This year over 100 educational leaders woke up early on a Saturday morning in February and traveled to Franklin, Massachusetts to attend #edcampMALeads. This edcamp is a form of unconference designed specifically for leaders and their needs. Unlike traditional conferences which have schedules set months in advance by the people running the conference, Edcamp has an agenda that’s created by the participants at the start of the event. It is completely free to participants thanks to the generosity of sponsors, like MassCUE. Edcamp MALeads is special because it is focused on growing leaders and fostering connections for school administrators across the state.  

A Hearty Welcome

The day started with lead organizer, Christopher Dodge, welcoming participants and sharing the structure for the day (here’s the welcome slidedeck).  He encouraged conversations that included the evolving role of the educator and the changes needed to make schools prepare students for their future.

Personalized Sessions

Following the welcome, participants generated topics for sessions on sticky notes that were posted and grouped for “The Big Board”.  Twenty topics were put on the board, including SEL, Trauma Informed Practice, Innovation, Genius Hour, Teachers as Learners, School Culture and Literacy, and a live #LeadLAP twitter chat. Participants then attended and facilitated the sessions that had meaning to them!  

Personalized Takeaways

All attendees walked away with something different from the day and they continue to stay connected and share at #edcampMALeads on Twitter. This year the story of #edcampMALeads was authentically shared on Twitter and can be viewed here: #edcampMALeads Twitter Feed.  

Thank you MassCUE for supporting #edcampMALeads this year!

Brenda Maurao is the Assistant Director of Elementary Education at Framingham Public School. She is a proud member of both MassCUE and the MSAA Elementary Committee. Click HERE to listen to her blog-cast on this fantastic event!

Follow her on Twitter @bmaurao