Superintendent Interview

Overall this was a tremendous learning experience for me because I did not know how much my Superintendent does outside the district to advance the needs of the district.  This was the answer that stuck out the most to me, regarding budgets and needs.  He feels it is necessary to be aware of all tax rates and how they impact the district.  One of the things he does is attends all the tax meetings in Johnson County.  By his own admission he is the only Superintendent in the county that attends these meetings.  It seems to serve him well as he is aware of issues before they become regulation and he can go back to the district and meet with the CFO to see how they will adjust what we are doing.  This stuck out to me because this is not something he has to do but definitely something that helps our school district know what is happening and how it affects us.  As a leader I want to go above and beyond with things like this to show care and concern for all aspects of the district.

The second response that stuck out with me dealt with building relationships with the school board.  These are people you have to work with to advance the district.  However, they are also the people who decide your future when they are dealing with your contract, so it doesn’t hurt to make an investment in a positive relationship.  One thing he has done everywhere he has been is to make weekly visits to the homes of the board members and leave them a packet of information of what is going on in the district.  He cautioned me to balance the positives with some negatives.  It is unrealistic to believe that they think everything is going well every week and they will hear through gossip some of the happenings of the district so be up front and honest with them regarding events.  I am not sure if this is an activity that will work in larger districts where everything is spread out more as he said it takes about a half a day Friday to do this.  I would like to see if this is a feasible activity for me as a Superintendent in working to build positive relationships with others.

Next, my Superintendent talked to me about having proper support for the needs of the district.  He visits all campuses daily and takes a minimum of 20 pictures a week.  This could include areas that need to be addressed or areas of achievement.  It is important to share our successes with everyone in the school district.  Likewise, when there is a pressing need in the district having photographic evidence of the need can help convince others of the need.  I know a lot of people see his constant visits as a pain, but it is clear that this is a way he can keep a good handle of what is happening.  In addition, I think it helps keep people on task and completing their jobs as no one wants to go a few weeks without addressing a concern of his.  I am working with him now on identifying some pressing areas of need within the district and developing plans to adequately address them.

 The fourth response that stood out to me was dealing with how to remain ethical.  I don’t say this was stuck with me because he said it is difficult to remain that way.  It had to deal with how he has to deal with educators who do not follow the code of ethics.  He has had a growing number of instances where educators have used work email to communicate in some inappropriate manner with others and have had to be confronted.  With increasing technology comes increased responsibility and it is critical that there are clear policies in place.  He also let me know that when they are confronted and angry it is often best to try and get them to resign and sign then so, but often times their anger overcomes the sensible decision.  As a leader I know this will often be some of the more uncomfortable positions to be in, but we must always put students first and hold our staff to a high standard of behavior and when they don’t meet the expectation we have to be willing to part ways with them.

The final thing that stuck out with me and it was not necessarily one of the questions, but came up in our conversation was how to handle social relationships with people you work with.  He said it is often difficult to maintain relationships with people you work with outside of work because they may try to use that to their advantage or it will appear to others that they receive favoritism.  This is hard since you spend so much time with these people during the week and they often come to know you very well.  He recommends limiting personal relationships and interactions outside the workplace.  As a people person who enjoys helping others this may be hard for me at times but I know it will be for the best of my long term success.  I am glad I have a Superintendent who is willing to take the time to help me improve and advance my career, I know he was busy but this activity was a great help for me as I begin this program.