educational leaders

In episode 95, Ryan Pelkey talks about the importance of paying attention to the mental health of teachers/staff. He offers ways to support each other and urges administration to focus on relationships.

Dr. Bob Maxfield and Dr. Suzanne Klein invite Podcast guests Dr. Cynthia Carver, Associate Professor and Chair of the Teacher Development in Educational Studies Department at Oakland University, in the School of Education and Human Services, and Marcia Hudson, Elementary Field Coordinator, to discuss lessons learned during the pandemic that have informed their teacher preparation program and highlight the prominent features of the newly launched Elementary Teacher Preparation Program.  

Dr. Carver explained “about 85% of students take teacher preparation courses through her department,  which also works closely with the Reading and Language Arts, and the Department of H.D.C.S. (Human Development and Child Studies).”  As a long time teacher educator and scholar of teacher leadership, she is deeply passionate about clinical preparation and partnerships with area schools, which is a key component of the Oakland program. “The university does the work of  preparing new teachers in concert with our partners in our local schools, with the implicit expectation of mentor classroom teachers that they are also field-based teacher educators.”

Marcia Hudson incorporates her experience as a teacher, teacher leader and Literacy Consultant in the Avondale Public School District into her current position, which includes “supporting mentor teachers to fully recognize their leadership role as field based teacher educators and live into that vision. It's really necessary that our students have the opportunity to see the great practices that they're learning about taking place within their mentor teachers’ classrooms.”  

Marcia Hudson recalled the challenges brought about by the pandemic.  “When the pandemic hit, students were in the middle of the semester and suddenly schools closed. Then last fall we had 93 student teachers ready to begin their final internship. When our student teachers were connected with their mentor teachers they developed strong partnerships. Some of our students were taking the lead and helping our mentor teachers navigate new ways of teaching.”

“We didn’t have a vision for fully remote learning. In the past students were being prepared for brick and mortar schools.” Going forward, Dr. Carver described “the intention on the part of university faculty to help prepare students for this new reality of using technology in ways not previously imagined to support student learning and make connections to the community, as well as how to use technology to support our own learning as educators with one another.”

“We learned a lot during the pandemic about the importance of engaging with families who play a vital role in supporting learning. Teaching the whole child is not a new idea though the competencies around S.E.L., social emotional learning, provide new ways for us to think about equitable practices, as well as practices that help kids regulate their emotions and participate in more independent, self-regulated ways in the classroom. Some of the things I mentioned around S.E.L. and family engagement are important curricular pieces that will have a different emphasis going forward.”

“In K-12 education, we are being pushed to reconsider thinking so tightly around the boundaries of the bell schedule, but begin to think more creatively about learning itself, and how learning starts and stops in different ways, on different days around different topics. and the integrated nature of learning that can take place.”

Dr. Carver identified the three  hallmarks of the Oakland program: “practice-based teacher preparation;  a very important strand around equity and justice; and clinical practice and school partnerships. They existed pre- Covid and offer a lens to look at the past and forward to the future.”

“The redesign of the elementary program took four years as a faculty across departments and offices to define the touchstones of our program; what is it that our graduates would need to experience in order to be well prepared to do no harm when they go into the classroom and be well-started novices. “

“Practice-based teacher preparation focuses on putting theories about teaching into action to develop core practices; the term we use now in the state of Michigan. Every teacher, regardless of subject or grade level, will lead large and small groups and lead discussions. Every teacher will need to build respectful relationships with students and their families. Every teacher will need to help students elicit their thinking. We’re informed by our standards, state and national standards of course, but the difference lies in the way we tie it together in the coherence of our programs.” 

“One of the things that makes our program remarkably different from many other programs is the coherence of our programs. We have been very intentional to be collaborative as a faculty. Students are not taking classes that do not connect with one another. The faculty are always in conversation with one another about where their students are and how they are building these concepts and skills and deepening them over time.“

Marcia Hudson added “not only does the faculty continually meet, discuss, and create opportunities for students to make sure there's coherence with everything; they're also working with all of the support staff,  they're speaking with advisors, they're speaking with the support team.  Another thing that's really special about our new program is that we have faculty meetings and work regularly with the mentor teachers who are working with our students, so it's a full circle of support. I'd like to say that it's almost like a personalized kind of program that we offer to students. “

Dr. Carver emphasized that “part of being an Oakland student means that we care about you as a person and that's absolutely true here. We know our students, we’re following our students, and when students need some extra guidance and help, we're here to help them. 

Given the challenges going forward, Dr. Carver indicated “it’s really important that we continue to bring forward  the importance of teaching for diversity, equity, and inclusion; looking at ways in which we ensure that our candidates ‘don't do further harm to children’. That's a phrase we're starting to use a lot with one another and we've used it with students. And what we mean by that is that all children have opportunities to learn; all children are celebrated for their strengths; they have a voice in the classroom; they feel safe in the classroom, and that they are appropriately challenged. Also we are looking at the ways in which we are marginalizing students, because of their color or their gender or their ableness, or any number of other factors, and the heightened attention that we're placing on that and how very important that is. If we want to eliminate achievement gaps, we have to create opportunities to learn for all children.  We  want our teachers to leave our program ready to advocate on behalf of all children and their families and serve all children and their families well. As a faculty we've re-committed ourselves to that important form of teacher leadership.”

Another challenge that Marcia Hudson identified was “ the need to attract the best and brightest to the teaching profession”. As a fifth generation teacher, Marcia Hudson expressed very real concern about the teacher shortage and the negative response going into teaching elicits today.   While there is no silver bullet to address it, Dr. Carver suggested that “part of the solution is going to have to be elevating the status of the profession.  We have to give teachers as professionals that autonomy back;we have to celebrate their expertise; we have to honor and respect that expertise; we have to compensate that expertise. And we have to thank the teachers that we know and work with.” Dr. Carver and the Oakland University Teacher Preparation Program were featured in the Channel 4 WDIV-DET news broadcast TEACHERS IN HIGH DEMAND, 8/30/2021, 6:50 am.

 https://mms.tveyes.com/MediaCenterPlayer.aspx?u=aHR0cDovL21lZGlhY2VudGVyLnR2ZXllcy5jb20vZG93bmxvYWRnYXRld2F5LmFzcHg%2FVXNlcklEPTI3NTY0MSZNRElEPTE1NzMxNDkyJk1EU2VlZD03ODk1JlR5cGU9TWVkaWE%3D

As cheerleaders for the teaching  profession and teacher leadership, Dr. Maxfield and Dr. Klein thanked Dr. Cynthia Carver and Marcia Hudson for sharing their experiences, wisdom and optimism.

To learn more about the Elementary Teacher Preparation Program at Oakland University, School of Education and Human Services:

https://oakland.edu/teach/undergraduate-degree-programs/elementary-education/

Dr.  Carver  and Marcia Hudson have provided their email addresses should you wish to contact them.

Dr. Cynthia Carver, Associate Professor and Chair of the Teacher Development in Educational Studies  Department, carver2@oakland.edu

Marcia Hudson,  Elementary Field Coordinator, mlhudson@oakland.edu

Robert McCann is the Executive Director of The K-12 Alliance of Michigan, which strives to be the statewide leader in education policy and advocacy to ensure every child in Michigan has equitable access to a quality education and the opportunity to succeed both in and outside of the classroom. Currently the organization represents districts in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Genesee, and St. Clair Counties, and is continuing conversation with other areas for potential partnerships and further expansion.

Responding to the challenges of the current school year Mr. McCann urged the school community as a whole, to focus solely on the best way to provide students a ‘normal’ school experience, laying aside the politics surrounding those discussions. From his viewpoint, “utilizing the guidance and directives of public health experts is essential for schools to offer in-person learning, keeping students in school where they learn best. Additionally if there is an outbreak, schools need the flexibility to shut school down for a period and continue offering learning remotely and third, schools need to have long term policies in place to support student recovery.”

Mr. McCann reflected on the impact of the uneven experiences students have had due to the pandemic, and how schools can best move forward.  “As we bring them back to classrooms this fall we know it's not just about focusing on where they are academically, but where they are socially and emotionally in their own recovery process that's ultimately going to dictate how we can best help them get back on paths towards academic success. Schools play a unique role not just in academics, but in these students' lives and in their ability to overcome whatever obstacles they're facing at home, whatever obstacles they're facing in their social circles. That schools give them that support that they need to succeed overall in their growth is so critical to getting them back on that path to success going forward.”

Mr. McCann lauded the increased “funding from the federal stimulus packages, enabling districts to provide students a number of opportunities which they wouldn’t otherwise have, for the next two or three years. With the stimulus funding for programs we are looking at what wraparound services schools  provide to address those unique needs of any individual student, as a model to demonstrate what normal could look like if we were funding schools properly in the first place.”

“It's about taking those services: getting reading coaches into younger kids' classrooms; getting tutors into school buildings; getting social workers into school buildings to help with those needs; and providing all of those wraparound services as the best chance we have to not only help these students that have been struggling over the last year and a half, but meet those unique needs of every student instead of just saying all students are the same and here's a funding plan that fits that.”

Mr. McCann noted, “if we can redefine what normal is over the next couple of years and then advocate for the funding to meet that normal, then I think we'll have done the best job we can to give these students the best opportunities possible going forward. The Alliance wants to show that if the state of Michigan were to make the type of investment that those federal stimulus dollars are making on an ongoing basis, the good we could be doing for students for generations to come. We are going to show what some of these programs look like over the next few years that could be invested in perpetually by the state. We're going to say this is exactly what we could be doing if the state adopted an SFRC (School Finance Research Collaborative) based formula.”

In terms of funding for programs, Mr. McCann is a strong proponent of the School Finance Research Collaborative recommendations. He pointed out the disparity between the current state funding formula, with its one size fits all, and the SFRC recommendation that provides funds based on the unique needs of the students in schools and districts, explaining that “it's treating every student as the same when we know that's not the case. What that means is that we are under-funding every student and not doing even the most minimal effort to meet the unique needs that many students have; these are special education students, English language learners, people that need extra reading help. We're not funding those programs correctly, so when schools implement those programs because they're necessary, that means we're ultimately pulling funding from every student, which under serves the entire student population of Michigan.”

Mr. McCann also commented on the state of the teaching profession in Michigan, which has been “impacted by chronic under funding of schools, a lag in pay, to not enough teachers being in classrooms, overcrowded classrooms, to not funding classrooms properly, as well as increasing the responsibilities of educators, as evidenced by decisions made by school officials who aren’t public health experts, about the conditions for students to return to school.” In response to the low number of students enrolled in schools of education across the state, and the rate of retirements accelerated by the pandemic, Mr. McCann asserted the need to look holistically as a state to address the status of the teaching profession. “The more we can be doing to say that Michigan is a state that is willing to invest in public education, that is willing to invest in the profession of educating students again, that's what's ultimately going to start this process of encouraging young students in high school and going into college to say that's the profession I want to get into again.”

Looking ahead, Mr. McCann advised, “the best thing we can be doing as a school community right now is highlight the good work that we're doing as students benefit from the new supports that are available: instituting new reading programs, tutoring programs, social programs to help students' emotional recovery. Let's highlight the success that some of these students are going to be having this year: recovering from the pandemic, getting caught back up to grade level, getting reintegrated in with social programs and having school dances again and just even some of those most basic of things, to remind people the integral role that schools ultimately play within their communities, because we need to be doing that, right now.”

In the short term, Mr. McCann insisted “the state and local health departments need to be stepping up and making and giving very clear direction to schools of what they need to be doing inside the classrooms, inside the school buildings to keep kids safe.”

In the longer term, Mr. McCann is adamant about showcasing the benefits to students of programs derived from the stimulus funding or risk losing the gains that will be made over the next two years with those additional resources, by returning to an old funding formula. “We need to have lawmakers start looking at how we can start fixing the funding formula again. Next year in the budget process, we are going to be pushing to make some of those significant changes away from the one size fits all formula, to meeting that SFRC based formula. That is going to be critical moving forward, or we’re missing this opportunity that we have in front of us.”

Website    https://www.k12michigan.org

Dr. Bob Maxfield and Dr. Suzanne Klein spoke with Dr. Randy Liepa, Superintendent of Wayne County Regional Education Service Agency (RESA), prior to his announced retirement in June, 2021. Dr. Liepa is well recognized for his leadership on the issue of school funding among Michigan superintendents and intermediate school district colleagues.Prior to his role as Superintendent of Wayne RESA, Dr. Liepa served as both business manager and superintendent for Livonia Public Schools.  As part of Launch Michigan, The Coalition for the Future of Detroit School Children, he worked with the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce; served as President of his local Chamber in Livonia, President of the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators (MAISA), and twice served as Chair of the Galileo Teacher Leadership Consortium Board. 

An important priority during Dr. Liepa’s leadership, both as a local superintendent and at Wayne RESA, has been developing and putting in place processes. While superintendent in Livonia, he created a shared vision that still remains a part of the district Board policies.  That roadmap identified priorities and informed the district budgeting process, the long-term facility plan, and the school improvement plan. It also enabled the district to significantly renovate the school facilities, add innovative programs such as the first Japanese immersion program, offer an International Baccalaureate program, and preserve a variety of programs during an era of budget cuts.“That was all based on having those key components in place; a roadmap, a plan and, if we follow the plan, we're going to continue to provide educational opportunities for students at the highest level.”

Dr. Liepa explained that Wayne RESA is the largest county-wide school organization in Michigan, serving 33 school districts, over 100 public school systems, over 275,000 students, within a very diverse social and economic community. “Having such diverse communities in the county affords the opportunity to continue to learn from each other and our communities, to support our students in our own school districts.”  While at Wayne RESA, Dr. Liepa led the passage and renewal of a regional enhancement millage which brought in more than $300 per student, $75 million per year, for the next 12 years. “The biggest challenge going forward is resource allocation to provide all our school districts with the level of support to be successful, along with trying to coordinate services in the county to be more efficient and doing a better job of getting certain things off a local school district's plate by sharing with each other.”

Dr. Liepa noted some of the lessons learned from the impact of the recent pandemic.  Parents having their children at home led to a whole new appreciation of the importance of school in society and its role in regards to “just being good human beings”.  Many have also realized the importance of students working directly with the teacher, with their peers, and having that experience in a school. The pandemic also clearly revealed inequity of resources, the digital divide as well as the differences in support students have at home. Here Dr. Liepa pointed to the work of the School Finance Research Collaborative (SFRC) which “produced a roadmap on how to meet the needs of students and what we want schools to look like for all students.”  The 2018 SFRC study recommended a state funding formula which included both a foundation grant and additional dollar amounts needed to educate special education students, at-risk learners, and English language learners. There is also provision in the formula for school counselors, social work support, reading specialists and other teachers to support student learning needs. 

As leaders address these more visible educational inequities going forward, Dr. Liepa sees an opportunity to implement changes in funding policies. “…with the federal dollars coming in, it's a chance for school districts to do some transformational things; some once in a generation opportunity for some of these school districts to be able to do some catch up that is long overdue and much needed. There is a challenge in the messaging about the federal dollars, but also an opportunity to plan to implement a new finance system.”

The new superintendent will find important initiatives in place at Wayne RESA. “As a school leader I always felt that if I hired good people and provided them the resources that they needed to be successful, and had a good plan in place we would do great things…We started a literacy initiative about three years ago with our local school districts and have a very detailed plan to move forward collectively and learn best practices in literacy from each other to make a difference in reading in Wayne County, along with…helping our school districts with… innovation…”

When asked about recruiting and preparing educators for future leadership roles, Dr. Liepa acknowledged the challenges in the current environment and within the public sector. Leadership training, counseling and mentoring, both prior to being in the job and on the job, can build a supportive network for advice and resources needed to make difficult decisions. His advice to a new superintendent would be focus on building relationships. “It all starts there… focus on having that core foundation of relationships with people, so there's trust, two-way trust going, and then start building a foundation as it relates to your plans. Never forget the power in synergy. You don't have to be the smartest person in the room; you've got smart people around you.  Always be humble, be a good listener and use the synergy of others as you're building those relationships and those foundations of success.”

https://www.fundmischools.org/

FACT SHEET:

Dr. Bob Maxfield and Dr. Suzanne Klein continue the podcast series with a focus on resetting education featuring guests with unique insights into the issues surrounding public education during the pandemic and what schooling needs to look like afterward. Their guest for this conversation is Lou Glazer, CEO of Michigan Future Inc.  Mr. Glazer holds a master’s degree in urban planning from the University of Michigan and was a member of former Michigan Governor Blanchard’s Economic and Community Development Team.  As he created Michigan Future Inc. as a think tank focused on the economic well-being of Michigan households, he understood the state’s economy was fundamentally changing due to globalization and technology, and wanted those in leadership positions to understand what it would take for Michigan to be a high prosperity state. Mr. Glazer suggests that we are still struggling with what good paying work looks like, the skills that people need to get it, and what Michigan has to do to be a high prosperity state. 

When asked what we have learned about effective schools during the pandemic and what advice he had for school leaders moving forward, Mr. Glazer cited two lessons for educational leaders: in-person learning is the way most education should be delivered to all students, and narrow content standards that are measured by standardized tests are a small part, not a main part, of what students need to be successful adults. From his perspective it is imperative to reconsider the role standardized testing plays.  “The unintended consequence of standardized tests is the horrible things it does for both curriculum and pedagogy.  And if, particularly for non-affluent students, everybody wants to double down on so called ‘learning loss’, that would be a horrible lesson to learn from the pandemic.  There's a whole set of skills that are not content specific that really are what matter most for kids” that need to be incorporated into state education policy.  Mr. Glazer clarified that although basic literacy skills do matter, there are other sets of skills that matter at least equally, if not more, noting it is difficult to build literacy skills until you have addressed social emotional learning. 

Michigan Future Inc. has adopted the 6Cs described in the book Becoming Brilliant as the best definition of foundational skills that all students need, irrespective of what they decide to do after high school: collaboration, communication, content, critical thinking, creativity and confidence.  He also noted that the authors of Becoming Brilliant argue that collaboration and communication, in terms of brain development, come before content, so educators cannot skip those steps.

Reference: Golinkoff, R. & Hirsh-Pasek,K. (2016), Becoming Brilliant: What Science Tells us about Raising Successful Children, American Psychological Association

Mr. Glazer stated that for Michigan Future Inc., rock climbing has replaced ladder climbing as the metaphor for 40-year career success. For adults to have successful careers, he encourages them to be agile, constant learners. He views a career path as an ad hoc rather than linear experience, unpredictable rather than predictable.  “The 6Cs are the definition of rock climbing skills. They also are not just career success skills; they are life success skills.”  He re-emphasized that a K-16 education is about more than a good paying career as other aspects for a successful adult life are equally as important as earning a living.

Mr. Glazer went on to note that disparities in school design are significant because they build different skill sets in students. “Affluent kids, by and large, are in schools that are designed to build broad liberal arts skills, where the assumption is that a preponderance of all, if not all, kids are going to go to a four-year degree university. Non-affluent kids are fundamentally in schools which are designed around building discipline, standardized test skills, and first job skills”.  He views the fundamental problem with K-12 education in Michigan, the separate and unequal designs in what we want from schools, as a systemic inequity that interferes with efforts to reform education.  He concludes that for most students we have the wrong vision and, until we change that, we will not get the outcomes that we want for all of them.

Turning to systemic change, in Michigan there has been a state-level initiative to revise teacher preparation that will soon be implemented in colleges and universities. Dr. Klein shared that Oakland University has revised its teacher preparation program in response to the challenge of how to best prepare new teachers to effectively meet the needs of all students.  There are also revisions to state standards under development for universities preparing educational leaders at the building and central office level.  Mr. Glazer supports the preparation of teachers and administrators moving in the direction of focusing on a set of broad rigorous skills for all students that are beyond standardized tests with a focus on more project-based pedagogy.  He also recommends that districts embrace a similar vision as they offer professional development for their staff members.

In turning to the economy, Mr. Glazer stated that many people do not have a good understanding of the labor market and what good paying work looks like today and will in the future. “Unfortunately schools are still trying to build skills in kids that fit the 20th century paradigm, rather than the economy of the future. Kids need to know the difference between ‘rock climbing and ladder climbing’ and the skills needed to navigate their future career and life choices.  STEM and the skilled trades are not the only two paths to good paying work.” 

In conclusion, Mr. Glazer encouraged listeners to visit his organization’s website, www.michiganfuture.org.  He also recommended two books, Becoming Brilliant and In Search of Deeper Learning. He noted these authors strongly believe that great schools also offer opportunities in electives and extra-curricular activities to build the skills described in the 6Cs that are critical for student’s current and future success.

Golinkoff, R. & Hirsh-Pasek,K. (2016), Becoming Brilliant: What Science Tells us about Raising Successful Children, American Psychological Association

Mehta, J. & Fine, S. (2019). In Search of Deeper Learning: The Quest to Remake the American High School, Harvard University Press 

Podcasts for Leaderful Schools, hosted by Dr. Robert Maxfield and Dr. Suzanne Klein, at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan, invites noted guests to share their leadership roles as well as the lessons they’ve learned, and engage in deep thinking as they examine the existing challenges and new opportunities facing school leaders in the post pandemic educational reset.

Chris Wigent recently retired as Executive Director of the Michigan Association of Superintendents and Administrators, where he provided leadership and support to almost 600 school superintendents and central office administrators across the state of Michigan.  To illustrate the leadership lessons that guided his career, Chris recalled memorable experiences from his most recent position as well as his prior roles: school administrator, superintendent in a rural Michigan district, Superintendent of an Intermediate School District,  and Superintendent of Wayne County Regional Educational Service Agency. Looking back on his career Chris reported he was the youngest assistant principal in the state, the youngest high school principal in the state and at one point was the youngest superintendent in the state, also the least experienced consequently he made some mistakes along the way without that experience.

His first leadership lesson was drawn from an experience early in his administrative career.  As an assistant principal and athletic director, Chris emceed an award banquet focusing on himself a little bit too much. Afterward the superintendent called him in and advised, “You need to remember it’s not about you, it’s about the food.” He learned that whether it was students, or the superintendents, or whomever it might be, it was not about him. Chris lauded the leadership and courage of that superintendent, and attributed that conversation to creating a shift in his thinking and a shift in his career; hence he became a much more effective leader. Chris was adamant that leaders have that responsibility to hold frank discussions with everyone and understand it's not personal, it's professional.  

A second lesson was the importance of active listening, which he deemed an essential skill for those in a leadership position. As Superintendent of Wayne RESA, active listening enabled him to broaden his skills by recognizing the knowledge, ability and diversity of the 34 county superintendents who met for monthly meetings.  It was a focus on them, listening to their needs, and learning from their experiences that enhanced his leadership skills.

Chris concluded that reminding yourself that it’s not about you, actively listening to other people, and forging relationships both individually and collectively with groups, are valuable lessons for effective school leaders.

Emphasizing the importance of cultivating trusting relationships, Chris pointed to having worked with 35 school board members directly as a superintendent.  Building a relationship of mutual respect with each board member was a point of pride. Even with disagreements and debates, the collective focus was on the good of the district and its students. Admittedly it took time and constant communication to build that trust, but once gained individually and then collectively when they got together, it became easier. 

Chris recounted a critical role he played as Superintendent of Wayne RESA, when the state dissolved the Inkster Public School District. He held multiple meetings with the four superintendents representing surrounding districts as well as their Board presidents and School Boards to divide up the district and determine where the students would attend school next. Additionally Chris stood before the Inkster community to deliver the plan and credited building relationships, honesty, and keeping students at the center of the plan, for the community response to his presentation.  He labelled the experience a leadership moment he would never forget.

Chris was adamant about embracing his full retirement. In hindsight, for the majority of his career his 90 hour work weeks were all consuming, negatively impacting his personal relationships therefore as a retiree he planned to focus on his life, his boys, and things he had not done in the last 41 years. He expressed a sense of pride as a former workaholic in establishing these new priorities.

As the conversation progressed, Chris reflected upon leading learning in his organizational roles. His commitment to lead learning for all was evident through a variety of initiatives at RESA, supporting school districts in Wayne County with diverse needs, resources and priorities. Moving from there to MASA, by supporting, assisting, and advising superintendents and school districts, his leadership impacted all the children in the state. 

Chris pronounced the MASA work the most challenging of his career. There were 600 school superintendents; each with a different personality, leadership style, background, and Board of Education. To be an effective leader, Chris had to get to know them individually as well as their situation to ensure that the work done by MASA was relevant, both globally and on an individual level.  In his capacity as Executive Director, immediate accessibility compelled him to provide support to superintendents experiencing a problem, regardless of the time of day. He assumed their problems as his own, checking in with them and seeking solutions whenever possible.

From his current vantage point, Chris indicated that districts have faced global challenges as well as individual challenges and are facing them now. He recommended that superintendents depend on each other, their state association, colleges and universities, for support rather than attempt to handle challenges individually.  Leaders needed to be thinking about change and looking at what is going on not only to education, but also in the business world. As an example, Chris admitted that his thoughts about remote learning were changed with increased staff productivity, forcing him to think outside the box. He asserted that leaders are going to have to think out of the box, way out of the box, as they move forward. 

In projecting ahead to the opportunities and challenges presented with a post pandemic educational reset, Chris emphasized that leaders need to realize that they weren’t trained for this type of situation, and while it was possible to lean on the past, it is imperative to be astute on a regional, statewide and national level to new research on best practices. Additionally, he cautioned leaders to continue demonstrating sensitivity to the diverse needs and positions taken by members within their community.  

With a reset Chris foresees a different set of leaders emerging, who perhaps have challenged the status quo before the current pandemic constraints, and are energized and ready to step up and lead, and be able to try something that perhaps they wanted to try that the establishment just hasn't been set up for. Chris stressed that the characteristics that make a quality leader haven't changed and they won't change. He suggested what you do with that leadership and how you handle that leadership, that's where the shift takes place. He recognized a new level of energy in school leaders. “It’s an exciting time to be a leader and to move forward. We’re 90 mph on the entrance ramp and we've got to be ready to drive the Autobahn.”   

Chris identifies several specific areas of teaching and learning that are post pandemic challenges, requiring shifts in thinking.  First he recommends a shift in thinking about virtual learning.  He sees a role for that, accompanied by best practices for virtual learning and teacher training.  Second, the area of support for mental health for students needs attention. Current ratios of students to counselors and psychologists  are terrible from his viewpoint and without attention to that, we’ll never get to the learning piece. The third shift Chris recommends is a review of student assessment to consider multiple types of assessments and options to ensure that assessment provides quality information about student learning.  

 In a mentoring role, if Chris had the opportunity to engage in conversation with a new or aspiring school leader, he would caution them not to move up too quickly, missing out on critical opportunities to lead change and learn from that experience. He would encourage them to talk extensively about the positives they were experiencing, and perhaps include a challenge they had, to help them work through that. He would remind them about the importance of finding a work life balance. Ultimately the conversation would entail asking a leading question that encouraged deeper self-reflection.

There exists a surprisingly small pool of candidates for superintendent vacancies and self-reflection may also benefit more experienced leaders considering this position. Chris noted there are leaders destined to become superintendents and those for whom a different administrative position was a better match. He advocated an honest conversation regarding that leadership skill set, as well as aspiring superintendent programs providing an opportunity to understand the complexity of the commitment. He indicated it is imperative to deepen the pool with a quantity of qualified candidates to become superintendents.

In closing Chris advised  every school leader to “take a step back and remember it’s not about you, be an active listener, and develop those relationships because the sooner you learn that, the more effective leader you become.”