Domain I—Leadership of
the Educational Community – Competencies 1 - 4
Competency 1 Area:
The superintendent
knows how to act with integrity, fairness, and in an ethical manner in order to
promote the success of all students.
As a school
administrator, this topic has surfaced repeatedly. Educators are held to a much higher
standard. We see it every day, whether
it something major like sexual misconduct or something minor as theft of
time. These issues constantly plague our
profession. As an appraiser I have to do
a good job of keeping track of these transgressions. As an assistant principal, it is important to
be ethical in managing the few resources at my disposal.
As a superintendent,
our decisions affect all of the students in our district. For every dollar that is misappropriated,
that is a vital resource that will be taken away from our students. Throughout my internship, many of the activities
that I participated in, dealt with issues of equity and fairness. I worked on a project to improve math scores
for our at-risk population. We had to
build in activities, that some would deem as an unfair advantage. I have learned throughout my internship that
fair is not always equal. Sometimes the
superintendent has make decisions based on meeting students individual
needs.
While interviewing
potential staff members, we place a high emphasis on ethics. There has to be a commitment to fulfilling
our schools vision/mission. As the leader of a district, the vision/mission has
to stay in the forefront. Even through
tough budget cuts and many other issues that come up on a regular basis. The leader has to be committed to being an
ethical leader.
Competency 2 Area:
The superintendent
knows how to shape district culture by facilitating the development,
articulation, implementation, and stewardship of a vision of learning that is
shared and supported by the educational community.
Vision
The
Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District will be an exemplary educational
community, dedicated to the highest standards of quality at all levels and in
all areas of endeavor. All students,
parents, community members, and district employees, respecting and valuing each
other, will be committed to providing all students with an education which
enables them to live successfully in an ever-changing society.
Our Mission
The
district will provide the environment and learning opportunities for all
students so that, as graduates, they will possess the qualities which will
enable them to live meaningfully and successfully in society and in the
workplace. The Cypress-Fairbanks ISD
graduate will be An Effective Communicator, A competent Problem-Solver, A
Self-directed Learner, A Responsible citizen, A Quality Producer
The
districts vision and mission concentrates on the student as a productive member
of society. The vision deals with the
relationship of the educational system to the community. So in other words it deals with members of
the community. The vision talks about
how CFISD will create a positive future by providing an education that
incorporates input from stakeholders.
To
communicate this vision, the superintendent must attend activities in the
community, and communicating openly with stakeholders. The superintendent is the face of the
district so it is important to be visible at various events, not just sporting
events. This is the best opportunity for the leader to promote the districts
vision.
Stakeholders
should feel like they have input in the decision making process. I have learned that as an assistant principal
most angry parents just want to be heard.
It is the responsibility of the Superintendent to make channels
available for stakeholders to join in the conversation. One of the most thought provoking quotes from
my classes, dealt with how unethical it is for a superintendent to respond to a
question with, “no comment”. The
speaker discussed that the superintendent is required to answer questions, and
if the topic is of a sensitive nature, the superintendent can just simply
explain why he cannot provide information on the topic. As the voice of the district it is vital that
the superintendent hones his communication skills. Effectively communicating the mission and the
vision is vital in the educational process. Teacher and staff look to the
superintendent to communicate the vision.
By doing this, the leader can make sure everyone is heading in the
correct direction.
Competency
3 Area:
The
superintendent knows how 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.
The Assistant
Superintendent of Communication consistently maintains contacts with the
staff, parents and community members of the district. They are in charge of
notifications during inclement weather days, information regarding bomb
threats, sporting events, announcements for fine arts activities, distribution
of all paper invitations and calendars and anything else that requires an
announcement to the public. The Superintendent and the Assistant Superintendent
of Communication must be very pleasant and welcoming and visible at all
major district and many community activities. Offering congratulations and thanks
to teacher/sponsors and the community provides a link to school and city. The Assistant
Superintendent of Communication also makes sure the web site stays updated
and answers emails quickly about events. This position is an important way to
take the daily public relations tasks off of the superintendent. The
Superintendent can then be visible and reach out to the community and staff
without having to worry about the responsibility of notifying every one of
changes and events.
As
with Competency 2, this one deals with communicating the district’s vision and
dealing with the media, families, community members, businesses and personnel
of the district. The Superintendent must always be ready to communicate the
goal and vision of the district and defend expenditures and changes in the tax
rate. The desire for student success is universally accepted as the goal of
education. Businesses share in the planning as they articulate the kind of
graduate they are looking to employ.
Utilizing
technology as a means of communicating the events and needs of the district has
proven an effective avenue of eliciting the support of all interested parties.
District web pages along with web sites for different campuses and
extra-curricular groups, telephone systems that call all households and
electronic billboards enable the district to keep constituents informed and
encouraged that the needs of students are being met.
Speaking
at Board Meetings with confidence and complete knowledge of the research
covering issues tend to create support for the district. The Board and those
who attend the meetings appreciate a superintendent who has done their homework
and can answer their questions intelligently to ease their fears about the
investment in the education of our children and the educational services
provided.
Competency 4 Area:
The superintendent knows how to
respond to and influence the larger political, social, economic, legal, and
cultural context, including working with the board of trustees, to achieve the
district’s educational vision.
There
are certain regulations that the administration and board must adhere to, in
order to meet compliance standards. There are criteria from the number of
credits a students needs to graduate, for room size, teacher certification
standards, and many other items. An
example of this is the criteria for building a school. Computer labs must have enough space to
service a specific amount of students. A
couple of years ago, the Board issued a hiring and salary freeze during a
period of campus reconfigurations and budget cuts. These ratios and classroom
size specifications became major indicators on what the district could or could
not do.
One
of the major sticking points our district was forced to deal with was the fact
that the district is a property wealthy district. As a result, our funding was effected which
led to steep budget cuts and the reduction of personnel. During this tumultuous time the superintendent
had to talk with politicians in Austin, in order to advocate for our school
district. Dr. Anthony was forced to
provide the same level of education, with very limited resources. He had to reach out to district employees and
lead. This was one of the most eye
opening leadership moments I have ever witnessed. I listened to him explain to the district how
jobs will have to be cut, but at the same time, he is explaining that our level
of education will be unchanged.
During
my internship, I was responsible for assisting in developing bullying
procedures. This was necessary because
of new legislation that was passed. I
worked with a group of leaders create a process to document how the school addressed
a bullying complaint. This was a good
way to put legislation into action. As a
result of my hard work, I was able to develop a good living document that
can/will protect our district against lawsuits in the future. The
Superintendent and the board must be aware of changes as they happen as some
issues “take effect immediately.” As the Board and the Superintendent have
their regular meetings and their annual training and planning sessions there
must be an update on all changes made since the last meeting and a discussion
on the impact on the district and students.
Domain II-Instructional
Leadership-Competencies 5-7
Competency 5
The superintendent knows how to
facilitate the planning and implementation of strategic plans that enhance
teaching and learning; ensure alignment among curriculum, curriculum resources,
and assessment; use the current accountability system; and promote the use of
varied assessments to measure student performance.
The
superintendent is responsible for initiating professional development plans
based on the results of a Needs Assessment, or any thing that superintendent
feels will benefit his staff for the better.
This year our district has decided to focus on the over representation
of minorities in our Discipline Alternative Education program (DAEP). The
district has also had some issues with our at-risk students, in regards to
standardized testing. The district
decided to do a books study using the book teaching with poverty in mind. I personally led a few Moodle sessions to
facilitate a district wide goal.
This
whole process was the brainchild of the Superintendent. He reviewed our district discipline data and
he decided to make sure that we were responding to the needs of our
students. The goal of the book study was
to make members of our district conscience of the issue, and he provided some guidance
in fixing the problem. This is the type
of leader I would like to be, a leader who responds to the needs of all
students. I also like how he allowed for members of the book study to develop
plans that can be used on their campus.
The study was first given to administration of schools. After the Administrators finished the book
study, they were responsible for training staff members at their own
campuses. This allowed each campus to
make adjustments to meet the needs of their students. The superintendent knew that he had to
empower leaders to make the changes necessary.
As a result, we had positive gains in all areas last year.
Competency 6:
The superintendent knows how to
advocate, promote, and sustain an instructional program and a district culture
that are conducive to student learning and staff professional growth:
The
district incorporated thinking maps this last year. The purpose of the maps were to:
·
Reduce the number graphic organizers to
8 main thinking maps
·
Encourage students to create thinking
maps or illustrate their thinking
·
Provide a method to review, assess, and
check for understanding
·
Organize thinking prior to creating a
project/product
·
Provide a common language for teachers
to use during instruction
The
superintendent provided extensive training for all administrators and
curriculum leaders. This training was
designed to be a “trainer of trainers” activity. I participated in my schools development of a
plan to assess the effectiveness of thinking maps on our campus. I used many of the skills that I learned in
my previous course work. This was a
great opportunity to apply my learning from the Seminar classes. I developed a plan that had measurable
objectives. I am still in the process of
measuring those outcomes.
Competency Area 7:
The superintendent knows how to
implement a staff evaluation and development system and select appropriate
models for supervision and staff development to improve the performance of all
staff members.
The
state of Texas has created the teacher evaluation system known as Professional
development and Appraisal System (PDAS).
As we know, teachers are not the only ones who need to be
evaluated. The superintendent is responsible
for creating an appraisal system for paraprofessionals, administrators, and
others position in the district. This
requires careful planning, and the creation of very specific job
descriptions. To this the superintendent
must have a handle of what needs to be done, and how to evaluate if it is being
done effectively. In our district, an
Assistant Superintendent evaluates principals.
The Board of Trustees and the Superintendent set the criteria. During my internship, I was able to sit down
with the Superintendent and discuss how evaluations come about. He explained how he works very closely with
the HR department, in order to make sure he is meeting state and local
guidelines. Our district also requires
teachers to attend 25 hours of professional development per year. This is a great way to make sure your
teachers are continuously growing in education.
I led a couple of professional development activities that led to staff
members receiving much needed professional development hours.
Domain III-Administrative
Leadership-Competencies 8-10
Competency 8
The superintendent knows how to
apply principles of effective leadership and management in relation to district
budgeting, personnel, resource utilization, financial management, and
technology application.
I
observed the superintendent and associate superintendent during our state of
the district presentation. The agenda
was well planned and it included all major curriculum dates for the year. Each hand-out also included descriptions of
initiatives that were laid out for the upcoming year. There was a rationale for each change that
was being implemented. Then at the end
of each session there was question and answer session that allowed the
superintendent to clear up any misconceptions.
Finally
the district addressed some looming budget issues. They calmly explained how this would affect
the district. They provided extra time
to field questions in order to allow the administration to get a clear
understanding of the upcoming changes. This
was done to prevent speculation and unrest in the district. Finally the district prepared a video from
the superintendent explaining many of the changes that are going to take place
in the next couple of months. As the
face of the district, the superintendent does have a responsibility to address
the teachers.
This
was at the very beginning of my internship, but I quickly understood the
importance job that the superintendent has.
He has to “steer” the district when the water get somewhat rough. There will come a time when unpopular
decisions are made. I like the fact that
he personally announced these changes, and he did not rely on campus leaders to
do so.
Competency 9:
The superintendent knows 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.
Analysis of the different departments
within the district is critical to the effective management of revenue and
expenditures and the management of the district’s facility resources.
Maintenance and facilities, transportation, security and food services
departments are important to service of students and families. Maintenance and
facilities is the department that takes care of air quality, sanitation and
upkeep of buildings including temperature management during the instructional
day and for special events. Custodians and maintenance staff work daily to
prevent and correct building problems to insure that students and staff have
comfortable buildings that are conducive to learning. Transportation is the
workhorse that makes sure students are picked up and delivered to their various
destinations safely and on time. School and district security becomes
increasingly important, as national security needs change. There is more
security in schools today than ever before. With the recent events in Newtown
Conn., there has been new discussion on school safety. The district will have to adjust to meet the
needs of these students. Food service is
a program that receives federal funds and additional operating expenses come
from the prices that are charged. Budget cuts have affected all of these
departments and they have been trimmed drastically. All of these departments
are essential for student success and without any one of them schools would be
in trouble. It is the superintendent’s responsibility to make sure all of these
departments are working at their optimum level. Students, parents, and
taxpayers expect nothing less than clean, safe, schools with nutritional food
and buses that meet student needs.
Competency
10
The
superintendent knows how to apply organizational, decision-making, and
problem-solving skills to comply with federal and state requirements and
facilitate positive change in varied contexts.
As a result of budget cuts, the
district was forced to make some tough decisions. Prior to these budget cuts, the district had
an abundance of resources. The
Superintendent and his staff had to cut non-essential personnel and
resources. In the long run, I believe
many of the changes that were made, will benefit the district in the long
run. The things that I focused on were
the changes to programs that did have a negative effect on the district. The district was forced to eliminate late
busses from all non-title I schools.
This led to the creation of professional development to give teachers
the skills to get more done in a class period.
For cut that was made, the superintendent created opportunities for
development in these areas for our teachers.
This shows that the superintendent must be able to foresee problems on
the horizon and take the necessary steps to address them, before it affects our
students. With all of the budget cuts
that were put into place, there had to be some very strategic planning. The reason for this is the district still has
to meet state and federal guidelines.
These guidelines had to be in the forefront of any changes. It also illustrates the amount of
collaboration that must take place. The
superintendent is not an expert in all areas, so to ensure that these state and
federal guidelines are met, he has to have a team of experts. This is where a lack of ethics in hiring
comes back to bite the superintendent.
It is important the superintendent hire the best candidate for the job,
because these people will play a vital role in advising the superintendent and
shaping the district. If the district
leader falls into the trap of nepotism, this can lead to an overall failure of
the district. Watching the changes that
were made to the district was very difficult to watch, but I do believe that
the district still maintained the same level of excellent education as it has
in the past.
No comments:
Post a Comment