Johnny Horton

Lander Middle School
Lander, Wyoming
jhorton@landerschools.org

Best Practices

1) Assistant Principal’s Role as Instructional Leader: Instructional Leadership is my true passion in school administrative roles, and I am thrilled about a recent initiative that has worked well at Lander Middle School (LMS). Engagement is key to learning, and can be a challenge at all levels, and acutely so at the middle school level. Fremont County School District #1 recognizes this and has trained teachers in cooperative learning structures for close to 10 years (long before I moved back home from Colorado). These strategies are intended to get students moving and talking, and therefore engaged in their learning. While the initiative has been around for years, there has been a major implementation gap in classrooms. Studies show that even really strong professional development that includes concepts and theories, demonstrations of those concepts and theories, and opportunities to practice those concepts and theories will still only lead to 10-15% application. However, with in-the-moment coaching, the application goes up to 85-90%. With that in mind, I was trained in coaching cooperative learning structures and created a system for coaching at LMS. I have collaborated with the district curriculum director, my principal, our instructional facilitator, and some teacher leaders to build a system for coaching that has transformed the use of cooperative learning structures at LMS. In years past I would say that we were right at that 10-15% implementation mark. This year, after starting a system for monthly coaching, we are very close to 90%. Cooperative learning across the board is so much stronger! In the past you could tell that students weren’t very comfortable with these structures, this year is just the opposite. This style of coaching also gives us the chance to really tailor feedback and professional learning to teachers individually. Therefore, not only are we seeing more consistent engagement, but the structures are being facilitated at a much higher level. To build safety for this initiative, we modeled it in many settings. I have the privilege of leading much of the professional learning at LMS as well as some district wide PD. In the last year and a half, if I lead PD, I use cooperative learning structures every time, and I have someone coach me in front of staff. Also, all coaches have get  coached in classrooms as well. If we have a new teacher, a struggling teacher, or a high flying teacher trying something new, we will lead the structure with students and have another coach coach us in front of the students and teacher. This effort to build safety has been critical to the success of our coaching this year, and our students are reaping the benefits of classrooms that are more engaging. This initiative has been so successful at the middle school that the superintendent has asked us to help lead this work in every school in the district next year. Fremont #1 has an incredibly talented admin team, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to share my passion for instructional leadership with them through this initiative.

2) Student Leadership: I’ve always looked for ways to empower students, and my first AP role in Jefferson County Public Schools gave me a great framework for just that. As a Leader In Me school, Westgate Elementary truly takes student leadership to the next level. I was thrilled to teach a math extension class there and we did a Project Based Learning assignment that focused on real-life math application and student leadership. Third and fourth grade students used advanced geometric and algebraic principles to redesign bathrooms to make them more student friendly. Well into the project we realized we would need money. A student found a Home Depot grant, students wrote the grant completely, and earned $5,000 for the school. That actually funded similar projects for future years as well. Those students left a legacy in their school, and felt extremely empowered. Many of them have gone on to continue to pursue leadership roles in their schools. While Lander Middle School (LMS) isn’t a Leader In Me school, I still carry those principles into my work. At LMS I have focused on four avenues to engender student leadership; student council, a boys group, 8th grade leadership team, and Wind River Outdoor Ed. Student Council was one of the myriad of programs that took a big hit during COVID. In my first year at LMS, I worked closely with a counselor to get our program going again. It is now a vibrant part of our school culture, hosting multiple dances (and inviting neighboring middle schools to dances), dodge ball tournaments, hat Fridays, and much more. Also in my first year, there was a group of rambunctious 6th grade boys. I started a group called Mr. Horton’s Group for Energetic Boys. This was a chance for the boys to “learn, move, and apply” different strategies for executive functioning and emotional regulation through a weekly class focused on movement. Now as 8th graders, they remain highly energetic, but are better able to use their energy for teaching and learning. This year, in close collaboration with my principal, I started an 8th grade leadership team. They serve as our “cabinet” so to speak, and advise us on things students are loving, and things students would love. One example is that we changed a lunch/recess transition based on feedback from this team. The new routine is much more efficient for students and staff. My fourth example is a new program for 6th graders called Wind River Outdoor Ed (WROE). This program will be a two night, overnight, place-based education opportunity in the Wind River Mountain Range. I have partnered with community members, LMS staff, students, and families to get this proposal off the ground. We presented to the school board in December and they were unanimously supportive. Our launch in September 2025 and plan to build a sustainable program that will embed leadership skills into an engaging science excursion. These examples show that one of my true passions is empowering students through leadership opportunities.