Introduction

My name is La Toshia Palmer and I would like to provide you with an introduction regarding my professional, personal and educational background. I will also provide you with a brief discussion regarding the experiences that have lead me to want to pursue my administrative credential/MA degree, along with the leadership qualities I possess that will make me a great leader. In closing, I will share with you my perspective regarding Elliot Eisner’s belief that the arts are important to understanding complexities that will make students successful in life in the global economy.

With regards to my personal background, I live in Elk Grove, CA. Elk Grove is located within the county of Sacramento, CA. My interest outside of work primarily consist of spending time with family, exercising, teaching dance lessons to children at my church, shopping whenever I can and baking.  My professional scope of practice is within the field of Social Work, and I am currently employed with San Juan Unified School District. At San Juan Unified School District, I serve as a Mutli-Tiered Support, School Social Worker for the district’s Student Support Centers, and I provide comprehensive student support services to two middle schools and one elementary school.  I am also employed as a Psychiatric Social Worker (Per Diem) for the Monterey County Department of Behavioral Health at Natividad Medical Center. In essence, my employment and professional background heavily rests on my education.

I received my education through Brandman University of where I earned a Doctorate in Education and Organizational Leadership in May of 2018. In addition, I have a Master’s Degree in Social Welfare from the University of California, Berkeley, a Bachelor’s of Art Degree in Sociology from the University of Missouri-St. Louis, and an Associate’s Degree in Liberal Arts from San Diego Mesa College. Furthermore, I studied dance and sociology as an undergraduate at the University of California, Irvine. Throughout the course of my education, I received a Pupil Personnel Services Credential in School Social Work from Sacramento State university, and I am registered with the California Board of Behavioral Sciences as an Associate Clinical Social Worker in pursuit of becoming a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW). Given my education, I was provided with the opportunity to acquire extensive knowledge and experience as professional educator and school social worker.

 As a Social Worker, I have extensive knowledge and over 17 years of experience of working with the most vulnerable children, adolescents, adults and families from various socio-economic backgrounds, cultures and ethnicities. My knowledge and experience derives from  historical employment with Child Welfare Services, Non-Profit Organizations that serve individuals with global disabilities and who provide residential treatment for adolescents with severe mental health challenges, school districts who serve children and adolescents with Individualized Educational Plans and county offices of education who provide educational services and student support services to foster youth, homeless youth, youth who are English Language Learners, and youth who are involved in the juvenile justice system. Based upon the experiences I encountered, my desire of becoming an administrator within the field of public education continued to manifest within my heart.

The above experiences have propelled me to pursue an administrative credential/MA degree in order to implement innovative 21rst century school social work practices, and improve organizational systems of student support services within the field of school social work in public education. Furthermore, it is my desire to help make transformational changes within public education in efforts to close the achievement gap for disadvantaged youth as previously mentioned, in addition to ensuring equity in student support services for all students, social justice, and to foster an organizational climate of cultural competency and humility with a mindset and behavioral norms underpinning the significant effects of students who suffer from complex trauma and adverse childhood experiences. I am confident of my ability to implement such transformational changes given my leadership qualities.  

As a transformational leader, my leadership qualities of: 1) creativity and innovative ideas of the 21rst century,  2) emotional intelligence, political intelligence, 3) cultural competency, 4) the ability to embrace my vulnerability and to admit my mistakes and errors, 5) my work ethic and integrity, 6) including constituents and vested stakeholders into decision making processes, 7) using my power and authority as a leader to support, influence, strengthen, empower and encourage rather than using my power and authority to manipulate and control others, and most important, 8) building and maintaining trusting relationships with students, parents, the community, superiors, constituents and vested stakeholders, in all will help me be a successful leader. In addition, being a successful leader also means being able to accept new ideas and foster innovative ways to help students overcome the complexities of life in the global economy.

 Elliott Eisner asserts that the Arts are important to understanding complexities that will make students successful in life in the global economy. In support of this argument, I have discovered that providing students with an outlet through art, such as dance, art therapy, painting, drama/theater, poetry, journaling and spoken word, students are able to articulate their thoughts, feelings, and ability to solve problems in a more creative way. It is to my observation that providing students with various artistic venues as mentioned above, fosters creativity, inquisitiveness, innovation and problem solving, which are the skills that are in high demand within the marketplace. As students pursue to become college and or career ready, and as they enter the community as young adults, their artistic competency and skills will help them navigate through the complexities of life and help prepare them for what is expected and needed within the global economy. There are several artistic venues that I have facilitated as a leader in order to help keep the arts in place for all students.

I have utilized art therapy and taught a dance class to students as a school social worker. I and observed artistic outlets such as dance, poetry, painting, drama/theater and spoken word, implemented as an instructional curriculum within an alternative education program through my previous employment with the Monterey County Office of Education. It was to my observation that districts and county offices of education were partnering with local non-profit agencies and or utilizing staff within their educational organization with the professional credentials and expertise to keep the arts in place for all students. In closing, thank you for taking the time to review my introduction, my perspective on our recent reading, and my experience within other school districts and county offices of education.