Award: Marcus Foster Memorial Award for Administrator Excellence Name: Julie Mitchell Title: Superintendent, Rowland Unified School District Region: 15 When Julie Mitchell first arrived at Rowland Unified School District in 2014, she saw “pockets of genius” all around the district. The trick was figuring out how to scale these practices across entire grades and schools. By creating a culture that welcomes innovation, Mitchell has been able to implement many changes that have made Rowland a “Visionary School District.”  Mitchell is the winner of this year’s Marcus Foster Memorial Award, which honors educators who model the vision of the late Marcus Foster. Foster’s inclusive management style gave staff comfort and confidence as he managed them through periods of change. Mitchell said Rowland’s team of dedicated employees has been able to implement a number of ideas, including a new District Framework for Teaching and Learning and programs like “Music for All,” which provides students in grades 1-6 music education from credentialed music teachers. These and other initiatives have transformed teaching and student achievement. “Our focus is on the whole child, not just academic opportunities and performance, as our students are much more than a score on an exam or a grade on a report card,” Mitchell said.  Embracing technology in the classroom and tackling the “digital divide” have also been priorities.  “Access to technology is not a luxury, it is an educational necessity,” Mitchell said. “Rowland Unified is at the forefront of digital equity and we understand that access to anytime, anywhere learning for our students is a must to compete in this digital, ever-connected, global world.” Cohorts of teachers have been sent to tech learning events and new iPads and Chromebooks have been deployed, giving the district a 1-to-1.4 ratio of students to devices.  Knowing students and families lacked internet access at home, Mitchell worked with local elected officials to bring WiFi access to public parks and local businesses, as well as apartment complexes. The district even helped distribute free hotspots for use at home for all high school students in need, in partnership with the 1Million Project Foundation. All of this would not have been possible without the ability to take risks. While being careful not to fall victim to “educational fads,” Mitchell said she expects staff to stretch outside of their comfort zones. “At the forefront of change is creating the culture where it is OK to try something new, even if that means falling short on initial attempts,” she said. “We embrace failure as a first attempt in learning, cheering one another on in the learning process with support, guidance and encouragement.”  Mitchell considers it her responsibility to provide the best educational experience for all 13,198 students in her district. Doing so means being visible at school sites and having plenty of opportunities to listen to stakeholders. “It is imperative that the parents/guardians of the students we serve have a voice and the ability to actively and genuinely engage in the educational process,” she said. The district does this in a variety of ways. One is through Student Voice lunches, where staff visit with a diverse group of students in grades 5-12 to engage in a “brutally candid” conversation about how the district is meeting their needs. Likewise, the district collects feedback from parents through the Superintendent’s Parent Advisory Council and other community meetings.  Under Mitchell’s leadership, Rowland was named a 2018 “Visionary School District” by the International Center for Leadership in Education and was selected as one of 12 schools across the nation for the Future Ready Schools Digital Equity Program. “Dr. Mitchell’s strength is in both organizational and personal communication. She communicates clearly with honest conversations which have led to renewed trust,” said Lynne Ebenkamp, past president of the Rowland Unified School District Board of Education.  Mitchell proudly puts her district’s innovations on display using the Twitter hashtag #WeAreRUSD. “Advancing the interests, needs, and well-being of all students is the hallmark of my actions,” Mitchell said.