The Bright Initiative

Congratulations to BRIGHT's fellows on their graduation from The Ohio State University! 🎓 The journey continues onward for these 20 exceptional leaders ready to make an impact in K-12 education!

We're excited to spotlight Tiesha M. Butler, an enthusiastic leader from central Ohio in BRIGHT Fellowship's 3rd cohort! With a B.A. in English and an M.Ed. in Secondary English Language Arts, Tiesha is a dedicated educator and leader. As a Literacy Specialist, she's made significant strides in effective educational strategies. Through BRIGHT, she aims to further empower students for success. Read on to learn more about Tiesha and her experiences throughout BRIGHT and her fellowship!

Q1: Share an experience where you collaborated with parents or guardians to address a student-related issue. How did you build effective partnerships with families, and how do you see parental involvement contributing to the success of educational initiatives?
A1: This year I have participated in some expulsion hearings. During the meeting, all parties represented introduced themselves. When I went to introduce myself to the parent, she smiled and said, “I know you, I met you at freshman orientation and you helped me around the school.” I took comfort the mom was happy to see me because I made a positive first impression on her. I build effective partnerships with families by being welcoming, and approachable and keep the lines of communication open. I want parents to know we are on the same team and want the students to be successful so, parent involvement is crucial. Communication should be inclusive, and constant, parents need to be aware of the resources we have to help students be successful academically, socially, and emotionally.

Q2: Reflect on a time when you had to make a tough decision with ethical implications in an educational context. How did you approach the decision-making process, and what values or principles guided your choices?
A2: A teacher was taking students home after games. Students began to expect him to drop them off, as a colleague I explained to him that it is against school policy to do so and informed the students we provide bus passes. The values that guided my choice were responsibility, integrity, respect, and wisdom.

Q3: Describe a specific accomplishment or contribution you've made during your current K-12 principal internship that you are proud of. How did this experience shape your understanding of educational leadership?
A3: One accomplishment that I am proud of is collaborating with at-risk seniors. I develop student success plans, and smart goals as well as teach time management skills, coping skills, and self-efficacy. This group helped me choose my A3 project for the Operations Management course which focuses on the implementation of an early warning system for incoming ninth graders. This shows leadership is relational, partnering with staff, parents, and students is how leadership becomes impactful.

Click here to learn more about Tiesha and BRIGHT’s other wonderful fellows here: bright.osu.edu

Excited to showcase Lindsey Capacetti, a standout fellow in the 3rd cohort of the BRIGHT Fellowship! Dive in to discover more about Lindsey & her journey!

Q: What educational innovation or leadership approach are you passionate about, and how will you implement it as a future education leader?
A. My approach to leadership has always been to lead with people and relationships first. I strongly believe that relationships built on trust and respect are an essential part of being an effective leader. This year, as I have embarked on my school leadership journey as a principal intern, I have worked to cultivate positive relationships with the teachers and staff at my placement school and have seen it pay off in their willingness to accept new ideas and work together to help the students in our building be successful. Additionally, I am always willing to lend a hand, no matter how big or small the task. When I become a future principal in my own building I will continue to lead with relationships first and use those to motivate the staff and students in my building as I drive positive change in our building.

Q: Reflect on an academic setback. How did you bounce back, and what did you learn about yourself and leadership through overcoming that challenge?
A. The most challenging part of my academic journey in Bright has been finding the balance between my classwork, internship obligations, and personal responsibilities. I have always considered myself organized and able to stay on task, but this experience has pushed me to become even more proficient at prioritizing and planning ahead. The rigorous coursework and requirements of my internship require me to always be looking forward at what is coming next. As a school leader I believe that we always need to be prepared for what’s ahead and have strong organizational skills for prioritizing the many tasks that our job demands. Bright has certainly helped to prepare me for a future role in school leadership where I will have to juggle many important tasks on a daily basis.

Q: Share an experience collaborating with stakeholders during your principal internship. What was the outcome, and how did you contribute?
A. This year during my K-12 principal internship I am a member of our Tier 1 PBIS Committee. This team is composed of various stakeholders including staff members, other administrators, and parents. This committee spearheads our school-wide PBIS initiatives, including behavior expectations and rewards. Each month our team meets to review behavior data and develop a plan for addressing any areas of concern. This year we’ve implemented monthly “Town Hall” meetings with each grade level where we are able to give PBIS behavior updates to our students, set goals for the next month, and celebrate many of the positive things that are happening in our school building. The implementation of these new Town Halls has been viewed favorably by staff and students who look forward to attending them each month!