S17E960 - Data-Driven Leadership That Changes School Culture — Episode 960

Most principals say "data-driven" and mean test scores. Dr. Deborah Dennie means attendance, discipline, and climate too — and it changed her school.

Dr. Deborah Dennie has led Leonardtown Middle School in St. Mary's County, Maryland for ten years. She's Maryland's Middle School Principal of the Year and one of three middle-school finalists for the 2026 NASSP National Principal of the Year. In this episode she walks Vicki through the data routine she runs every two weeks, why she spent her entire first year looking and listening instead of changing things, and how a classic car show and a 94% at...