Vanceboro Farm Life Elementary Named as “Leader in Me Lighthouse School”

Vanceboro Farm Life Elementary
Vanceboro Farm Life Elementary School has been certified and named as a Leader in Me Lighthouse School by FranklinCovey Education. This recognition is evidence that the school has produced outstanding results in school and student outcomes, by implementing the Leader in Me process with fidelity and excellence. It is also because of the extraordinary impact the school is having on staff, students, parents, and the greater community.

Leader in Me is an evidence-based PK-12 model, developed in partnership with educators, designed to build perseverance and leadership in students, create a high-trust culture, and help improve academic achievement. This model equips students, educators, and families with the leadership and life skills needed to thrive, adapt, and to contribute in a dynamic world.

With Leader in Me, students learn to become self-aware, interdependent, take initiative, plan ahead, set and track goals, do  their homework, prioritize their time, be considerate of others, communicate effectively, resolve conflicts, find creative solutions, value differences, live a balanced life, and contribute to society.

Tiffany York, principal of Vanceboro Farm Life Elementary said, “We are honored to have been certified and named a Leader in Me Lighthouse School. We have seen amazing results from implementing the Leader in Me process at our school.”

Lighthouse Certification is a highly regarded standard set by FranklinCovey Education that is attainable by every Leader in Me school and occurs as a result of implementing Leader in Me with fidelity. As it is a significant benchmark, applying for this certification typically occurs three to five years after a school begins the Leader in Me process.

FranklinCovey Education has designed the Lighthouse Rubric to establish high standards for quality and, ultimately, school outcomes. Schools use the Lighthouse Rubric to measure outcomes in three areas: teaching leadership principles, creating a leadership culture, and aligning academic systems. Schools also measure their success as it relates to their unique school. Lighthouse Schools serve as exemplars to their community and to other schools.

Sean Covey, President, FranklinCovey Education, said, “We are thrilled to recognize Vanceboro Farm Life Elementary as a Leader in Me Lighthouse School. Schools who achieve this Lighthouse Certification are great examples of a strong leadership model, and of what it means to be a Leader in Me school. This school has experienced incredible results by implementing the principles and practices related to Leader in Me. And we are so pleased and honored to be their partner and to celebrate the success they are experiencing.”

Since its official launch nearly a decade ago, more than 5,000 public, private, and charter schools across 50 countries have adopted the Leader in Me process, while nearly 600 schools have achieved the prestigious Lighthouse Certification. It is earned by schools that demonstrate the following:

  • The principal, school administration and staff engage in ongoing learning and develop as leaders, while championing leadership for the school.
  • Leadership principles are effectively taught to all students through direct lessons, integrated approaches, and staff modeling. Students are able to think critically about and apply leadership principles.
  • Families and the school partner together in learning about the 7 Habits and leadership principles through effective communication and mutual respect.
  • The school community is able to see leadership in the physical environment, hear leadership through a common language, and feel leadership through a culture of caring, relationships, and affirmation.
  • Leadership is shared with students through a variety of leadership roles and student voice leads to innovations within the school.
  • Schoolwide, classroom, family and community leadership events provide authentic environments to celebrate leadership, build culture, and allow students to practice leadership skills.
  • The school utilizes the 4DX® process to identify and track progress toward Wildly Important Goals (WIGs) for the school, classroom, and staff.
  • Students lead their own learning with the skills to assess their needs, set appropriate goals, and carry out action plans. They track progress toward goals in Leadership Notebooks and share these notebooks with adults in student-led conferences.
  • Teacher planning and reflection, trusting relationships, and student-led learning combine to create environments for highly engaged learning.

Vanceboro Farm Life Elementary will maintain its Lighthouse Certification for two years and will continue to foster its growth and proficiency in exemplifying a leadership culture and principles. At the end of the two years the school will recertify its Lighthouse Certification through a virtual self-assessment, describing and celebrating its growth and accomplishments since its original Lighthouse designation.

Leader in Me training includes establishing vision for the school, goal setting, personal-accountability systems and is aligned with commonly held best in class educational research, content and best practices. At the core of the Leader in Me model is the belief that every child possesses unique strengths and has the ability to be a leader. The foundation of Leader in Me is its PK-12 framework, the See-Do-Get model, and the Student Leadership Portrait and Leader in Me is implemented through an educator professional development model. Teachers and staff learn key concepts and integrate them into existing systems. FranklinCovey has robust implementation support to ensure success for individual schools, district-wide, distance learning, and online delivery of content. Coaching supports implementation excellence and sustained achievement across all implementation modalities.

Leader in Me is having a significant, measurable impact on schools all over the world and in the lives of millions of students, parents, teachers, and administrators. To learn more about the impact the process is having, visit theleaderinme.org/what-is-the-impact.

By Jennifer Wagner, Director of Public Relations