Optimism breeds success. It motivates, inspires, and unites. Children and teachers thrive in environments that are full of hope and encouragement. Unfortunately, there is too little optimism and too much doom and gloom in the public debate about public education, generating a perception of widespread failure.

 

“We are not failing and I resent the harsh criticism of our profession,” Milder says. “Great things are happening in our schools. We move mountains for kids every day, but that’s not the story that’s being told.

 

“We have a massive image problem,” Milder added. “The conversation and debate about public education is illinformed and mean-spirited. It’s time we take control of the conversation and let people know their children and their tax dollars are in good hands.”

 

Ambassador training was designed to do just that, to mobilize educators to step up as ambassadors for themselves, their students, campuses, district, and their profession.

 

This program brings a representative group of campus and department staff together for two-hour sessions several times through the school year to, first, understand the forces undermining public trust in public education and second, learn how to restore the public’s faith and trust in their schools.

 

Each session begins with a celebration of the great things happening in your schools, explores one of the major issues negatively affecting public confidence, identifies strategies for restoring the public’s faith and trust in our schools, and closes with an assignment for each participant that challenges them to be an ambassador leader in their respective roles.

 

The Ambassador program includes book studies on "Hard Optimism" by Price Pritchett and "Hello My Name is Public School and I Have an Image Problem" by Leslie Milder and Jane Braddock.

 

For more information, please contact Leslie Milder at lmilder@fotps.org, or by phone at 214-498-7680.

 

Printable Ambassador Flyer

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