“Being a “New Leader” means to me that I am not going to tolerate the “status quo” no matter how difficult it is to address a difficult issue. I feel I have a laser like focus on my students and in their academic and life achievement and I need to do whatever is in my power to address issues that stand in their way.”

When John Melvin arrived as principal of Lincoln Elementary in Oakland, Calif., he was walking into what was considered a successful school. The community and staff were proud of this reputation and the school’s long history of serving the immigrant Chinatown neighborhood.

While this may seem like an ideal environment for a first-year principal, John knew that sometimes a good reputation can create a sense of complacency among a school community. He was committed to making sure that the school drove for even better results and did not become comfortable with being just a “good school.”

John’s first priorities when he entered Lincoln were:

- Get to know his staff and hear their perspectives on what was working well and where there were opportunities for growth.
- Strengthen teacher collaboration structures and infuse student data analysis into collaboration using professional learning communities.
- Co-create the school’s mission and vision with teachers to align the staff under one ideology.

John took on a lot his first year. He led his staff through difficult conversations on tough cultural competency issues and worked with a staff of mostly veteran teachers on a new curriculum. He also encouraged teachers to collaborate around student data, which was a major lever to driving student achievement.

At the end of his first year, Lincoln’s API Score rose 27 points from 908 to 933. Since then, it has increased an additional 28 points to 961. In 2009-2010, Lincoln was the only National Blue-Ribbon School in Alameda County—and one of only 21 in the state. John successfully took Lincoln from good to great!