Part 1:

Great Leadership is the Key to a Successful 1-1

Disclaimer and Intro

In this three part series I would like to share the journey of how the Chrome Squad, an elite group of student interns that support my district’s 1-1 program, came to be, but first a disclaimer.

 

Someone asking me to talk about the success of the Chrome Squad feels like being asked to not just tell your life story but the life story of your parents as well.  What I mean is the Chrome Squad is less than a year old and is the product of not just my efforts, but of many others.  To start with the conception of the Chromies (as they call themselves) is to miss so much of what makes them work.  It is like explaining what makes me, well me, without talking about those that influenced me.  Some people don’t like sharing their stories, but I find it encouraging to share, so share the Chrome Squad life story–with all its caveats and flashbacks–I will.

 

Let’s talk about what you can expect out of this series of articles so you have an idea of what you are getting into.

  • I won’t be giving 10 tidy steps to creating a student internship program, though I would love to help you create one.  
  • I will be sharing our journey to where we are and where we are going.  
  • I will also talk about the hiccups
  • I will share and invite to ask more questions

Where did the idea come from?

Six years ago (or maybe longer–kids have killed my memory) Kevin Worthy came to Royse City as our Superintendent of Schools and a vision in tow.  It was a simple, but mighty vision:  be all about the kids and be innovative.  It took a few years, and a strategic plan, but we progressed as a district on those two fronts.  Part of that strategic plan was to move 1-1 with our students.  We saw districts that tried and failed because of poor planning, poor training, poor infrastructure, or a combination thereof.  It was decided to take a more measured approach.  The first step was to get the right people in place.  Three years ago RCISD hired Zach Snow as the Instructional Technology Coordinator and did the crazy thing of placing him not in the technology department, but the newly reorganized curriculum department head by Assistant Superintendent Julia Robinson.  This is a seemingly small distinction, but if the focus was going to be on instruction and not on the technology, then department placement is key.  

 

Over the next two years Zach created and groomed a team of classroom teachers on each campus to provide professional development for teachers.  The team, the iCoaches, focused on training teachers to effectively use technology to impact student learning.  They were provided training and support by Zach and the always awesome Kasey Bell.  This is where I enter the narrative.  At the time I was in my sevenish year (can you tell I’m not good with remembering dates) of teaching high school English.  I became part of the iCoach team as one of the three members from the high school.  As a teacher I believe my job is to inspire my students and facilitate their learning, so I stir their appetite and set the table for learning.  The students do the rest.  That mindset and the ability to work with and train teachers made me a great fit for the vision that Kevin and his team had for Royse City.  

 

The last missing member of the team was a CTO who embraced and supported the vision of RCISD.  That came with Stuart Burt a year ago.  With Stuart and myself added we were able to move forward with a 1-1 and empower students to be leaders.  Finally, the silent partner in all of this is our awesome school board who caught the vision early and supported it all the way.

 

While this is all happening research, testing, upgrading of infrastructure, and training were being done to prep the district to go 1-1.  We also realized early on that the conversation needed to switch from 1-1 to resourcing students.  After all, it is about the students, not the technology, leading us to developed the framework for our program (we never call it an initiative) Connected for Learning (C4L): connecting students with the resources to Collaborate, Create, think Critically, and Connect with the world.

 

I know what you are thinking at this point:  “that is a whole lot of backstory and you haven’t even mentioned the Chrome Squad.”  That is a good point, but I hope you see there is no Chrome Squad without the right leadership in place to support such a program.  But, fear not I am ready to tell you about the Chrome Squad and will happily do so in the next installment.

 

Part 2:

Building the Chrome Squad

In the previous installment of this series I extolled the leadership of my district and how they were pivotal in the creation of the Chrome Squad.  Having the right leaders creates the bedrock to build a solid program.  It is on that foundation that I started building the Chrome Squad. So at long last here is their part of the story.

What is Chrome Squad?

This time last year I was hired as the Digital Learning Specialist for Royse City High School.  (Don’t worry I am going to talk about the Chrome Squad; promise).  I would have to manage an inventory of 1500+ Chromebooks, student and teacher GAFE accounts, ongoing and regular teacher training (small group, large group, and individual), and help the student body with any and all issues they may have with their Chromebooks and/or GAFE and Windows accounts.  Oh, I also got the “privilege” to handle all the paperwork for acceptable use policies, user agreements, and other extraneous paperwork.  They did tell me I could use students to help–that was nice.  (On a side note, I found out later they originally planned on hiring three people for my position).

 

Enter the Chrome Squad…(Cue intense walk-in theme music)

 

I quickly decided to take up Zach and Stuart’s offer to use students.  I needed students to not only help, but effectively take over the management of the Chromebooks, and teacher/student support so I could focus on working with teachers to integrate technology in an effective manner.  So it was decided the Chrome Squad would be a hand selected group of high school students that works as a team to manage every aspect of C4L.  They would be elite customer service and technology ninjas.  I shall dub them Teenage Mutant Ninja Chromies.  Who knows, it might catch on…

How did I select them?

I have researched how other schools set up their student programs.  Some retrofit existing programs/classes like computer maintenance.  Some created after school positions via the technology department.  The common denominator was the kids were selected because of technological prowess.  I decided to go a different route.  My program was going to be a legitimate internship with a focus on customer service and business skills.  It was also going to be student focused.  That meant I would be playing the part of manager and the students would handle all the operational details.  Feel free to freak out now if you wish; I gave it 50/50 odds it would blow up in my face.  

 

If it was going to work I would need to hand select the interns.  (Like a real internship, go figure).  I decided to not start with applications, but with teacher nominations.  I asked teachers to nominate students that demonstrated:

  • Consistent, quality work
  • Respect for peers and respected by others
  • Teachability and an ability to learn quickly
  • Integrity
  • Self-Control

 

I recommended, but did not require, tech savvy because I can teach the tech skills; the others not so much.  I also only took nominees that were current Freshmen-Juniors.  I did this because I want the students to have a year on campus.  Of the nearly 1600 students at the HS I received 60ish nominations.  I then created a committee of teachers to vet each of the nominees.  If anyone on the committee question the nominees on any of the characteristics above I took them off the list.  This brought the list down to around 30.  I then interviewed each nominee (this year, year two, the Chrome Squad helped with interviews) and selected the top 21 nominees.  I got the best all around students in the school. In our first meeting together after being selected they dubbed themselves the Chrome Squad and created their moniker.

What do they do?

The Chromies are the front line of tech support for both the students and the teachers of RCHS.  This requires that they be versed in Windows, peripheral troubleshooting, Chromebooks, Chrome OS, GAFE, basic computer networking, blogging, social media, video production, inventory management, and customer service.  I was talking with a 30 year education veteran about all I would be asking from the Chrome Squad and he thought I was out of my mind.  In his words, “There is no way they can do all that.”  The truth is I’m probably a little crazy, but I’ve seen crazier so why not put the bar on the highest rung I can reach and see if my kids can reach it too.  

 

With a bar set that high I needed to spend some time setting the team up for success.  The Chrome Squad meet with me over several days in August and we spent time talking about expectations, team building, and training.  I pushed heavily for great customer service and responsibility.  They were taught to think of the C4L Lounge (their base of operation) as their home and everyone who entered as a guest.  It didn’t matter if the Chrome Squad had all the technical answers if their guests didn’t leave with a smile on their face and desire to come back next time they needed help.  Once I successfully beat a dead horse in regards to customer service we switched to GAFE, Chromebooks, troubleshooting, and the rest.  The Chrome Squad also trained on how to create blogs and videos, edit a website, and all the other procedures of running this size of operation.  The goal was to have them so well trained that they could operate day-to-day without me because there would be days I wouldn’t be there. They also unboxed, tagged, and enrolled 1500 Chromebooks in 4 days.  When it came time to handout Chromebooks to the student body the Chrome Squad was on hand to check out Chromebooks, reset passwords, and give students a tour of their new device.  They showed themselves capable of reaching the bar I set and then they decided to move it even higher.

Evolution of the team

As the year began the Chrome Squad was focused on everyone doing the same job:  helping teachers with technical issues, repairing broken Chromebooks, resetting passwords for students, and writing whatever blog or making whatever video I assigned to them.  We were focused on building up the content on our website so our teachers and students had resources readily available as well as providing prompt and quality face-to-face support.  Then around Thanksgiving, as things slowed a little, I decided to give the interns a week of “20% Time”.  I didn’t hand out assignments, instead I let them work on any project they wanted as long as it benefited C4L and they didn’t overlook their standard duties.  

 

The ideas that developed were:  

  • Build a charging station for students to charge their Chromebooks
  • Create an online system for course registration
  • Create a public relations team to publicise Chrome Squad and C4L resources
  • Create a teacher badge system to reward and challenge teachers to integrate technology
  • Tech Tips posters, table tents, announcements, and commercials
  • A student run store that sales electronics and accessories for Chromebooks
  • A Google Classroom for the campus that provides a back channel for asking questions and posting tips and tricks

 

The ideas they came up with were huge and had far reaching effects.  That is when I had the idea to form departments around these great ideas.  The Chrome Squad members decided on the department they wanted to work and I set department leads to help organize the flow of information.  The teams now create 3 week and 6 week goals to keep themselves accountable and I check in on them each week during our “Staff Meetings”.  Here is the crazy thing–the members of each team often don’t see each other on a daily basis.  They have to communicate and work together digitally.  It’s like magic.  

You can see the eight departments of Chrome Squad

 

We are now preparing for year two for the program and I let the Chrome Squad help me with the interviews and the team is going to be really strong next year despite losing nearly half the team to graduation.  This summer we are going to revamp the website and create an all new inventory system that streamlines our back end process.  We are going to be awesome and I can exhale now that I am confident it isn’t going to blow up in my face.

 

Welp, I only have two more promise left to fulfill in this series of posts: What would I change and where can you get help creating your own group of interns?  Check the next and final installment to get the answers you seek…hopefully.

 

Part 3:

Resources for Building Your Own Student Internship

In the previous two parts of this series I shared the journey that led to the formation of the Chrome Squad–an elite team of student interns. In the final part of this series I feel it prudent to give you some help creating your own team of super powered teenagers (don’t worry, it isn’t as scary as it sounds).  I firmly believe each environment has its own unique variables so I won’t be giving you the “Idiot’s Guide to Student Internship” version of this.  Instead I will share the resources I have and let you start your own journey.

Selecting Interns

It is okay to have an application process, especially if you are new to the school or don’t know the students, but teacher–and student if possible–input is key to making sure you are getting the right group of students together.  That is why I created a teacher advisory group to help me.  When forming that teacher group make sure to create a motley crew so you will gain input from all aspects of campus life.  The teacher advisory group has been instrumental in choosing the right interns.  

 

It is also a good idea to interview the candidates and ask non-traditional questions that highlight those character traits you want in your interns.  My favorite question that we asked this year was, “If you were given the time in school, the resources, and the permission to do/make/create anything you want, what would it be?”  It allowed the candidate to show what they were passionate about and let us see how their passion might fit in with Chrome Squad.  

 

If you follow a process similar to the Chrome Squad selection process (recommendations> teacher vetting> interviews) you will often end up with the best kids in the school.  It can be hard to turn down  one of them.  It’s like someone placing all the flavors of Blue Bell in front of you and asking you to pick just one.  It is torture.  This is where team dynamics come into play.  Can they handle the stress of working alone?  Will they work well with the rest of the team?  Can they be equal measures leader and follower?  In the end I selected members that wanted to help others, better the school, were willing to put their wants aside for the good of the team, and pass the “talents” test.

The Talents test is the idea that if you give them something and time to work on it, the end result of that process will be greater than the initial investment.

 

Selecting a Leader

It is a little weird writing this part because, well, I’m talking like I have it all together. I don’t, but this is the leader I want to be and the brief glimpses of these traits in me has helped shape the Chrome Squad.  So here I go.

 

It is also important to have the right adult leading the group.  They should be someone that can command respect by serving and teaching the interns well.  Someone who will say, “I love your idea so much that I am going to take your workload today so you can focus on making it a reality.”  Someone that encourages innovation and pushes the interns to be better.  A leader that can set up the boundaries for the interns to work in that are broad enough to allow freedom, but firm enough that the interns have structure to depend on.  (I think I got that last one from a parenting book somewhere.)

Structure

Speaking of structure. I set up the basic framework for the Chrome Squad so they knew the non-negotiables.  They will be respected and respectful. They will be about helping others. They will be problem solvers and creators. They will be diligent.  They will be awesome.  I made it clear what the consequences would be for violating a non-negotiable:  dismissal from the Chrome Squad.  You can check out the Chrome Squad policies here.  The rest of the structure for the team developed as they made the program their own.  Check part two of this series to see how the Chrome Squad organized themselves.  As the Chrome Squad continues to evolve our structure will evolve with it.  I recommend you let the structure of your team be organic so that it can develop and adapt to future changes.  

Space

Once you have interns and structure to operate in, the interns will need a place to work.  The space should be welcoming to students and suitable for working.  The space we designed was colorful, yet calm, with “pub style” tables, couches and a standing height whiteboard table.  This gave the Chrome Squad a place to call their own.  It is their room to make inviting to guests and to take responsibility for.

Who to Talk To

Because this is only year two of this program I don’t have a vast library or resources curated to share with you, but what I do have is a Twitter handle, email address, and phone number.  Feel free to contact me with questions.  I would love to help you setup your own student internship.

 

Cody Holt

@beard_speak

holtn@rcisd.org

972.636.9991 x2642

Recommendations

Finally (sort of), the Chrome Squad has had a few opportunities to speak about their success and share their recommendations on what to do to run a student intern program that works.  Here are a few of their top dos and a few don’ts.

 

Do:

  • Put the right team of students together
  • Push them beyond what they think they can do
  • Allow the freedom to be awesome
  • Get the right adult for the job (Someone that has a clear vision, but open to the path to get there)
  • Make the program your own
  • Expect problems and roll with them

 

Don’t:

  • Expect to “cookie-cutter” another program
  • Be afraid of failure
  • Quit when failure happens
  • Be closed to adapting

Closing

So here we are at the end of, as the wonderful Kasey Bell says, “LONG!”, three part series on creating a student internship and what can I say–the Chrome Squad is amazing!  People look at me and say “Wow! You have done an amazing job!”  I blush and try to put the focus back on the kids, because they are the miracle workers.  I play my small part in the story and let the real stars do the shining.  
If you would like to know more about the Chrome Squad and Connected for Learning you can find us online at blog.rcisd.org/C4L , on Twitter @chrome_squad, or contact me at holtn@rcisd.org.