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

7 Characteristics of a Successful School Community

Illustrated neighborhood of homes and winding roads leading to a brick school where children arrive by bus and on foot
What makes a successful school community isn't test scores alone. It's the hidden curriculum. Seven characteristics I associate with strong school communities: a positive culture, real business partnerships, an active PTA, steady volunteers, influence beyond your own district, creative funding, and the habit of telling your own story. [xyz_feat_school] What makes some communities better than…
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The Top 3 Ways to Ward Off Energy Vampires in Schools

group in Halloween vampire, witch, and skeleton costumes posing dramatically
Energy vampires in schools are the colleagues who drain a team's motivation through chronic negativity, complaining, or resistance to collaboration. The fix starts before you hire one: screen for teaming red flags in interviews and references, then address the behavior directly if it shows up anyway, using "I" statements and, when needed, your principal's support.…
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Why Is Public Education Important? A Principal’s Case

Child holding a handwritten chalkboard sign reading 1st Day of Kindergarten while standing outside on grass
Why is public education important? Public school systems have a legal obligation to provide access to eligible students regardless of protected characteristics, and to provide a free appropriate public education to eligible students with disabilities. Free K-12 schooling also aims to build informed citizens and prepare students for work, training, or college. [xyz_feat_school] *Posted with…
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3 Reasons Principals Should Celebrate Teacher Evaluations

young boy in a suit behind a desk labeled "THE BOSS," pointing while another boy in a suit sits and listens
Teacher evaluation feels less like an audit and more like a celebration of growth when principals pair evidence-based reflection, using a framework like Danielson, where adopted, with specific positive feedback and a relationship built on trust. There's no universally established ratio for balancing praise and growth areas, but naming both clearly makes the conversation land…
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7 Strategies to Combat Community Opposition to Public Schools

Overhead view of a diverse group of adults standing in a circle with their hands stacked together
Community opposition to public schools is best answered with visibility, not rebuttal. Schools that publish what's working, host open forums, invite critics inside, and talk with neighbors directly build enough public trust that organized criticism struggles to gain traction. Arguing point by point on social media usually backfires and makes the responder the next target.…
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A Day in the Life of a Principal: 12,000 Steps

Stepz app screen showing a week of daily step counts, several days topping 13,000–14,000 steps
In this principal's account, the day runs from before 7 AM to after 5 PM, with much of it spent moving throughout the school: hallway patrols, playground supervision, lunchroom cleanup, classroom walkthroughs, and crisis support for at-risk students. He tracked his typical Monday step by step, and it added up to roughly 12,000 steps before…
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8 Ways Teachers Can Build a Positive School Culture

3 teachers standing in a school hallway
Teacher leaders build a positive school culture by owning what they can control: consistent behavior systems such as PBIS, deliberate staff and student recognition, shared expectations, and cross-grade connections such as buddy classrooms. None of these actions require a principal's initiative. A teacher who starts small in their own classroom or hallway can shift the…
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How to Talk to Your Kids About Snapchat: 7 Lessons in Responsible Use

A phone with the snapchat app open on kids desk
Start with Snapchat's own safety tools: its minimum age is generally 13, though it can be higher in some countries or regions, and its Family Center lets you see who your child talks to without reading the messages. From there, settle on a monitoring routine you can maintain consistently, teach the difference between reporting and…
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10 Reasons to Have a Teaching Collaboration Partner

2 passion partners shaking hands
A teaching collaboration partner is a fellow educator you check in with regularly to trade ideas, troubleshoot problems, and push each other's practice forward. The relationship works because both people bring solutions, not just complaints. One Montana elementary principal built this kind of partnership with a colleague 200 miles away, and it changed how both…
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