Building a Culture of Support

PJ Caposey’s educational career began in high school when he received the Golden Apple Scholarship, which supports students pursuing their dream to teach by providing financial aid and training in return for a commitment to teach in a needs-based area. Mr. Caposey did just that after completing his studies at Eastern Illinois University by teaching at Percy Lavon Julian High School in Chicago.After completing his administrative certification at National Louis University, Mr. Caposey served as an Assistant Principal in Rockford Public Schools before becoming the principal of Oregon High School at the age of 28. Since arriving at Oregon High School, Mr. Caposey and the school have received many honors, including winning the Illinois Principal’s Association/Horace Mann Partners in Education Award and being named one of the nation’s top high schools by U.S. News and World Report. Mr. Caposey has received the Award of Merit from the Those Who Excel program, sponsored by the Illinois State Board of Education. He has also been honored as an exemplar candidate for the ASCD Outstanding Young Educator Award.Currently, Mr. Caposey is pursuing his doctoral degree at Western Illinois University and continuing to write and guest blog for many websites such as ASCD, Edutopia, and Test Soup. He has also presented at many local, state, and national conferences and has served in different consultative capacities for schools and other organizations. In addition, Mr. Caposey is an adjunct professor for the educational leadership department at Aurora University.Mr. Caposey still serves as the Oregon High School principal. He is married with two children and resides in the Northwestern part of Illinois. He can be reached at principalcaposey@hotmail.com or @principalpc on Twitter.

• Chapter 1 Fostering a Culture of Support; Chapter 2 The Vision, Mission, and Goals; Chapter 3 The Professionals; Chapter 4 The Students; Chapter 5 The Community;

"PJ breaks down the complex concepts of school culture and school improvement into easily digestible pieces with concrete suggestions for implementation. Building a Culture of Support is an excellent resource for any current or aspiring school leader."—Dr. Todd Whitaker, noted education expert and author of the best-selling book, What Great Principals Do Differently