What are the metrics used to assess a school superintendent? Who determines success? How does data play into this? Here's a look at 10 key factors.

1. 10 Elements of Superintendent
Performance and Evaluation
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2. 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.

3. 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

4. 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

5. 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

6. 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.

7. 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

8. 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

9. 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

10. 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.

11. 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

12. 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

13. 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

14. 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

15. 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

16. 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

17. 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

18. 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.