Welcome back to the Community Room for Episode 4! Today's topic is "Building Capacity" and we've brought in two friends, former colleagues and former community school coordinators: Elizabeth Byrne and Larry Ryan. They talk about the different ways they build capacity in their own schools, the differences between an elementary school model versus a high school model, caring for the whole child, and much more.

Larry Ryan has been in education for over 25 years. From his role as a school Youth Worker, Teacher, Community School Coordinator, and a Vice Principal in a middle school, he has been part of the school community from a variety of vantage points. He believes that the key to enhancing student learning and outcomes is to engage all stakeholders in the community. As a vice principal, Larry focuses on servant leadership and building a sense of community among students, staff, parents and other stakeholders. He strives to make his school a place that students and staff want to attend every day because it is a place of safety, connection, and fun.

Elizabeth Byrne has been a social studies teacher in British Columbia for 25 years and is all about connection and community. She is passionate about social justice, writing, connecting people, developing curriculum resources, creating space for others to succeed, and providing opportunities and experiences for people to thrive.

She holds a Masters in History and in her career so far she has taught social studies at five high schools and three elementary schools. She has also taught teacher candidates at university and been a Community School Coordinator at both high school and elementary level.

Her writing projects focus on social justice and critical thinking, and include Pivotal Voices: Exploring Identity, Inclusion and Citizenship, resources for Learning In Depth, Tools for Thought, The Critical Thinking Consortium, and the Learning about Homelessness Project, among others. She was editor for Dimensions while on the British Columbia Social Studies Association executive, and she has also written and implemented the curriculum for courses such as Innovative Curriculum Design, and the Leadership Program in her district.

QUOTES:

"The world does not need leaders to better define issues or to orchestrate better planning or project management. What it needs is for the issues and the plans to have more of an impact, and that comes from citizen accountability and commitment. Engagement is the means through which there can be a shift in caring for the well-being of the whole, and the task of leader as convener is to produce that engagement.” - Peter Block, Community: The Structure of Belonging

"The conductor of an orchestra doesn’t make a sound. He depends for his power on his ability to make others powerful. " - Benjamin Zander, TED Talk