Community and collaboration: Texas leadership summit October 2024

Over the years, it’s become clear that educators crave the opportunity to collaborate. Time and time again, we’ve heard districts and teachers – via in-person events, webinars, and client feedback forms – report they stay motivated and do their best work by learning from leaders in the space and exchanging ideas with their peers.

That’s just one of the reasons why Xello is passionate about hosting conferences and sponsoring industry events: they allow leaders to connect, learn, and solidify their college and career readiness strategies. 

“I loved the fact that the sessions were a joint effort of Xello presenters, but also district presenters. I felt like that was even more impactful, because it was the authentic application of how Xello is used by the district.”

The Xello Texas Leadership Summit was held on October 8, 2024, and hosted 86 clients from 26 districts. The day included a keynote welcome session, 12 breakout sessions including two panel discussions, and a closing reception with a preview of Xello’s roadmap. 

“Every single piece. The location, the vibes, the people, the food, and the content. Every single piece of this event was incredible. I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to attend.”

Did you know? Xello serves 300+ districts in Texas, including 9 regional ESCs.

 Xello founder Matt McQuillen participated, saying how vital it is to support, honor, and connect educators. In his closing remarks, he says: “It’s rare that educators can take time to come together to network and share. Xello is invested in helping educators create stronger connections, because at the end of the day, some of the best learning comes from each other. We know that not only attendees benefit from these discussions, but ultimately, the students.”

Below is a recap of the summit, including main takeaways, feedback, and how you can incorporate these learnings in your own program. 

Breakout sessions

The Xello Leadership Summit is a hands-on event for Texas districts and CCMR program leaders to share insights and learn together. This free summit, available to Texas districts using Xello, focuses on supporting student success and strengthening future-readiness programs.

We offered 12 breakout sessions for attendees that were designed to enhance educators’ programming and impact in their schools. The best part? Besides being hosted by Xello specialists, many of the sessions were led by community  leaders who brought real-world experience and insights.

These sessions included:

• Unlocking the Power of Xello Reports: Achieving Data-Driven Success for Your District
• AVID + Xello: The Perfect Pairing
• Empower Students, Transform Futures: Enhancing Student Pathway Planning with Xello
• CCMR Reimagined: Beyond Compliance, Creating Successful Futures
• Applications to Admissions: Xello’s Holistic Approach to College Readiness
• 4-Year Planning Simplified: Building PGPs with Xello’s Course Planner
• Xello in Action: Real-World Strategies for Maximizing Impact
• Empower the Workforce of Tomorrow: Transform Your WBL Program with Xello
• Successful Implementation: Bringing Xello to Life in Your Schools
• Future-Ready Graduates: Enhancing Employability Skills with Xello
• Planting Seeds of Possibility: Cultivating Career Awareness in Elementary School

Want to see the  full event agenda or get more information on the topics above?  Just reach out to one of our Education Specialists and we’ll be happy to speak with you. 

And please check out our Xello Support site or sign into Xello Academy if you are a current Xello educator. 

“I don’t always get something from the training I attend, but I did in this one. Our district is full of ideas that we’re ready to take back.”

Overarching themes

While there were many great presentations, discussions, and questions presented at the Texas Leadership Summit, four themes emerged: community building , better data usage,  promoting all pathways, and college preparation. 

McQuillen explains: “We’re very proud of the Xello product and its many features, yet we also understand that without proper training – or even just time set aside to dive in – these features can feel overwhelming to implement. We want districts and educators to feel empowered implementing Xello, now and in the future, which is why connecting with clients and focusing on their goals and pain points is critical.”

1. Benefit from the Xello community

Every student should have the opportunity to develop future-ready skills, and behind every student is their district and educators supporting them each step of the way. 

So, at Xello, we’re more than just a platform for empowering educators and helping students find their future. We’re building a community. 

That’s why we developed this leadership summit with intentionality. From breakout sessions to catered meals to swag bags to a fun closing reception, we wanted to ensure district leaders had the opportunity throughout the day to connect with others and feel a part of something bigger.

And this community-building ethos shapes everything we do. We listen to our users, transforming their feedback into hundreds of product enhancements and new features every year. We engage through our Customer Advisory Board (CAB), thought-leadership webinars featuring district leaders, partner with key associations like ASCA and ACTE, and create events like the Texas Leadership Summit, where we bring educators together to share their insights and experiences. 

Our success is deeply tied to theirs, and that’s why we’re all in. We loved witnessing the educator connections in Texas, but don’t just take it from us. 

“This was a great event. I really appreciated everything you guys did. I love the breakouts. I love the informational panel discussions. That was really informative. I learned something new today and I learned from my peers.”

2.  Fuel your planning and programming with data

Educators shouldn’t have to make gut-decisions or navigate numerous spreadsheets to plan CCR programming. Xello connects the dots between student work and district planning, allowing educators to spend their valuable time with students and teaching valuable skills. 

While Xello is an engaging platform and all learners can jump into and navigate independently, districts will get the most out of the software when educators utilize the numerous reports Xello offers. 

For example:

• Engagement reports: Engagement reports – which allow you to track which students are meeting goals and other grade-level insights – help teachers pace and plan accurately. Even better? Xello lets you see parent engagement, which is a crucial component to student future-readiness success. 
• Student work reports: Work reports – which include Matchmaker results, volunteer hours, and “favorited” career clusters – help educators support personalized learning and identify student needs. 
• Completion and accountability reports: These reports – that highlight lesson, assignment, and survey completion – improve student outcomes and hold students accountable for their futures. 

“This conference today has been absolutely incredible. This has been very fabulous in so many ways. I have loved sharing ideas with other people in Texas, and I have loved meeting the people here and learning more about what we are not yet doing with Xello that we could be.”

3. Promote and offer opportunities for all pathways

CCR isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. In fact, there are nine different pathways students can choose from. Unfortunately, many educators report that community stigma or socio-economic resources keep students from exploring these different pathways. 

A few ways educators can use Xello for pathway promotion is: 

• Xello MatchMaker helps students understand their strengths and interests, and provides career suggestions that innately align with who they are, including careers they might not have considered. 
• Xello Career Pathways introduces students to nine pathway options they can  research and explore within the program.
• Generate custom lessons and assignments to ensure students are exposed to all career pathways and clusters. 
• Introduce career exploration as early as kindergarten by encouraging self-discovery and nurturing future-readiness skills. 

4. Take a holistic approach to college planning

College readiness is a journey that happens way before the application process. You don’t want families or students to feel unprepared, which is why Xello has created a thoughtful K-12 experience that takes a holistic approach to kids’ futures. 

We encourage districts to:

• Use the Explore Options feature.  This equips students to explore and discover careers of interest, including the colleges and majors that can get them there. 
• Utilize the Knowledge Hub. In Xello’s Knowledge Hub, students can find answers to all of their post-secondary questions, explore and get matched with available scholarships, and create and track college applications. It makes the college planning process less scary by empowering students to explore and engage at their own pace. 
• Engage families. Families with limited resources may think college isn’t an option for their child. By encouraging the creation of family profiles, hosting family nights, and showing Xello features (like the scholarship page), families will feel equipped to engage in their child’s post-secondary exploration. 

Conference hot topic: work-based learning (WBL)

With Xello, counselors can easily manage documents and create WBL opportunities, and students can track hours and upload supporting documentation. 

One takeaway from this event is that WBL programming doesn’t have to start with everything all at once, and all steps in building a WBL program have benefits. It increases the talent pipeline, helps students make better educational decisions, opens up leadership opportunities, increases local workforce retention, and makes every student participant more prepared to enter the workforce. 

Educator feedback

In Texas, where pride runs deep, it’s crucial for us to immerse ourselves in the local culture and educational landscape. Hosting our own user conference in Texas—on top of sponsoring and participating innumerous state and regional events—allows us to foster deeper connections and support the educators we serve. Xello creates these events with the educator specifically in mind: 

• What information do they need to succeed? 
• How can we showcase their work? 
• How can we provide impactful networking opportunities? 

Feedback after the event clearly shows this Leadership Summit was very successful  – attendees reported a strong 4.9 out 5 for event value. We can’t wait to educate and engage with our Xello community at future conferences.  

“I am so glad I came because I am having the time of my life. I’ve learned so much, and I look forward to implementing Xello more in our district.”

Attend a future conference or event

Over the course of the academic year, Xello is out on the road meeting as many K-12 educators and valued clients as we can. Visit our website to see where we’ll be in the coming weeks and months. We hope to see you there!