Brad R. Gustafson

In his six years as Principal of Greenwood Elementary School, Dr. Brad Gustafson has focused on cultivating a child-centered culture. He stresses approachability by eating lunch with students, attending extra-curricular events, playing kickball, four square, and football during recess, and working from a mobile desk at times. With an emphasis on amplifying student voice through purposeful technology integration, Greenwood uses live-streaming to broadcast concerts, geography bees, parent meetings, and assemblies. The traditional principal newsletter has been replaced with an engaging student podcast posted to YouTube and shared with families. Students interact with district curriculum using cutting-edge technology like educational drones and robotic droids. Whether immersed in Genius Hour, MakerSpaces, coding, or collaborating with schools on other continents, students experience a connected pedagogy that amplifies their voice in the learning process. A cafeteria DJ program amplifies student voice by providing additional choice, and an augmented reality art gallery features student masterpieces linked to videos of students sharing their design process. The Greenwood staff has become increasingly connected to educators across the country, collaborating via Voxer, Twitter, Blab, Google Hangouts, and Skype. Gustafson embraces innovation along with the belief that failure can be a catalyst to growth. He holds a B.A. and M.A. in Science from St. Cloud State University, a Ed.D from Bethel University, and a Specialist degree in Educational Administration from Minnesota State University