New book: Embracing MESSY Leadership – How the experience of 20,000 school leaders can transform you and your school

Monday 20 May, 2024Chicago and Sydney: BTS Spark – a global leadership
development initiative offering coaching support to school leaders at
not-for-profit prices – has released a new book, designed to equip leaders
working in schools with the tools and strategies they need to excel in their
roles.

Written by
BTS Spark founder Rosie Connor and BTS Spark America head Alyssa Gallagher – and
published by the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD),
the professional association for educators – Embracing MESSY Leadership

draws on more than 20,000 coaching conversations with school leaders from
around the world.

Each chapter
is grounded in the reality of educational leadership and packed with practical
resources to support school leaders as they navigate the complexities of leading
schools.

Explaining
how the book came about, co-author Rosie Connor says: “After coaching school
leaders for nearly two decades, we realised what a rich source of data those thousands
of coaching conversations held about the key challenges school leaders face,
and the strategies that are successful in tackling them. Not to share those
valuable insights would be totally at odds with our non-profit ethos”.

The
importance of the human side of successful school leadership is also examined
through the lived experiences of the school leaders who have benefited from
professional leadership coaching.

“The book
aims to help school leaders become more aware of how they lead through the use
of MESSY Leadership strategies that are already proven to be successful” adds co-author Alyssa Gallagher. “We’re
delighted by the reaction from early reviewers of the book and the invitations
we’re receiving to present the findings. It’s clear we have hit on something
very special, which we hope will help many more school leaders achieve their
full potential”.

As renowned
educator Pasi Sahlberg writes in the book’s preface: “The book you hold in
your hands is a guide to proactive, collaborating, and inclusive education in a
world that continues to be characterized by uncertainty, growing inequalities,
and disruption. It not only offers new ways to think about leadership in times
such as this, but also contributes to every school leader’s practical toolbox
to tackle everyday challenges”.

Embracing
MESSY Leadership is available
to purchase direct from ASCD and from Amazon. It is accompanied by a free
33-page MESSY Leadership Toolkit, which supplements the practical tools and
strategies covered in the book. A copy can be downloaded via this page. Details of MESSY Leadership keynotes and
presentations, plus links to related webinars, podcasts and articles can be viewed here.

Ends …

Notes to editors

Author interviews and supporting photography available on request from
Louise Holmes: louise.holmes@btsspark.org | +44 7712 011246

About BTS Spark – btsspark.org

BTS Spark is
the social impact education practice of BTS, a multi-award-winning global
leadership consultancy. We know school leaders change lives, but that every
individual and their context is different, so our coaching support is
personalised to help each one feel confident, resourceful and fully
capable.

We partner with
schools, school districts and educational leadership institutes to support
principals, school leaders and teachers to develop their skills in areas such
as people leadership, giving feedback, emotional intelligence, building
confidence, coaching, personal resilience, and other topics covered in our
latest book, Embracing MESSY Leadership. Our curriculum

outlines 33 leadership mindsets that bring about sustained improvements in
practice. We can deliver this leadership development flexibly, through
coaching, group coaching and workshops – enabling school leaders to access
impactful, high-quality development at not-for-profit prices. Our vision is for
all students and teachers to benefit from empowered, supported school
leadership.

About the authors

Alyssa
Gallagher, co-author

Alyssa
co-leads BTS Spark America, helping American and Canadian school leaders to
access leadership coaching.

Alyssa
has broad-ranging experience, serving as teacher, school principal and
Assistant Superintendent. Under Alyssa’s guidance, Los Altos School District
became a nationally recognised leader in educational innovation, with her work
featured by Forbes, Wired, The Economist, CNN and CBS’ 60 Minutes. She also
served as Director of Global Leadership for the Wiseman Group. Alyssa has
co-authored two books on using design thinking to improve teaching and
learning.

Rosie
Connor, co-author

Rosie
founded BTS Spark to enable school leaders to access world-class leadership
development and coaching at not-for-profit prices, and has launched hundreds of
programs supporting school leaders across four continents.

Rosie
has led school turnaround, worked for England’s National College for School
Leadership, and facilitated the launch of Australia’s Professional Principal
Standard.

Named
a 2023 Most Influential Educator by The Educator, Rosie collaborates with WISE,
OECD2030, and leading-edge school systems on future-focused school leadership.

About
the publisher

ASCD is where
educators come to learn about new instructional strategies, grow as individuals
and thrive as professionals. We are the preeminent global leader of
professional learning resources for all classroom teachers, instructional
leaders, principals, and superintendents. For over 80 years, educators and
instructional leaders have used ASCD's educator-generated, evidence-based
resources, digital tools, and solutions to build teaching and learning
environments to elevate education and boost student achievement.

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