Spring Cleaning for Your School Culture: How to Reset Expectations and Finish the Year Strong

The season is changing, and so is your school culture. After months of routines, expectations may have become a bit loose, and the energy might be dipping. It’s time to refresh, realign, and finish the year strong. Here’s the catch: spring cleaning your school culture doesn’t need to be a grand overhaul. It’s about making strategic, intentional tweaks that will reignite your school community. Let’s dive into how you can reset expectations, tighten up systems, and build a stronger culture as you wrap up the year.

1. Reimagine Your Approach to Staff Expectations

Rather than the standard “all-hands-on-deck” staff meeting, let’s rethink how we reenergize and reset expectations. School leaders are notorious for leading top-down, but what if you gave more autonomy and focus to how staff experience and reinforce those expectations?

How to do it:

• Create Pop-Up Conversations: Instead of scheduling a formal meeting, turn staff expectations into quick, pop-up conversation stations. These can be held in various informal settings like the teacher’s lounge, hallways, or even outside. Have a set of key topics you want to address, like student behavior, classroom engagement, or staff collaboration. Create small discussion cards with reflective questions, then have staff rotate through, engaging in peer-to-peer dialogues. This takes the pressure off formal settings and invites more natural reflection and idea exchange.

• Expectation Reflection Boards: Dedicate a space in the staff room for an ongoing conversation where teachers can anonymously or openly add feedback on the school’s core values or current expectations. Use prompts like, "What's one thing that’s working well?" or "Where can we adjust to finish the year stronger?" This interactive board can be revisited weekly, creating a fluid, ever-evolving dialogue without the need for another meeting.

• Expectations Check-in Pods: Break staff into small groups of 2-3 to do “expectation check-ins.” Give each group 15 minutes to discuss how expectations have shifted in their classroom, what they feel is working, and what needs improvement. Afterward, each group shares key takeaways with the rest of the school. This approach makes expectations feel more collaborative and personalized.

2. Revamp Your School Systems with Agile Tweaks

Now, let’s get down to the practical side of tightening up those systems. The traditional route is to have everyone sit through a long meeting outlining changes, but that can be draining. Let’s reframe it as more of an agile, small-step process that’s easy to implement and keeps things moving forward without too much disruption.

How to do it:

• "Swipe and Share" Best Practices: Instead of sending out a bland email with instructions on improving systems, create a collaborative, easy-to-access digital platform (or even a physical board) where staff can swipe and share best practices. For example, each teacher or staff member can "swipe" one quick tip for improving classroom systems, parent communication, or grading efficiency. This could be in the form of a shared Google Doc, a Trello board, or a simple bulletin board where staff post their ideas in real time. Not only will this energize your team, but it also builds shared ownership in improving systems.

• Task-Specific Workgroups: Organize staff into small, cross-functional workgroups focused on specific system improvements. Each group should tackle a small, specific area that needs attention—whether it's revamping the school’s student tracking system, streamlining parent communication, or improving the way team meetings run. These groups can work quickly, brainstorm solutions, and then present their findings or quick wins. The focus here is on fast, impactful adjustments.

• Student Voice Systems: Students are a vital part of your school’s system. Implement a student feedback loop, using their insights to revamp systems like behavior management or student engagement. Hold small student focus groups to gather feedback on what systems are working and where they see room for improvement. The key is to make the feedback actionable: take what they share and implement small but visible changes that will impact the school’s culture.

3. Reinvigorate Recognition through Micro-Acts of Appreciation

Recognition doesn’t have to be saved for big events. In fact, micro-recognition—those small, consistent gestures—can create the type of energy that propels everyone forward. Think about how you can weave these moments into everyday interactions and practices.

How to do it:

• Shout-Out Sprint: Dedicate the first 15 minutes of each day (whether virtually or in person) to staff or student recognition. Keep it brief but intentional: have a “Shout-Out Sprint” where staff can shout out each other’s efforts, share success stories, or recognize a moment of positive behavior in a student. It sets the tone for the day and helps start each morning on a high note. Over time, this becomes a routine that celebrates small wins.

• Student-Led Recognition Circles: Incorporate student leadership into the recognition process. Have students lead recognition circles where they acknowledge peers for their efforts. You can take this a step further by making it part of a class or school-wide system—perhaps they can write “shout-outs” on sticky notes and post them for everyone to see. This empowers students to reinforce positive behaviors and creates a sense of community responsibility.

• Pop-Up Appreciation Events: Keep things fresh and spontaneous by holding "pop-up" appreciation events. Maybe it’s a surprise coffee cart for teachers during a mid-week slump, or a surprise thank-you event during a lunch period. These surprise moments can be small but meaningful gestures that make everyone feel seen and valued. They can serve as the antidote to burnout and fatigue during the final stretch of the year.

Closing Thoughts: Small Shifts, Big Impact

Reimagining your school culture isn’t about a big, dramatic overhaul. It's about small but intentional shifts that allow everyone to regain focus, reconnect to purpose, and push through the final stretch with a renewed sense of commitment. Spring cleaning for your school culture isn’t just a checklist—it’s about fostering a community where everyone feels empowered, recognized, and ready to finish strong.

By approaching expectations with fresh, collaborative energy, tightening systems with agile improvements, and reinvigorating recognition through micro-acts of appreciation, you’ll be able to reset and re-energize your school culture without the burnout of another round of traditional meetings. It’s time to make small changes with a big impact.

So, what’s one small tweak you’ll make to start your school’s spring cleaning today? You have the tools—and the creativity—to make it happen. Let’s get started.