10 Elements of Superintendent

Performance and Evaluation

Created By :

www.schoolwealth.com

This eBook will focus on qualities superintendents are expected to possess and aspects

of the job at which they are required to excel, each coupled with thoughts and

suggestions on maximizing effectiveness as a chief school administrator. Taking the time

to reflect on performance aspects in any employment setting is generally advisable,

especially so in a profession that thrives on the process of monitoring and adjusting at

every level.

One of the qualities exhibited by great teachers is the ability to examine current

practices, with or without oversight or evaluation by others, as a standard part of their

professional behavior. Teachers who engage in active and regular reflection are those

most likely to improve their ability to help others achieve, an approach that applies

equally to administrative and supervisory personnel. When the superintendent of any

district also engages in this process, tangible benefits to an entire operation are often

undeniable.

One oddity in the evaluation of the superintendent compared to virtually all other

certificated staff in a district is that the superintendent is the only such employee who is

evaluated by non-educators, typically some or all members of a board of education

more likely to themselves be laypeople than educators. That fact leads to some unique

challenges for the board and superintendent to overcome or confront, among which is

an amplification of the need for data, preferably locally derived, to guide the process

whenever possible and practical.

Many of the broad themes associated with success in any profession apply in this

examined context, while others are unique to the job of being a superintendent of

schools. Though there may be parallels between reporting to a school board and

instead to a board of directors, the unique pressures of working in a profession that

deals with the safety and best interests of children only serves to increase the pressure

on all participants in getting performance evaluation right for the superintendent.

Presented in no particular order herein are the qualities, personal and professional, that

often form the foundation of superintendent evaluation, coupled in roughly equal

measure with aspects of the job that are typically considered during the evaluation

process.

1. Communication with the Board

Codified in rules and laws governing public education is the special nature of the

relationship between the superintendent and the board of education president. The

frequency with which superintendents and board presidents who are effective in their

respective roles communicate directly with each other would surprise the uninitiated.

Daily contact between these two people in most school districts, regardless of size of

the district, is not uncommon.

If regular contact between superintendent and board president is missing, establishing

that as an operational expectation almost universally does more good than harm. The

time it may take as a superintendent to keep the board president informed is often

regained by the president who takes seriously the responsibility to keep the rest of the

board similarly informed. It also enables senior administration and board leadership to

refrain from necessarily sharing everything with the board at large when it may be

inappropriate or illegal to do so.

The board attorney plays a critical role that enables this aspect of district

communication to be handled appropriately and in a consistently professional manner,

within the bounds of laws governing the operation of the district. A classic example is

when tenure charges are being considered for a given staff member.

Since the board may eventually have the responsibility to serve as in effect the judge

and jury as to whether or not to certify tenure charges brought by the superintendent,

premature knowledge of the facts behind a case can taint the process. The board

president, superintendent, and board attorney must consult as a troika, regularly and

completely confidentially, in order for justice to prevail. This is one particularly important

way to shield the board from liability concerns than can be expensive to litigate and

detrimental to the operation and image of the district.

The next item in this series will examine the importance of communication between the

superintendent and the community, whether for the purpose of sharing good news or in

the delivery of information related to tragic or unfortunate events. Keeping parents and

the community informed appropriately and within reasonable limits, while respecting

the privacy rights and expectations of individuals, is often a balancing act that always

deserves careful examination and prior consideration.

The role of superintendent carries with it considerable responsibilities and requires a

blend of leadership and political skills unique in the education profession. Principals

must also possess the same skills, only lacking the responsibility for change and

standardization across an entire district when compared with their central office

counterparts.

It is precisely that comprehensive, systemic facet of the role that requires

superintendents to become experts at communicating with a wide audience, doing so

with a deft touch for being informative without hyperbole, and knowing when to share

information and when to refrain from doing so. The opportunities for communicating

with parents or the community are virtually boundless, especially in an age in which

technology makes such communication quick and comprehensive.

Sharing information routinely, as in the delivery of test results or school report card data,

is vastly different than sharing difficult or tragic news. Automaticity with the former and

specialization with the latter is the best way to describe the essential differences in

approach taken by experienced district leaders. Delegating routine, yearly information

tasks to capable subordinates is common and often effective. Ensuring that the most

difficult communication tasks remain in the hands of the superintendent ultimately

responsible for all information that is disseminated from the central office is equally

advisable.

2. Communication with the Entire Learning Community

Each time the decision is made to share information with all stakeholders in a school

district, it is imperative that a few simple considerations are standard part of the

process. One of them is to consider the audience when crafting the message, a

foundational precept that makes a favorable reception more likely. While it is

sometimes difficult for educators steeped in the details of their profession to avoid using

terminology too technical or specific for a layperson audience, creating messages with

an emphatic touch is always an important consideration.

Arguably the most difficult kind of communication for district leaders to deliver is the

sharing of tragic news, sadly an inevitability with which all superintendents grapple at

some point in their careers, more likely many more times than just once. When news

within a district is reported by local or occasionally national media, the first thing

parents are likely to observe is that they were never informed by their local district

leaders. It is precisely that unfortunate prospect that prompts superintendents to

anticipate what news may gain wider distribution characteristics and to respond

proactively by getting a statement out from the district first.

When preparing such a statement, conferring with the board president and, possibly,

the board attorney, before making anything public is another critical element of the

process. Board members generally dislike surprises, and anything about which they’re

likely to field questions from neighbors and community members should be

communicated to them clearly and comprehensively by the central office before they

do.

The content of messages that qualify as tragic in nature should also pass through a

process that requires many trusted pairs of different eyes to view a draft of the message

and to make edit suggestions. Experienced superintendents often have a team of

senior advisors who act in just such a capacity, thereby avoiding statements that say

too much, too little, or that may unwittingly violate an expectation of privacy to which

all are entitled.

Occasionally, superintendents make statements that, in very guarded terms, are

intended as merely the first communication step regarding an ongoing or unfolding

situation. Anything likely to include eventual distribution by the regular media should be

shared with the board first, staff members next, and parents ultimately. Even messages

that candidly admit that little is known about an unfolding situation, but that the

administration is monitoring that situation or working closely with local law enforcement

officials, is vastly preferable to saying nothing.

Other forms of communication are those prepared jointly by school and local law

enforcement officials, typically regarding the alleged commission of a possible crime in

a public place or near a district school. Few things are as rightly reassuring to parents

than the knowledge that school officials and law enforcement or township

counterparts communicate with each other and work together to keep the public they

serve not merely safe but also informed appropriately.

Central office administrators who recall vividly when that kind of communication during

their own teaching careers made a significant difference in their morale or

performance are often those who take the time and effort to pay the concept forward

to staff, much to the benefit of an entire district.

Three broad skills and proficiencies often used to gauge the effectiveness of

superintendents are communication, instructional leadership, and logistical

management. The communication skills of any leader typically drive the success of

virtually every organization, especially true in professions that answer directly to the

public. The pressure of performing effectively in public education is further amplified by

the emotions people rightly and typically attach to anything involving children.

This series has examined communication with the board of education and with the

learning community at large as two critical aspects of this facet of leadership, and

communication on a more granular level with certificated and support staff is the third

leg of the stool that supports effective communication in a school district. Leadership

behaviors that overcome the often endemic sense of the imaginary walls that can

seem as if they are separating leaders from those whom they are honored and

indebted to lead are always worthy of close examination.

3. Communication with Support and Certificated Staff

Superintendents who well remember their own time as teachers and who were

successful in that role are typically better positioned to deliver the kind of emphatic

leadership that transforms organizations and cultures. Honoring teachers by providing

the resources they need, encouraging innovative practices without fear of failure or

retribution, and staying out of the way by treating teachers like professionals are three

of the best ways to lead by powerful example.

With the personnel portion of most school budgets hovering at approximately 80% of

the total budget, it is incumbent upon leaders of any school district to spend as much

as possible on instructional and support staff and as little as practical on administration.

Many school report cards include the data point of per pupil cost of administration,

prompting decision makers to shed administrative positions whenever possible, much to

the direct benefit of students.

Every opportunity to highlight teachers and the work they do must be seized, preferably

in the most public manner possible. In districts and states that award special recognition

for meritorious teaching, announcing winners who little suspect the prospect of such an

honor should be done in the presence of the students they serve whenever possible.

The magic of notifying a teacher that she or he is being recognized for distinguished

service while they are engaged in the practice that earned them the honor is often an

emotional moment for teacher and students alike. Superintendents who recognize that

fact and deliver the news personally during class time would attest to the power of that

particular practice to transform the culture of a district.

Many superintendents wisely meet with representative groups of teachers on a regularly

scheduled basis, often with tacit or explicit union leadership participation. Meeting with

teacher-leaders on a regular basis, not to react to problems but to prevent them from

happening, is a practice that typically pays valuable dividends for instructional and

administrative staff.

In times of crisis or tragedy, communication tailored to the unique needs and concerns

of instructional and support staff in the form of letters, statements, or personal

availability is another authentic way for superintendents to communicate their

appreciation for the heroic work staff members do. An avuncular and affable

superintendent who takes the time and makes the effort to express appreciation for the

work of all certificated and support staff usually succeeds in engaging employees in a

manner that encourages them to do their best work.

Districts that have a tradition of dinners where teachers and support staff are honored

by colleagues presents another opportunity for district leaders to participate directly in

honoring staff members. Expressing an interest in attending and participating,

especially if predecessors may have declined to participate, is another way to convey

a genuine interest in honoring the work of people in the district who are central to the

success of students.

The following areas will examine the many aspects of instructional leadership as part of

the performance and evaluation of school superintendents. Sharing practical examples

of what successful, seasoned school leaders do to fulfill their responsibilities as

educational leaders may be the best way to grow innovative practices to benefit

everyone who serves in a central office leadership position and, most importantly, the

students they are honored to serve.

The many responsibilities of a superintendent include tasks that often seem quite distant

from the core mission of school districts, namely to educate children. Instructional

leadership is a broad term that includes subcategories and specialties that can

challenge even the most seasoned school leaders, especially in an era of shifting and

ill-defined federal oversight.

It is not uncommon for the work day of a superintendent, regardless of district size, to

include interruptions that have little or nothing to do with the teaching and learning

process. That fact makes the work devoted to improving student outcomes more

rewarding, even if the time for that work must be created at the expense of other

responsibilities less central to the goal of increasing student achievement.

Though superintendents are occasionally given too much credit for gains in academic

achievement that typically occur at a granular rather than global level within the

organization, most who serve in the capacity of chief school administrator become

quite adept at sharing accolades with those who truly deserve them. Teachers who are

willing to embrace new and innovative practices, and students who work hard to

benefit from them, are the cornerstones of virtually all school improvement efforts.

These facts lead to the acknowledgment that instructional leadership is only as

effective as the degree to which those who practice it are able to encourage and

inspire the effective work of others. Leadership without “followship” is a symptom of

disarray in districts where instructional leadership is not viewed as a shared responsibility.

4. Instructional Leadership as a Shared Responsibility

Successful superintendents engage in practices and invest in relationships that are

typically difficult for others to discern. Much of the work that results in academic

achievement gains is undertaken at the building level, driven either by principals with

an active interest in improving student achievement or by superintendents prodding

them to focus on that goal.

In larger districts, principals at the same level may collaborate with each other on

initiatives as frequently as they may take their direction from the central office. Ideally,

the flow of ideas on how to improve academic achievement should exist in both

directions at all times. The key to establishing that culture is communication, along with

a willingness by the superintendent to encourage subordinate administrators to share

their thoughts and ideas, preferably at administrative council meetings redesigned to

encourage precisely that desired outcome.

Another indicator of why instructional leadership is truly a shared responsibility is the

ready acknowledgement that regular collaboration with the board of education is

crucial to the success of the process. The investment in gathering and organizing data,

another cornerstone to developing a self-sustaining process of encouraging gains in

academic achievement, cannot happen without board support.

The only way to ensure board support is by making a compelling case for any

expenditure intended to produce improvement in student outcomes, coupled with the

ability to produce reliable and locally derived data to clinch the argument regarding

whether or not the intervention delivered the desired return on investment. Ironically,

only the board can decide whether to spend money on the mechanisms to collect

data and whether to implement new initiatives designed to provide that data. It falls to

the superintendent to make the case for both.

Communication, instructional leadership, and logistical management are three broad

terms that describe significant and foundational responsibilities of school

superintendents. Each carries with it specific skills and competencies that enhance the

chances for a district’s success, and the interconnectedness between all three argues

in favor of taking a big picture view when considering their relative importance.

It is impossible to lead an academic initiative without employing strong communication

skills, just as it is pointless to communicate messages that have no chance of resonating

with constituent groups or individuals. Additionally, the goals of improving instructional

practices, increasing academic achievement, and enhancing the return on investment

within a school budget is as dependent on managing things as it is on leading people.

5. The Nexus Between Instructional Leadership and Professional Learning

Superintendents who approach with discernible intentionality and serve as true

instructional leaders rarely fail to link that process directly to a robust system of

professional learning, for themselves and for all members of the certificated staff. Few

things are as powerful in leadership as setting a positive example, especially in a

profession grounded in the teaching and learning process.

Taking an active interest in what is working and what needs revision, ideally in

consultation with not only members of the administrative staff but also, more

importantly, with teachers themselves, is an excellent way for a superintendent to

convey the importance attached to any improvement initiatives. Visiting sites where

training is happening, and arranging for that training to happen in a predominantly

push-in model that enables teachers to try new things in their own natural setting,

represent two practices likely to yield positive results.

Great teachers, regardless of the potential and intended value of professional learning,

are often reluctant to avail themselves of such training if it comes at the expense of

instructional time with their students. In a country that is unfortunately still engaged in a

testing-rich approach to accountability, class time has become more sacrosanct than

ever before, prompting many school and district leaders to opt for professional learning

that brings trainers to teachers rather than the opposite.

The link between instructional leadership and professional learning is directly dependent

on employing strong communication skills as well. Whether in the form of convincing a

skeptical board to fund any new training initiative, or in conveying to teachers the need

for innovation in their instructional practices, superintendents routinely act in a capacity

that requires them to make a compelling case for change in an effective manner.

The decision to fund innovation should always be done with a clear conception of

everything necessary to ensure success, including the resources necessary for

embedded professional learning. Too often in the past, districts purchased too many

goods and too few services, likely due to the ease of enabling others to grasp the

importance of buying things compared to convincing them of the equal need to

retrain people to use those things effectively.

The natural companion to embedded, push-in professional learning that conserves

precious class time and improves the odds for successful implementation of any new

initiative is to have already in place a strong model of instructional coaching. Districts

that have made the prior investment in a coaching model invariably find it easier and

more cost-effective to implement new things in a comprehensive manner than those

districts with no such coaching initiative.

Next, we tackle one aspect of the myriad logistical responsibilities that superintendents

routinely must handle, namely the oversight of creating and implementing a budget to

fund everything that happens in a school district. Though many wrongly conclude that

preparing a budget falls to the business department, instructional leaders know that

procuring and tracking funds is vastly different than spending those funds wisely and

effectively. Upon that difference often hinges the success or failure of a superintendent

to implement a vision for a district that has the chance of improving academic

achievement.

Superintendents are responsible, directly or by proxy, for virtually everything that

happens within a school district. The logistical details of operating any school district are

many, requiring time management and prioritizing skills that are difficult to develop in

any other district role. Effective superintendents quickly become comfortable

delegating responsibilities whenever practical, while maintaining oversight authority in

virtually every realm of district operations.

Budget season can seem to encompass the entire school year, and in many ways it

does. Drafting a budget each fall and implementing a new budget at the conclusion

of one school year and the beginning of the next is a fluid process, requiring the effort

and cooperation of all members of the administrative staff.

No relationship is more central to the budget process than the one between the

superintendent, in effect the CEO of the organization, and the business administrator,

essentially the CFO. The collaboration required between these two people to enable a

flow from one budget to the next often determines whether a district moves forward or

regresses in every aspect of district operations, including the primary goal each year of

increasing academic achievement.

6. Drafting and Implementing a School Budget

As any school year begins, administrators in the central office likewise begin the process

of drafting a budget for the school year, requiring foresight and anticipation of events

that are often impossible to predict. The outset of the budget cycle usually includes the

request for budget management at the building level that adheres to established

protocols, often connected to the philosophy and goals of the district.

Virtually all public school districts operate within certain budget parameters each year,

often a tax levy percentage that rarely exceeds the amount needed simply to maintain

current staffing, professional learning, and equipment and supply levels. Though many

aspects of the budget remain relatively constant each year, other aspects of the

budget can rise by amounts unrelated to the district’s ability to maintain costs, most

notably in the area of employee benefits.

Health care costs typically increase by percentages that far exceed those attached to

any yearly tax levy amount, requiring decisions that can directly impact academic

achievement and the return on investment in innovative practices. The need not only

to control costs but, just as importantly, account for discretionary spending, has recently

prompted districts to invest in software that ties spending directly to student outcomes.

The best way to ensure that taxpayers and students are receiving an adequate return

on the investment made to increase academic achievement is to have in place a way

to measure outcomes as they occur and, most importantly, as they are connected to

the funding they require. Data that is locally derived and irrefutable can and should

guide budget decisions every year and in every facet of district operations.

Lacking the capacity to develop such data leads to a scattershot, hit-or-miss approach

to innovation that serves neither the students nor the taxpayers. Rarely before has close

scrutiny been attached to district expenditures as they relate to student outcomes, but

the connection between these two elements of district operations is the best way for

superintendents to describe and quantify the educational initiatives they champion

within any budget.

Regardless of district size, personnel costs constitute by far the largest percentage of

every school budget, leading again for the need to develop and consider data as part

of the personnel decision-making process.

Superintendents routinely handle instructional leadership and communication

responsibilities as part of their daily job performance, exerting influence to varying

degrees over virtually all aspects of school district operations. As public figures, they

answer to taxpayers and community members at all times and are typically adept at

also handling the many logistical responsibilities that are part of the job.

Many logistical responsibilities are handled most efficiently by establishing a

procedurally formulaic approach, best exemplified by the budget process each year.

While the elements within a budget should change each year based on measurable

student outcomes, the process of developing a budget should remain constant. Other

logistical responsibilities are more resistant to standardization, given the fluid nature of

those responsibilities.

7. Personnel and the Superintendent

Recommending the best people for board approval, making difficult decisions on

granting successor contracts to non-tenured personnel, and taking on the difficult task

of gaining board support for the toughest personnel decisions that often have

significant price tags attached, make the personnel elements of the superintendency

more challenging than many other aspects of the job. A brief glimpse into each of

these facets of personnel management reveals opportunities for improved practice in

virtually any district.

Though there are parts of the hiring process that lend themselves to a certain degree of

standardization, the critical skill of making the best recommendations for every position

is more intuitive than formulaic, more art than science. Any district administrator who

has waded through the paper screen of initial applicants for any position is well aware

of how similar everyone seems on paper.

While the initial aspects of the personnel process typically occur at the building level for

teaching positions, superintendents nonetheless exert their influence on the process by

establishing and communicating district priorities and expectations each year and with

each principal and their subordinates. One example is the decision whether or not to

require demonstration lessons for a finite pool of semifinalists for each teaching position.

Far too many candidates who are comfortable and adept in the interview setting fall

short when they are in the presence of students, counterintuitive though that prospect

may seem to those who have never participated in the hiring process. Even in the

summer when bringing in a critical mass of students for a demonstration lesson is

troublesome, the outcome justifies the inconvenience. There is simply no substitute for

seeing a prospective teacher in a classroom with students.

At the administrative level, a companion in the hiring process to demonstration lessons

for teaching candidates is the requirement to create a writing sample for every

administrative prospect. School and district administrators communicate in writing more

frequently than anyone unfamiliar with those roles would ever suspect, and few things

are as disappointing from an employment perspective as discovering that a new

administrator needs an editor.

When parents or staff members receive letters or memos from a principal or supervisor

that is poorly written or badly expressed, the detrimental impact on district operations is

difficult to recoup. Public figures who are uncomfortable or unskilled in front of a

microphone or at a keyboard are fundamentally ill-equipped for critically important

aspects of their jobs, and superintendents are wise to include a mechanism for

discovering such shortcomings before making a final personnel recommendation to the

board.

Recommending the granting of tenure to a third or fourth year teacher is often

described as a $1-2 million decision, given the career life-expectancy of a newly-

minted tenured teacher. Given the gravity of that decision, and the expense of

overcoming such a decision later in the career of an under-performing teacher, getting

tenure recommendations right the first time has never been more important. Board

members who closely scrutinize those recommendations are performing a valuable

service to the district, as are central office administrators who never make those

recommendations lightly or haphazardly.

One of the great myths in popular culture is that tenure is a guarantee of lifetime job

security, and seasoned superintendents usually develop the ability to council teachers

out of the profession if their performance by any objective measure fails to meet district

expectations. The process begins with making sure that the board of education is fully

behind the intent to encourage a substandard staff member to seek other professional

opportunities. Administrators must have a stomach, but not an appetite, for such

recommendations, which constitute some of the toughest but most important decisions

that superintendents must make each year.

The logistical aspects of any superintendency can occupy a disproportionate amount

of time each day, often on tasks that have little or nothing to do with increasing student

achievement and that have no relation to the manner in which superintendents are

evaluated by the boards that employ them. Budget preparation and implementation,

personnel responsibilities, and communication with different constituencies are just a

few the of the many elements in the daily work of the superintendent that can go

unnoticed or under-appreciated by many who are associated with a school district.

The professional preparation for most who ascend to the role of superintendent often

fails to address many of the real-life responsibilities of the job, due at least in part to the

mistaken belief that many tasks are delegated to others. While technically true that the

business functions of a school district are handled predominantly by the business office,

it is equally true that the superintendent must have at least a working knowledge of

how the budget works, as just one example of the breadth of the superintendent’s role.

Handling many of the physical plant aspects of district operations typically falls to the

business department, even though few business administrators are themselves formally

trained in the custodial and maintenance tasks that exist in every district. Nonetheless,

superintendents who know little about buildings and grounds issues usually benefit the

district by taking a more active interest in those aspects of operations.

8. Facilities Management

Custodial and maintenance staff can comprise a significant proportion of full-time

employees in any district, and they are often supervised by the business administrator or

his/her designee. Those who are directly responsible for keeping facilities safe, clean,

and operating smoothly are the ones who also give parents and visitors an important

first impression, making their efficient and effective performance more valuable than

the uninitiated may fully understand.

Superintendents who succeed in this facet of the job are those who delegate

appropriately while evidencing an active interest in, and abiding appreciation for, the

work of the facilities department. One way to demonstrate the critical importance of

the facility operations of a district is to invest in ways to gather data and use it to guide

decisions, in much the same way that educational decisions are made.

When budgets are tight, one of the first things to be trimmed is the facilities portion of

any spending plan, usually with a cascading impact that can increase costs over time.

Seasoned administrators, business administrators and superintendents alike, have

realized that having reliable and locally derived data to amplify and inform decisions

on buildings and grounds is the best bulwark against board reluctance to spend on

non-instructional items or services.

In the career arc of most superintendents, a building referendum opportunity often

presents itself, yet another area of ultimate responsibility for which most district

administrators are ill-equipped or ill-trained to handle without considerable additional

time and effort devoted to the task. In such a predictable scenario, relying on the

sound advice of trusted members of the buildings and grounds department, and

keeping the committee of the board most closely associated with this area of

operations fully informed at all times, are two things that can keep superintendents out

of trouble that could otherwise obtain.

Most referenda require community input and communication, an aspect of the

referendum process that represents a more comfortable fit for most district leaders.

Regular updates at board meetings, and the overt act of sending updates out to the

majority of constituents who do not routinely attend those meetings, are just two of the

many things superintendents do to make referendum projects end favorably for the

district and its students.

Developing, organizing, and analyzing data around the process of improving

academic achievement is something with which superintendents are familiar and

comfortable. The same effort, given the right software and the wise investment of time

and money to establish a mechanism for developing the same kinds of data around

the topic of physical plant aspects of district operations, is the surest way to wordlessly

communicate support for the custodial and maintenance operations of a district and

for the people responsible for making this aspect of any district a success.

The remaining two items will examine several of the intangible aspects of

superintendent performance and evaluation that often go overlooked by the public

and by board members. An examination of the “little” things that go into the

comprehensive job of being a school superintendent can inform practice and improve

outcomes for any school leader, while also enlightening the general public and board

members specifically about the many joys and challenges that comprise the role of

school superintendent.

District leaders who are new to the role quickly learn that the comprehensive nature of

the job requires time management and prioritization skills that they likely do not possess,

regardless of the prior positions they may have held in public education. Being the

instructional leader of an entire district is just one part of the job, albeit the most

important aspect of district leadership. The handling of myriad logistical details, without

losing sight of maintaining and championing an overarching vision for the district, can

overwhelm even seasoned superintendents.

It has often been said that the best approach to school leadership requires that those

who serve in that capacity are sure to manage things and lead people. Leading

people by providing a consistently positive and optimistic example, and by evidencing

an appreciation for the work done by staff members in every facet of district

operations, is often easier and more rewarding for school leaders than managing the

many things that cross the desk of the superintendent.

9. Managing Things

It is not at all uncommon, regardless of the size of a given school district, for parents or

community members to stop in at the office of the superintendent and expect an

immediate and unscheduled meeting to discuss a concern or idea. These impromptu

meetings, if handled diplomatically and successfully, can often bear beneficial fruit for

the district, even as they may interrupt the workflow at the district level. Educators who

are uncomfortable in the skin of a politician in situations that require political skill can

feel frustrated with this likely unanticipated aspect of district leadership.

Some of the things that come to the attention of the superintendent rightly belong

elsewhere in the organization, and seasoned superintendents rarely take on tasks that

can be better and more appropriately handled by others in the organization. When

asked to consider such a project, superintendents often and wisely ask experts

elsewhere in the district to join them for initial discussions, thereby demonstrating

simultaneously an interest in new ideas and an appreciation for the roles played by

others.

One example of this process is when a parent registers a concern with something that

may have happened, or that they were told happened, at their child’s school. If such a

concern comes to the superintendent in an initial stage, the best approach is to inquire

whether the situation has been addressed at the building level by the principal or

her/his designee. It would likely surprise anyone who has never served in a district

leadership role to learn how frequently people are inclined to go “right to the top,”

often using that phrase or a variation of it to introduce themselves or their issue.

It should surprise no one that people become exorcised more easily and readily when it

come to their children and the best interests of their children than with any other aspect

of their lives. Meeting people at their level of concern, empathizing with them without

being condescending, and evidencing an eagerness to help whenever possible is an

apt description of the process undertaken by superintendents who “manage things”

well. Failing to do any of these things can result in developing a constituency that may

begin to doubt sincerity or commitment, with detrimental impacts for the district and its

students.

Concerns brought to the attention of district leaders more frequently involve things that

have little to do directly with academic or educational issues, a fact that may seem

counterintuitive to those who have not served in a position of district leadership.

Complaints about coaches, facilities, the extra-curricular program, or many other things

far from academic achievement far outnumber issues related to which math series to

use or how to teach writing skills to developing writers.

It has been said that recommending the hiring of a head football coach is a more

important decision than anything related to actual educational issues, at least in the

eyes of some parents or, unfortunately, some board members. Wishing it were not so is

counterproductive, and working to highlight all areas of pride for the district, including

academics and sports, is critically important. Though some may unwittingly pit one

against the other, both can successfully coexist in public school districts.

Managing things may seem easy and may appear less important to the overall success

of a district than leading people, a false premise that diminishes the importance of

handling both responsibilities successfully. Seasoned and successful superintendents

have an innate ability to do both, typically every day and sometimes within the same

conversation with a parent or a board member.

The last topic will examine aspects of leading people in a way that positions a district for

continuous improvement and ultimate success. Recommending the best people for

every position, and supporting them in a way that encourages them to do their best

work, is the aspiration of every district leader. Examining the details embedded with

that process can help every superintendent make their district more successful.

Superintendents are evaluated on their performance formally by the board of

education every year and informally by the public they serve every day. The

communication, public relations, political, and management skills required by the job

can at times seem overwhelming, but there are few positions of leadership in public

education that can be more rewarding than serving as a superintendent of schools.

This series has examined many aspects of the superintendency that provide the basis

for formal, yearly evaluation, typically undertaken by the board of education and

focused on gains in academic achievement. Whether fairly or not, however,

superintendents are often informally evaluated on aspects of their performance that

have more to do with personal than professional qualities. In many states, the life

expectancy of a superintendent can be fewer than two years, conflicting with the

body of research which strongly suggests that real change in any organization is only

possible with consistent and sustained leadership.

Stability at the top of any organization is generally and rightly perceived as a desirable

goal, especially if there is a mutual commitment to the good of the organization and, in

the case of public education, a consistent focus on the needs and interests of students

above all other factors. One way to ensure that outcome is to lead people by

demonstrating the skills that typically make any teacher successful, with empathy,

enthusiasm, and optimism topping the list.

10. Leading People

People take their cues from the leadership of most organizations. Leading people in a

public school district requires the deft handling of entrenched and often competing

interests, including sometimes intractable teacher unions, overly meddlesome board

members, and overindulging parents. Demonstrating infinite patience with any and all

of these aspects of the job, and dealing forthrightly with things that can be changed

and need to be changed is a recipe for success in the role of superintendent.

Establishing a strong and positive working relationship with the leadership of the local

teacher union is arguably the most important single step in leading people successfully

in any school setting. Teachers are the life-blood of the employees in every school

district, and treating them fairly by interacting with their leadership regularly,

professionally, and proactively is a practice that all but guarantees success of the

organization. When the leadership of two organizations that should work closely and

cohesively for the good of students are known to work well together, the beneficial

impact of that approach are tangible and durable.

When any school leader ascends to a central office leadership role, the stark difference

between dealing predominantly with board members instead of colleague educators is

jarring. In the typical progression from school principal to superintendent, losing contact

with students is another factor that makes the potentially lonely role of district leader

ever more so. Seasoned and successful superintendents, therefore, are those who

make a consistent effort to maintain regular contact with staff members in buildings,

even as they interact with members of the board whenever necessary.

Cultivating and nurturing a strong and mutually respectful relationship with the

president of the board is essential if one is to succeed as a superintendent. There must

never be information known by the superintendent and purposely kept from the board

president, a concept ideally accompanied by its logical corollary. Just as district and

union leadership should be forthcoming with one another for the good of the district, so

too should superintendent and board president share information freely and discuss

potential outcomes intelligently.

Parents can often represent the biggest relationship challenge to school leaders, often

fueled by misinformation or false information that unfortunately and frequently flows

faster than truthful information regarding events in schools and districts. All school

leaders grapple with the balance between keeping the community appropriately

informed without violating anyone’s right to privacy, an issue that often arises in times of

crisis or conflict.

The same template of establishing strong and positive working relationships with the

leadership of the board and the leadership of teacher unions extends to the leadership

of parent groups, and successful superintendents cultivate those relationships from their

very first days in the job. Establishing a reputation based on being accessible,

personable, and interested in the needs of students first and foremost is the surest way

to gain and maintain the support of parents. Taking the time to explain the reasons for

difficult decisions with an appropriate degree of candor and without descending into

gossip is another way to earn the lasting respect and appreciation of parents.

Being a school superintendent is not for the faint of heart or weak of spirit. It is a job that

requires total and absolute commitment to students and their best interests, coupled

with a passion for staying current on what works locally, nationally, and around the

world. It is a job that increasingly relies on the collection and analyzation of data to

guide decision making, with the tacit and explicit acknowledgment that increasing

academic achievement in a cost-effective manner trumps all other goals.

The coming months and years are bound to include the need for districts to invest in the

infrastructure and software that enables the seamless development, collection, and

analysis of data that connects dollars spent directly to academic gains achieved. The

performance and, therefore, evaluation of school superintendent hinges on developing

and sharing such data, constituting the fairest manner possible of gauging the success

of a district and the value of those who lead them.