Personalized Learning Initiative @ Hampton Project Manager VS Project Coach

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With Hampton High School entering is second year of existence the expectation now exists that we are up and running as the lead high school in the county in regards to Personalized Learning.  Our first year allowed for many teachers to take part in training and PD related to Personalized Learning but there was a great degree of turnover of staff.  With that being said many of our teachers are essentially in their first year of Personalized Learning.
Our school was afforded the opportunity because of a grant to hire a Personalized Learning Manager and a Personalized Learning Coach.  The two people serving in these roles are very different when it relates to experience in education.  The Project Manager spent many years in the corporate world working for AT&T then entering the classroom last year as a teacher while the Project Coach has taught science for over 15 years and has been very successful in areas of student growth and achievement.
At this point in the school year there is a power struggle to a degree between the two about who is in charge of actually helping teachers implement PL at Hampton High School.  I am looking for any words of wisdom on how to approach this.  The PL Coach when posed a question that would be better answered by the Project Manager acts accordingly and sends that person to the Project Manager.  On the other hand, when a question is posed to the Project Manager that should be answered by the PL Coach he attempts to act as the expert on Personalized Learning.  I have tried to relate it to a pro sports team with a general manager and a coach.  The general manager often works behind the scenes setting up schedules, trips, budget, etc but often does little to no coaching.  The coach of the team is the one who interacts with players on a daily basis in order to become better in each facet of the game.  How should I approach my PL Project Manager and let him know that questions that would be better answered by our PL Coach should be sent to her while still respecting his very important role?

Comments

  1. UnknownOctober 12, 2015 at 6:54 PM

    Maybe they each need an explicit written description of their specific PL roles/jobs, and those descriptions can also be communicated out to the whole faculty so they'll be clear about which individual to contact in any given circumstance. I know you mentioned a "power struggle" but that could be the result of underlying communication problems. It's just a thought. Maybe sharing/clarifying the roles to everyone will diffuse the power struggle too. Good luck!

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  2. Giles October 19, 2015 at 4:45 AM

    There roles has to be clearly define. They will continue to cross paths and this could lead to serious problems and disagreements. Meet with both of them to create their duties and expectations. They both have qualities that will help them in their roles. It needs to be in writing so that they both can be on the same page and work together as a team instead of working apart.

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