tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37449610.post5118424693577913926..comments2021-11-11T13:15:27.037-08:00Comments on Confessions of an OG: Sigh. This whole MERIT application process is HARD.Diane E. Main, GCT NorCal 2006http://www.blogger.com/profile/01604373649158850063noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37449610.post-49618293525342353352014-03-02T15:37:51.690-08:002014-03-02T15:37:51.690-08:00Thank you, Diane, for posting this blog. I work wi...Thank you, Diane, for posting this blog. I work with Diane to plan the MERIT 14 program. We adapted and revised a 3-year old process for accepting the 45 applicants into the program. The end results of the process may seem like a mystery to all applicants--certainly those who are not accepted, but also those who are!<br /><br />I would like to add some more dimension to Diane's post. She is correct in writing the process is not personal to the applicant, but the process is personal to us because we know the power of this transformative opportunity on every MERIT Teacher. <br /><br />The human side of assembling a cohort of teachers is hard, as Diane wrote. We have learned from years of MERIT programs that the best cohort of teachers should represent a balance of elementary, middle, and high school teachers, STEM disciplines among the middle and high school applicants, a variety of districts, and the number of team members who qualify. There is an intuitive, human-based act of balancing the number of new and alumni MERIT teachers at one school site while accepting new schools into the program. <br /><br />We strive to balance well qualified applicants who have confidence in using edtech, with applicants who are still hesitant, but willing to learn. Sometimes we make choices for those applicants who work in the kinds of schools that our donors prefer to see represented over more "statistically" qualified applicants. <br /><br />As Diane indicated, less than half the applicant pool is accepted. Therefore, many, many well qualified teachers are excluded by our size limitation (less than 50). It is not possible to accept every qualified applicant.<br /><br />While the process is not personal with respect to each individual applicant, it is very human centered. We trust in human resiliency to carry us through the process that must deny well qualified teachers the chance to participate. We feel the burden and regret for every teacher that did not get accepted into the program and also trust in their resiliency to bounce back from the disappointment. What would a teacher tell his or her student who didn't succeed with their best effort to achieve something? <br /><br />For the cohort of teachers who are accepted, we believe you are special, but not unique. Receive your acceptance like a gift...with the humble realization that any one of the teachers who did not get accepted could take your place and MERIT would remain an outstanding edtech teacher professional development program.<br /><br />To finish on an upbeat, we encourage every applicant who did not get selected for this year to heed Diane's advice. Finally, we are very happy for those MERIT applicants who were accepted and anticipate many great things will happen through them to create positive, innovative learning experiences for their students. <br /><br />Best wishes, <br /><br />Steven McGriff, Ph.D.<br />Professor-in-Residence, Krause Center for Innovation<br />MERIT Program Leadership TeamAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03103305704520924685noreply@blogger.com