Using AI to build Culture in a School District with Kenny Rodrequez Transformative Principal 603

Welcome to Transformative Principal. Today, we are joined by Dr. Kenny Rodrequez, Superintendent of Grandview C-4 School District in Missouri. With over two decades of educational leadership experience, Dr. Rodrequez has been a pivotal figure in driving innovative strategies to enhance school culture and student success. His dedication to fostering an inclusive and dynamic learning environment makes him an ideal guest as we explore the transformative potential of AI in building district culture. 

Why using specific AI Agents is valuable for our work. 

• How to engage with staff differently
• 600 staff members
• Lebra is an engagement tool. 
• Automatically creates a prompt for me
• Because it knows our vision and plans, it incorporates those things into what we do. 
• Between the work anniversaries and birthdays, it’s communicating 10-15 people per day.
• Understanding what we are focused on in our district.
• Being able to build relationships and culture through small simple acts. 
• There’s just not enough time in the day.
• How using Lebra is improving the culture. 
• Feedback from staff receiving AI messages
• Leveraging technology to make you successful.
• How to be a transformative principal? Stop and take a breath. Improve one connection every day. 

About Kenny Rodrequez

Dr. Kenny Rodrequez became Superintendent of the Grandview C-4 School District in July 2016.

 

Before serving as Superintendent, Dr. Rodrequez served for two years as the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction in the Grandview C-4 School District. His responsibilities included the direction and overall delivery of K-12 curriculum programs, the developing, implementing, and evaluation of educational services for the district, and providing leadership for all Elementary and Secondary schools. 

Dr. Rodrequez has served in several capacities throughout his career. He was a music educator for 8 years in two different states, including being a band director, percussion instructor, and district music resource teacher.

 

Dr. Rodrequez moved into school administration more than 10 years ago and has held site level positions of assistant principal and principal before moving into district-level positions of director and assistant superintendent.

 

He was selected to create and implement the first Early College High School program in Tulsa through a partnership with Tulsa Community College. He directed the Tulsa Innovative School network, which served 1,200 plus students in grades K-12, and served as a lead examiner for the Oklahoma Quality Award Foundation, based upon the Baldrige process.

 

In both Oklahoma and Missouri, he has done extensive work on the implementation of new teacher evaluation systems in an effort to raise academic achievement and build collaborative relationships between teachers and administrators.

 

Dr. Rodrequez has a Bachelors degree from Oklahoma State University in Music Education, a Master of Science degree from Oklahoma State University in School Leadership, and completed his Doctorate degree from Baker University in School Administration.

 

He has been happily married for more than 25 years to his wife Tracie. They have two wonderful children, Izzy and Jackson.

Learn more about today's sponsors, Playworks, IXL, and Renaissance Learning:

As a global leader in education technology operating in more than 110 countries, Renaissance is committed to providing educators with insights and resources to accelerate growth and help all students build a strong foundation for success. We believe that technology can unlock a more effective learning experience, ensure that students get the personalized teaching they need to thrive, and help educators and administrators to truly, fully, See Every Student. Learn more at renaissance.com.

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. 

These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation.

We’re also thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. 

IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more:

• Simplify and streamline technology
• Save teachers’ time
• Reliably meet Tier 1 standards
• Improve student performance on state assessments

🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.