About: Jon Konen

Jon Konen is a high school principal and freelance writer in Columbia Falls, Montana. He has been a superintendent and has taught most all grade levels K-6, and has been an instructional coach. In addition, he has been an elementary and middle principal. As a 5th grade teacher, in 2010 he won the Presidential Award for Elementary Math and Science Teaching (PAEMST). As a principal, his school won the 2012 Blue Ribbon Award. In 2018, he won the National Distinguished Principal Award (NDP). In 2019 he won the National No Kid Hungry Breakfast Hero Award. He is the author of three guides published on teacher.org: An Educator's Guide to Combat Bullying & Bully Prevention; Teacher Evaluation: A Transition Guide to Exemplary Performance; and You are the Wild Card: Infusing Fun Back into Curriculum. He has authored a children's picture book that was released January 2019 titled Benjamin’s Visit to Principal Reads Office…again! (available at www.archwaypublishing.com)

Recent Posts by Jon Konen

Learning How to Say No and Set Boundaries with Parents

red wooden toolbox filled with a hammer, wrench, screwdrivers and other hand tools
Setting boundaries with parents starts with knowing which requests you can't compromise on. Anchor every "no" to safety, health, or education, state it once, offer a choice where one exists, and end the conversation on your terms. Consistency matters more than the wording you pick, and a boundary set early is easier to hold than…
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How to Implement a Check-In, Check-Out (CICO) Behavior System

teacher high fiving student in classroom
Check-in, check-out (CICO) is an evidence-based Tier 2 behavior intervention that pairs a student with a trusted adult for a quick meeting at the start and end of each day. It can improve behavior for many students when it's appropriately matched to their needs and implemented with fidelity. [xyz_feat_school] If you had only one behavior…
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Teacher Core Values: 7 Strategies for Living Your Code

Elementary teacher standing behind a group of smiling students with backpacks in a school breezeway
Teacher core values are the convictions you won't trade away when a decision gets hard. Commonly discussed professional values include integrity, empathy, respect, fairness, and responsibility. Naming yours matters because the pressure to soften them is real. Write down your five, back each with experience, and you'll know where you stand. [xyz_feat_school] Live your code!…
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8 Ways to Fall in Love with Teaching Again Instead of Leaving

teacher standing on painted pavement arrows pointing in two different directions
If you're trying to fall in love with teaching again, you have more options than staying miserable or quitting. Before you leave the profession, consider switching schools, grade levels, roles, or states. Burnout often traces to a specific fit problem, not to teaching itself. A lateral move can fix what an exit can't. [xyz_feat_school] Are…
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Advice for First-Year Teachers: What I’d Tell Myself

man in a red jacket sitting on a leaf-covered forest floor with his eyes closed and earbuds in
The best advice for first-year teachers, from a superintendent 23 years in: spend your time on students rather than materials, build relationships before lessons, protect your own resilience, and start saving for retirement early. For this author, relationships ultimately mattered more than the materials and resources he bought. [xyz_feat_school] This reflection was written in the…
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Toxic Positivity in Schools: Strategies for School Leaders

Five smiling elementary students with backpacks lined up in a school hallway
Toxic positivity in schools happens when leaders push relentless optimism instead of addressing what staff are actually dealing with. It can backfire, contributing to sarcasm or resentment when legitimate concerns aren't addressed. The fix isn't less celebration. It's naming the hard reality first, then holding both students and adults to real expectations. [xyz_feat_school] Scrolling, scrolling,…
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Email Etiquette for School Leaders: When to Hit Send

The words Tough Decisions Ahead painted in white on an empty desert road
Email etiquette for school leaders comes down to when you send, not just how you write. Draft whenever your own schedule allows, then use schedule send so the message lands during the staff workday. Many leaders reserve after-hours sends for emergencies, following their district's own communication policy. [xyz_feat_school] A recent post from the private Facebook…
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Advocating for Public Education: A Superintendent’s Guide

Group of young students in a circle looking up together, representing a public school classroom
Advocating for public education means telling the story of what happens in your classroom, showing up where funding decisions get made, and connecting your school to the community that pays for it. Teachers hold the credibility policymakers lack. The work is small, repeated, and local. [xyz_feat_school] My first teaching contract was for $19,100. That was…
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National Principals Month: 45 Ways to Celebrate Your Principal

Chalkboard graphic with chalk lettering: October is National Principals Month, Have you thanked a principal today?
National Principals Month runs the entire month of October. It is organized by the National Principals Association, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, and the American Federation of School Administrators. It is a separate observance from School Principals' Day, which falls on May 1. [xyz_feat_school] In my experience, the hardest job in education is…
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Ever Wonder What Your Teacher Benefits Are Really Worth?

smiling teacher holding a piggy bank in a classroom with students in the background
Teacher benefits add real value beyond salary. BLS reports that, for primary, secondary, and special education school teachers, benefits accounted for 35.0 percent of total compensation as of December 2025. For a High School Teacher earning the median $72,040, health insurance, a pension, and paid time off add real value on top of that, though…
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