quality control” (Bolman & Deal, 1997 p66). We delve into the teacher-center, or school centric as this case may be, and focus our attentions on what we as an agent of the school can get out of the course of the day’s work. To cynically paraphrase John F. Kennedy, ‘ask now what you can do for your school but ask what your school can do for you.’ This paraphrase is not all that far fetched nor is it “wrong” when it is applied through the student and their needs as a student, through the direction that the student’s school is going. This then could be what Bolman and Deal (1997) call “academic skepticism” (p103) within the school. This type of philosophy breaches when an entity or autonomous relationships exist and denies the concept of “A good fit benefits both.” (Bolman & Deal).

Where we have fallen down is the understanding of what vision is. And whose. It is important to understand the symbolism that has been neglected within our school. As I often tell my teachers: just because you enjoyed the lesson does not mean that the students learned anything from it. Ultimately it is the students who we need to be concerned about but if we can not get the teachers involved in this vision, then what we are doing is a detriment to our students. We need to address each others’ concerns, find those things we can identify with, have a discussion concerning our fears and desires and how ewe can best move forward towards that goal of: educate by meeting the diverse needs of all students in an environment which fosters high expectations and mutual respect for diversity through learning experiences that can be applied throughout life.


References

Bolman, L. & Deal, T. (1997). Reframing organizations: artistry, choice, and leadership.

San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Inc.

KMS Beliefs, Vision and Mission. (2002). [Retrieved from the world wide web].

http://www.suburbantown.k12.wi.us/kitsap/mission.html

Pellicer, L. (1999). Caring enough to lead: schools and the sacred trust.

Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, Inc.

Suburbantown School District Staff Handbook. (2002). Suburbantown, WI:

Suburbantown School District.