Ways to Support Teachers Beyond Appreciation

Snacks in the Teacher Work Room doesn’t build strong staff culture. (It’s a nice perk though.) 📚Deeply listening to teachers, without judgement, does. 📚 I do staff 1:1’s 3x/year, and this week, I’m doing my second round of 1:1’s. It’s a great time because staff members get an uninterrupted 15-20 minutes with me to talk about… everything. And they get to walk away from our meeting feeling cared for and heard. Because I listen, without judgment. And offer support in any way that I can. ⭐️ You want to come back next year? “Great! I love having you here!” ⭐️ You want to explore other opportunities for next year? “I’m sorry to see you go. You’ve done great work here. How can I support you in meeting your new goals?” ⭐️ You want to stay here, but try out a new grade/class/position? “Let’s talk through what the rest of this year could look like so that we can make some time for you to observe/try out/get a sneak peak into the new position you’re interested in.” ⭐️ You’re having issues with someone on your team? “What’s the best way for me to support you through it? Facilitate a meeting? Practice a conversation? Go over some talking points with you?” ⭐️ You have feedback for our school that I can implement right away? “Thank you for making our school better!” ⭐️ You have feedback that I can’t implement right away? “Give me some time to think about it. Let’s add another meeting on the calendar in 2ish weeks so that we come back to this.” ⭐️ You’re struggling with a certain subject? “Let’s lesson plan together so that we can develop your skill and you can feel confident in front of kids.” 📚📚Teachers will always feel inspired to do their best work if we create the conditions for them to do so. 📚📚 Leaders, what would you add? What’s one way you create the conditions for teachers to thrive at your school? #schoolleadership #schoolimprovement #schoolprincipals #staffmorale #imhiring —— Hi, I’m Alicia. 💜 I help school leaders build joyful + excellent schools for students and staff. Found this post insightful? 🔔 Follow me. ♻️ Repost it. ✉️ DM me.

The best way leaders can support faculty and staff well-being? Stop focusing on the symptoms. Leadership support shows up in the systems we create. And in my experience, most hidden burnout drivers live in two places: 1️⃣ Institutional Service The murky, unspoken service load where we rarely account for differences: 👉 Chairing vs. serving on a standing committee 👉 Running a search 👉 Mentoring graduate students 👉 Organizing a major event 👉 Serving on campus-wide committees 👉 Supervising thesis work This work is often invisible—but it consumes real time and energy. We need to name it, account for it, and balance it—or risk quietly overwhelming our best and brightest. 2️⃣ The workplace culture leaders create Here’s what that looks like: ✅ Role clarity — unclear expectations are a top stressor ✅ Workload discipline — leaders should guard against “creep” ✅ Psychological safety — the ability for all to speak up and contribute ✅ Modeled boundaries — leadership sets the tone Here’s the reality: If the system is broken, the people will burn out. No amount of wellness programming will fix that. Here’s the counterintuitive part: When you build better systems, faculty don’t just avoid burnout — they bring more creativity, energy, and innovation to their work. 👉 That’s the leadership dividend we often miss. Bottom line: If you want to support faculty well-being, start by fixing how the work is structured. That’s leadership. That’s what moves the needle. I broke this down more in this week's issue of the Academic Leader's Playbook—you can grab the link in my profile. ------------------------------- ♻️ Repost this to help other academic leaders. 💬 Follow for posts about higher education, leadership, & the arts. #LeadershipGoals #HigherEdSuccess #HigherEducation #departmentchairs #deans #programmanagers #academicleadership

Let's talk about supporting our education heroes....Teachers! I'm pictured below with my longtime friend and career educator, Stephanie. She's been an educator for over 25 years. Teaching is not just a profession for many, including Stephanie; it's a calling. Our #educators play a vital role in shaping the future, but they face unique challenges that can lead to #burnout. Let's shine a light on this issue and work together to support our #education heroes. A couple of years ago, I had the pleasure of co-facilitating sessions for school staff and school administrators across North Carolina alongside Mike Perko, Morgan Daniels, Wendy White, Lawrence Henderson and Sallie Lee that were designed to help schools develop a strategy to help prevent #teacherburnout in their schools. We were afforded the opportunity to do this important work thanks to the leadership of Ellen Essick and Susanne Schmal at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Here are some crucial steps schools can take: 1️⃣ Recognize the Signs: Understand the signs of #teacher burnout, such as chronic exhaustion, emotional detachment, and a sense of hopelessness. These are signals that a dedicated #educator may be struggling. 2️⃣ Offer Support: Create a #culture of support within our #schools and educational institutions. Encourage open dialogue and provide resources for #mentalhealth and #wellbeing. 3️⃣ Work-Life Harmony: Advocate for work-life harmony. Teachers often work long hours, including evenings and weekends. Encourage regular breaks and time for #selfcare. 4️⃣ Professional Development: Invest in professional development programs that equip teachers with tools and strategies to manage #stress and prevent burnout. 5️⃣ Reducing Administrative Burden: Streamline #administrative tasks to allow educators to focus on what they do best—teaching. 6️⃣ Peer Support: Foster #peersupport networks where teachers can share experiences, strategies, and emotional support with their colleagues. 7️⃣ Recognition: Recognize and celebrate the dedication and hard work of our educators. A simple "thank you" can go a long way. 8️⃣ Policy Advocacy: Advocate for policies that address the systemic issues contributing to teacher burnout, including class sizes, resource allocation, and standardized testing pressures. Education is the foundation of a prosperous society, and teachers are the architects of that foundation. Let's unite to ensure that our educators receive the support and appreciation they deserve, so they can continue shaping the minds and hearts of the next generation. If you're an educator, school administrator or know someone who is, comment below with how you support our educational heroes. If you don't know where to start, let's chat! #mentalwellness #workplacementalhealth #workplacestress #mentalhealthawareness #wellbeingatwork #workplacewellness #employeementalhealth #employeewellness #employeewellbeing #employeeretention #teacherretention #DEI #leadership

Removing barriers in education should not be the standard but the bare minimum. How do we add value to those we serve? How do we ensure that they can excel because of extra support, as opposed to simply getting out of their way? As a school administrator, we had several teacher-led initiatives that we focused on in our school, which the staff was leading. We not only provided access to professional learning opportunities but also to substitute teachers to cover classes so our staff could plan during the school day, not after. If something is essential to be achieved by any school or organization, not only will resources be provided, but also time during the day to those who are asked to be contributors. If we ask people to constantly spend their own time outside of the school day for organizational initiatives, we are either saying that the goal is not that important and/or neither is their own personal time. No matter our role in education, there are so many little ways to go beyond removing barriers to adding value. Of course, providing someone to cover a class costs the school money, but when this happens, people often go further because they feel they and their time are appreciated. The return on investment was usually exponential. There are so many little ways to go beyond removing barriers to adding value, no matter our role in education. Removing barriers is often about making life easier, but adding value is about making things better. Both are needed for people to excel.