We’ve all seen the memes. Most of us groan at the thought of sitting in a circle, sharing fun facts about ourselves, or coming up with a clever one-word answer. Sometimes we even have to get up and play a game when all we really want is to get on with the meeting. I’ll admit it—as a teacher and now as an administrator, my first thought is often, “Please, no.”

And yet… if you’re anything like me, you usually end up laughing, learning something new about a colleague, or—if it’s a game—secretly worrying there won’t be enough time to actually win.

But here’s the thing: building a positive, connected school community isn’t about the icebreaker. It’s about carving out more than just five minutes at the start of a meeting. It’s about creating real opportunities for staff to connect. Research backs this up: happier people are more productive, and one of the biggest contributors to happiness is the quality of our working relationships.

I’ve always believed school culture starts at the top—with administration. When teachers and staff feel supported and connected to their leaders, they pass that positivity on to each other, and most importantly, to students. At my school, our admin team has worked hard over the past six years to not just build a culture of support, but a culture of FUN.

Here are a few ways we’ve made that happen:

Spirit Teams
Everyone on campus gets placed on a spirit team—teachers, support staff, everyone. We’ve tried mixing teams up by department and also keeping them together, and the latter usually works better. Each team comes up with a name, and I usually appoint the most competitive member as captain (trust me, it works). Teams earn points every Friday for wearing school colors, with bonus points for themed dress-up days or the occasional game. Winners get bragging rights and a giant repurposed trophy from the cabinet—sorry, cheerleaders of 1984. This year, we upped the ante with free t-shirts and painted parking spots.

Nights Out
Not everyone joins in after-hours events, but family-friendly activities go a long way. We’ve gone together to minor league baseball games, NBA games, and USL soccer matches. For adults-only fun, we’ve hosted monthly happy hours, a Halloween party (costumes optional), holiday parties, and even a St. Patrick’s Day celebration. And of course, the end-of-year party is a tradition. The trick is, put it all on the calendar at the beginning of the year. Educators have busy lives. Give them plenty of notice.

Kindness Chart
We created a spreadsheet where staff can list their favorite things—candy, coffee orders, snacks, you name it. Instead of just sharing it with parents through PTO, we kept it for staff this year. When someone gives a colleague one of their “favorites,” they mark it off. It’s a small gesture, but it spreads joy on both sides.

Staff Shout-Outs
Each week, our counselors share a Google Form for staff to send a thank-you or shout-out to a colleague. At the end of the week, the notes are compiled and emailed to everyone. Reading those messages on Friday always fills my admin heart—our staff truly values one another.

Leadership Retreat
On the Friday before our first Monday back, our admin team has started a tradition with our staff leadership group (PLC leads, counselors, and program leads). We kick things off with food and plenty of catching up, then spend a little time reflecting on the previous year—what worked well for our culture and what didn’t. After that, it’s all about fun. Over the years we’ve gone axe throwing, taken some mighty swings at Top Golf, and this year, we tried something a little different: painting our mascot, Willy the Wildcat, in all kinds of situations. Staff were given prompts, zero pressure, and no expectations of creating a masterpiece. I laughed so much that my painting turned out terrible—and that’s the excuse I’m sticking with.

I’d love to take credit and say our admin team created our school’s culture, but the truth is, our staff’s passion for kindness is what drives it. All we’ve done is give them more ways to connect, support one another, and, yes, have fun.

This work is hard. Make sure your staff gets to laugh, celebrate, and enjoy the journey together. And yes, we still sneak in the occasional icebreaker—sorry, not sorry.