How Blogs Can Be Used

I am currently using a blog www.thescholarlytiger.blogspot.com, as a staff development tool.  This year I had my teachers respond to different prompts and it provided a simple, yet effective, way for my staff to see how their colleagues were thinking.  At its inception the idea was a long-shot but in the end it turned out to be a great tool.  I can't wait to develop it more in 2011-2012 school year. 

What I Learned

I learned that action research is crucial to any administrator's success.  Action research can be used to discover alternative solutions to the many problems facing public schools.  While most of us use to find problems to everyday issues such student discipline and staff development, we need to expand it further to help us figure out solutions to problems like school finance.  While many of our parents seem out of touch with schools, most of them do at least support the idea that schools need to be funded, especially as the student population increases. 

I also learned that different schools are facing different challenges based on demographics and locations.  As a future superintendent I am going to have research potential opportunities prior to the interview to even be able to adequately communicate my goals for the district.  Once there I will have to employ the same techniques to get a picture of what is really going on in the district.  From there, one can more precisely plan for success. 


For this course I called it action research but for any practicing administrator it is(at least it should be) a daily activity.  Educational Leadership is fluid and changes quickly.  We are constantly modifying our schedules, teachers and programs to meet the needs of our every changing student needs.  This course simply reinforced my belief in the effectiveness of action research.

Superintendent

1.    What is your definition of leadership?

Leadership is the complex task of leading a group or organization to point on the horizon that is often obscured by the mundane day to day tasks that define the organization.  On this journey leadership takes on many characteristics such as visionary, task master, counselor, dictator and many others depending on the situation. 

2. What are the positive aspects of being in a leadership position, like Superintendent?

The most important thing is being able to influence the learning of the entire learning community.  In doing so I am impacting the future of this community and you never know where your influence will stop. 

3. What are the negative or difficult aspects of being in a leadership position?

        The negative is that you are a high profile official and you are always flying under the radar.  I have to watch how I conduct myself in both my professional and personal affairs.  One “off-color” comment or action can have a tremendous negative effect on my leadership.  Just as you are principal, you too must conduct yourself in a manner that sets you apart from a teacher or other members of your staff.

4. What do you believe are the attributes of a good Superintendent?

        A good superintendent must be a good listener and more importantly, a visionary.  When I came here the community wanted programs that exposed their children to more than just the basics.  That is why I sought out programs such as IB, TAP, Voyager and Time to Know.  The academic successes that we are achieving now are due in part to those programs.  Remember the apprehension that many of you felt when plans for implementing these programs were first introduced.  Resistance must not be allowed to cloud your vision because you may be the only who sees the light at the beginning of the journey.

5. Superintendent Competency 1 emphasizes the importance of integrity, fairness and ethical behavior. What does ethical leadership look like?

        Ethical leadership looks “right” by individual/situation.  While we are governed by many laws we are also governed by a set ethics(moral & professional) and the trick is finding the balance.  An example of when I demonstrated ethical leadership was when I chose to renovate several older buildings instead of razing them.  Razing them could’ve been easily justified but from an ethical standpoint there were people who had strong feelings about those buildings and the backlash would’ve been huge. 

6. Competency 2 discuss the role of the superintendent in shaping campus culture by facilitating the development, articulation, implementation, and stewardship of a vision of learning that is shared and supported by the educational community. How do you work to develop a shared vision?

        Like I stated in an earlier answer, I listened to the community & staff and developed a vision based on their stated needs and wants.  Once the vision was developed I shared it with the principals, who in turn, shared it with teacher leaders on their campuses.  We then marketed the vision to the remainder of the community.  We all made a concerted effort to get the vision out to the community through meetings, district events, neighborhood walks and the media.  We all were cheerleaders for the district.

7. Competency 3 discusses the importance of the Superintendent to communicate and collaborate with families and community members, respond to diverse community interests and needs, and mobilize community resources to ensure educational success for all students. How should a superintendent evaluate the effectiveness of communication strategies in the school district and encourage the engagement of the community to benefit all students?

        Formally, we conducted surveys for community members to share their experiences and we responded to those surveys.  I also made myself available to the community by immersing myself whole-heartedly in the community.  I dined at the long-established businesses, the district patronized those businesses and I truly listened and shared during these informal encounters.  I think those informal settings garnered the greatest impact.  Our neighborhood walks were also very effective.

8. Competency 4 focuses on the importance of the Superintendent responding to and influencing the larger political, social, economic, legal and cultural context, including working with the Board of Trustees, to achieve the district’s educational vision. How does the Superintendent build a good working relationship with the Board?

This was easy at first.  I came aboard with solid backing and the honeymoon period was great.  After a few months you began to see the individual agendas start to come out.  While subtle at first, any resistance is perceived as personal and that is when the fun starts.  I survived by being open and sharing information with all of the board members in a timely manner.  I also kept the focus on academics and the needs of the district.  As the board memberships changed I found it increasingly more difficult to reach consensus on issues.  In this role I do understand how the life expectancy of a superintendent in one district is about 5 years.

The first 4 competencies looked at the Superintendent as Leader of the Educational Community. Competencies 5 – 7 examine the Superintendent as Instructional Leader.

9. Competency 5 examines the importance of the Superintendent planning and implanting strategic planning that enhances the teaching and learning, ensures alignment of the curriculum, curriculum resources and assessment; uses the current accountability system; and promotes the use of varied assessments to measure student performance. How does the Superintendent accomplish such wide ranging strategic planning?

        This was difficult as I was trying to do it all in house and I realized that we did not have the expertise or time to truly facilitate this plan.  Once again I did something that was questionable at the time but it ended being a lifesaver when it came to strategic planning.  You remember the Cambridge Group coming in and facilitating the development of our strategic plan.  Cambridge had non-negotiables and they did not bulge on them.  These non-negotiables assured that the entire community was involved in the strategic planning process for the district.  Looking back, watching the plan come together was fascinating and the synergy was great.

10. Competency 6 emphasizes how Superintendents must advocate, promote, and sustain an instructional program and a district culture that are conducive to student learning and staff professional growth. How does a Superintendent promote and sustain a district culture that emphasizes student learning and professional development?

          A superintendent accomplishes this by being the lead learner.  What I mean by that is that I have to constantly research what is currently working best for the students that make up the district.  As I research and model this to you guys, I must also facilitate this new learning in such a way that it is not overwhelming or threatening.  You started on your campus with PLC’s which later evolved into TAP.  I am big supporter of TAP because the professional development piece in it is so strong.  Sustainability is directly linked to the professional development that is provided to everyone.  Once that capacity is there, student/staff mobility will have minimal impact on your year to year performance. 

11. Competency 7 discusses the importance of the Superintendent implementing a staff evaluation and development system, and selecting appropriate models for supervision and staff development to improve the performance of all staff members. How do Superintendents address these issues aimed at improving the performance of all staff members?

        You let your data drive everything including this evaluations and staff development.  Your evaluation instrument should be multi-faceted and not depend solely on scores.  It should also so concise that it can be applied by multiple observers and still produce the same results.  The TAP rubric is much more thorough than PDAS and it actually gives verbiage that is specific.  Staff members should also be well trained on the evaluation instrument so that there is no question about how it is applied. 

Competencies 8 – 10 focus on the Superintendent as Administrative Leader.

12. Competency 8 examines the importance of Superintendents knowing how to apply the principles of effective leadership and management in relation to district budgeting, personnel, resource utilization, financial management, and technology application. More or less, the Superintendent has an immense responsibility in carrying out these tasks. How should Superintendents approach the management of everything from budgets to technology applications?

        Because there are so many areas that have to be right it is important for a superintendent to surround himself with people who are specialist in those areas.  I just sought out people that I knew could do the job and I charged them with getting those tasks done.  When they provided with a report, details and needs, I trusted their information was correct and we went with it.  It is much like a principal but on a larger and critical level.  At the campus level, there are safeguards that often prevent you from making a major failure but at the district level we have to do  quality control internally which is difficult at times.

13. Competency 9 states that Superintendents must know how to apply principles of leadership and management to the district’s physical plant and support systems to ensure a safe and effective learning environment. What leadership and management principles help Superintendents supervise the physical plants and support systems to ensure a safe and effective learning environment? And please talk to us about developing organizational leadership skills.

        Once again, refer back to the previous question.  First, hire individuals with experience in that area and let them guide you through the process.  Because I am not an expert in area I chose to utilize resources like the City and the ESC to help evaluate and develop our physical plants to make sure that they were safe.  These agencies also provided staff development and training that helped not us but other leaders in the district understand

14. Competency 10 addresses how Superintendents apply organizational, decision-making and problem-solving skills to comply with federal and state regulations and facilitate positive change in varied contexts. Please discuss the importance of organizational leadership, as well as decision-making and problem-solving skills in addressing these compliance areas and maintaining positive change.

        Because of the complexity of all of the regulations a modern superintendent has make sure that he/she has the most qualified people around him.  I make it a point to recruit people who are experts in their respective fields.  In addition to the experts, I also try to grow leaders from within and strategically place them in the organization.  Finding everyone’s seat on the bus is the most difficult and time consuming task.  Once everyone is in the right seat, the compliance and regulation issues tend to be minimal.  A word of caution is that expertise in one area does not mean success, especially in Texas school finance.  School finance is complex and one has to be truly versed in it to be successful. 

15. What additional experience, learning, or advice can you share to help me (our student’s) develop an effective internship?

        I would suggest that you choose internships that deal with areas that you are least familiar with.  It is normal for us go into areas that we are most skilled at and but it doesn’t give you the greatest learning experience.  I would also suggest that your internship really be an action research internship as it gives you an opportunity to develop something that can be used by the district in years to come.  Don’t just do seat work.

REFLECTION: Please write a reflection on what you learned from your interview. Be sure to include responses that stood out to you and explain why these responses seem so important. What did you learn from the interview that will improve your leadership knowledge and skills?

What I gleaned from this interview is that the superintendent does essentially the same things that principals do, only on a larger scale.  Principals manage campuses and zones while superintendents manage many campuses and entire districts.  Just as I work to be visible in my attendance zone the superintendent does it on larger scale.  I also see how each level in education prepares you for the next level and I see how one might struggle if they have skipped a step in the natural progression ascension to the superintendency. 

In the first question, the superintendent stated that he “influences the learning of the entire district.”  This really hit home as my staff gave me a going away party and each grade level reflected the last six years with me as their principal.  It is amazing how much power and influence one yields as a principal or superintendent.  You touch the lives of both the students and the staff.  This much power both excites and scares me as I progress towards the next level.

During the interview it became obvious that a superintendent cannot be the expert in everything and the trick is having quality people around you.  Reflecting back on my first two years I tried to be superman and do everything and failed miserably.  Only after I started to build capacity, release control and let others take ownership did I start to experience success.  Based on the interview I sense the same holds true for the superintendent also.  His cabinet and my leadership team are one and the same and I am only as good as they are.

This interview was great as it provided me with some quality time with the superintendent that was not governed by school business.  It allowed both of us to lower our guards and truly engage in professional dialogue.  I think that we both enjoyed it because it got us back to most simplistic characteristic of education-teaching, learning and sharing!

Hello

Hello Aspiring Supts!!!!!

This is my blog for this course.  I hope to use this blog as tool to collaborate with and learn from my fellow colleagues.

Gene