I interviewed one of our three Executive Director’s of School Improvement. She is a member of the LISD Executive Administrative Team. Over all I gained a better perspective of our district operations and how the board is involved. I learned that it is important to nurture the board relationships, but also set guidelines as to what their role is in the system. One must delegate and develop strong leaders and provide many opportunities for feedback loops and continuous improvement in all district systems. Observing our superintendent as he works through the recent budget crisis has also been very educational. He is very calm but open, very honest but encouraging and is keeping the focus on learning and educating our students.
Below are my favorite responses to the five of the questions that I asked.
Question #1:
I liked Malinda’s definition of leadership. She described leadership as an art and science. Leadership is “artful” in the fact that a good leader builds relationships, makes connections with people, must be creative in communication and inspires others. It is important that a leader shares responsibility and empowers others to become leaders. Leadership is scientific in that the leader must oversee systems, create feedback loops and strive for continuous improvement of the system while keeping the systems working efficiently as a team.
Question #2:
Some of the positive aspects of a leadership position are being able to support and cultivate the best in other people. Help people find their strengths and build on them, help them find their weaknesses and provide opportunities for improvement. Having positive impacts on systems and working towards systems improvement.
Question #7:
In evaluating the effectiveness of communication strategies in the district and encouraging the engagement of the community to benefit all students, she stated things to observe are: survey data, bond passing/failing, feedback loops, etc. She feels a leader should be ethical, transparent, not causing fear, and provide strong feedback loops for the entire school community.
In evaluating the effectiveness of communication strategies in the district and encouraging the engagement of the community to benefit all students, she stated things to observe are: survey data, bond passing/failing, feedback loops, etc. She feels a leader should be ethical, transparent, not causing fear, and provide strong feedback loops for the entire school community.
Question #8:
Malinda indicated that good working relationships with the Board depends on communication, availability and spending time defining roles of Board. She said they participate in case studies and scenarios to help define these roles. It important for a superintendent to nurture these relationships, remain neutral, and help the group stay focused on the district vision.
Question #9:
A superintendent can accomplish wide range strategic planning by having good guiding documents and a strong foundation. This allows systems to work and builds trust. Systems should have aligned improvement plans based on the district goals, they must be cross- functional, focus on process improvement and the district vision.
