Running Head: CLINICAL FIELD EXPERIENCE A: PROGRAM LEADER INTERVIEW 1

Clinical Field Experience A: Program Leader Interview

Donna Meda

Grand Canyon University: EAD 510

September 23rd, 2020

Running Head: CLINICAL FIELD EXPERIENCE A: PROGRAM LEADER INTERVIEW 2

Part 3: Summary and Reflection

I interviewed the coach of our A+ Math Team which consists of the most knowledgeable

students in the school in the subject of math. The coach’s name is Mr. Vepa, and he’s the math

teacher for Middle School and A+ Team coach for 3rd grade to 8th grade students. His coach

assistants are two middle school students. Their names are Dafne and Imran. I also interviewed

my principal, Mrs. Hofmeier. We met at the principal’s office to discuss the questions and the

survey. This team usually competes every year with other schools’ A+ teams around Phoenix,

Arizona and surrounded cities.

Mr. Vepa is the coach and since he’s the one who runs the team, he gets to determine

how the funds are allocated and spent. The A+ Math Team is also a club at school, so each

student pays $10 to sign up for the club, if chosen, and the rest is collected from tax credit

donations. Parents can donate their tax credit specifically for this team and its competition. The

A+ Math Team does not borrow money from other budgets or accounts that belong to other

programs or clubs at school. What they are able to raise is usually what is necessary for the team

to happen. Because of this, the amount of money changes throughout the years. The budget to

keep this club running fluctuates from year to year depending on the students enrolled in the

team and depending on the details of the competition. Mr. Vepa made sure to clarify that the

more money the club/team raises, the more students they can have enrolled in their team. There

are restrictions on how this budget can be used, too, especially the money that comes from tax

credit donations. That money is only used to support their preparation for the competition and

transportation. They can’t pay the actual registration of their A+ Math Team.

When it comes to spending the money by making reasonable purchases for the team, Mr.

Vepa informed me that he follows the guidelines carefully and with integrity. Every purchase is
Running Head: CLINICAL FIELD EXPERIENCE A: PROGRAM LEADER INTERVIEW 3

decided and made with the students’ needs in mind. This is the best way Mr. Vepa can fulfill the

vision and mission through his club/program; by spending the money wisely, always providing

receipts to ensure there’s proof of where the money is being spent on. Furthermore, Mr. Vepa

and our principal, Mrs. Hofmeier, conduct an assessment data on the team and how it has been

affecting or benefiting the students involved. “STANDARD 4. CURRICULUM,

INSTRUCTION, AND ASSESSMENT- Effective educational leaders develop and support

intellectually rigorous and coherent systems of curriculum, instruction, and assessment to

promote each student’s academic success and well-being: Use assessment data appropriately and

within technical limitations to monitor student progress and improve instruction” (NPBEA,

2015). They analyze the results of the competition, the preparation, and the funds to be able to

determine if the club is worth having for the students the following year or not and what

improvements need to be made. That is why how the funds are being used by the coach is very

important. In this case, the clubs’ money is used for Math preparation programs, supplies and

other resources, and transportation. Usually, the parents offer to drive students to the

competition, but just in case no parents want, Mr. Vepa can still afford to rent a big vehicle to fit

all the competitors with the money gather. He highly encourages parents to drive students to be

able to save on the rental money, though.

While there are many factors that support this A+ Math Team at school, the top 5

resources that are essential for this team are parent support, student motivation, administration

support, coach and assistants collaboration, and time. Time is the resource that this team lacks.

They are able to meet on Mondays after-school for just an hour. If there was more time allocated

for this team to meet, they could probably prepare more for their competitions. The time for this

team to meet would be a request Mr. Vepa would have to submit to administration. The A+ Math
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Team has been a very popular club at our school within our students and it benefits the students

greatly.

In the future, this information helps me in budgeting for clubs that are beneficial for the

well-being of our students. It tells me how important tax credit donations from parents are to

support these clubs that require more funds than the usual. I am able to see that parent support is

the number one resource needed to support any school club. Furthermore, assessment data is

essential and needed to see the pros and cons of a program for a school.
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Reference:

Gaipov, V. & Hofmeier, D. (2020). A+ math team coach and middle school math teacher and

principal. Sonoran Science Academy-Peoria

National Policy Board for Educational Administration (2015). Professional Standards for

Educational Leaders 2015. Reston, VA: Author.

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