The Superintendent Of The Future

American education has been, and will continue to be, a high-profile subject; and in the end, it is school superintendents who carry the weight of the effort when it comes to school improvement. This book provides an inside perspective on the superintendency today and where it's headed tomorrow, with a focus on practical action. Case studies developed around actual school systems highlight key issues in this must-have book.

You Finally Have the Job—Now What? From that first early morning media call to working with subordinates, The Superintendent's First Day In the Office is brimming with information for new superintendents. Berger has picked the brains of two dozen veterans about tough subjects like what to tell the news media, community building, transition, entry plans, hiring decisions, and board relations. The collective wisdom, practical advice, and good humor reflected in their accounts will help new superintendents succeed, avoid surprises, and stay focused on the real issues of community building and educating children.

An impossible job? That's what many have called the superintendency. With its growing and completing demands, it is a profession that can baffle even the most knowledgeable and well prepared. Public education resources have become more limited. There are new national and state testing requirements. Social issues are pulled into the schools and want more control over their operation. Add in politics and bureaucracy, and the end result is quite an unmanageable scenario. Unfortunately, more superintendents seem to be leaving the profession. Whether it is because of the demands superintendents face, the quality of preparation programs or a combination of both, the trend is a growing concern. Many superintendents are unprepared to deal with what they may encounter in running a school district. Yet the office is not all doom and gloom. Offering opportunities that are unavailable in many other careers, the superintendency is a position in which you will be taken seriously by others. And it is a profession in which one person, through skilled leadership, can make a difference by getting everyone to pull together and create a better environment for students. Surveys actually have shown that most superintendents would become superintendents again if they had the chance.

This book focuses on the changing role of the superintendent who now must lead with new skills in a time when the landscape of communities is shifting necessitating the mobilization of people through advocacy and activism alongside new partnerships with businesses, local governmental agencies, and community organizations. To lead districts, superintendents must ask new questions about current school structures while navigating changes in local, state, and federal education policies to ensure practices are aligned to meet the needs of all children. Key questions throughout the book help leaders create coherence in a system of change while leading the learning for members in the district and developing effective governance structures to empower leaders in making strategic decisions. Superintendents must focus efforts on leading systems to think through the world of information and digital access, so students can learn for tomorrow and to leverage social media to brand and support system-wide transformations. The frenetic work, role, and responsibilities of the superintendent requires personal and professional balance to be effective in leading districts and communities.

Growing discontent with the performance of educational institutions is common in the USA today and little is being done to address the real problem - that of the need to reform and restructure the entire educational system. A key issue in this reform is the training and development of leaders in educational administration; as experienced "leaders" retire, so new professionals are called to assume the mantle of the "old hands" and vital new opportunities exist for those willing to take up the challenge.; This vitally practical text is about the selection, preparation and professional development of aspiring school leaders over the course of their careers, concentrating on ways to increase their overall effectiveness - particularly in changing times. It looks at changes that have been made and considers what can be adapted from existing systems in order to make radical improvements for those in leadership positions.; It is intended for use by postgraduate students in education, teacher trainings, heads of education faculties and teachers in leadership positions, school board members and aspirant superintendents.

This new edition offers practical advice on how to survive on the job, bargain like a pro, engage with the public, work with school boards, and more.

"The goals and challenges for district leaders are constantly changing. Leadership and governance are only parts of the puzzle when other elements such as the NCLB legislation, budgets, standards and assessment, changing demographics, and public engagement are brought into the picture. Today's superintendent needs an effective tool to help steer the school district to success. Drawing on the experiences of nearly 200 superintendents over the past ten years, The Superintendent's Fieldbook offers guidance that can be referenced again and again. Written for current and future superintendents, principals, school board members and teachers, this valuable guide is divided into nine sections--each offering ideas to implement, practical lessons, exercises, and questions for reflective practice. The authors identify seven key "commonplaces" of the successful modern superintendent including: Leading within a governance structure; Understanding and addressing standards and assessment; Considering race, class, and the achievement gap; Developing your schools' principals from building managers to leaders of learning; Exploring collaborations with agencies of government and organizational allies; Engaging your community to construct a shared vision of the future. Vignettes describing real events and situations will help you connect lessons learned to your own district experiences, and help you and your district thrive in the rapidly changing world of education." -- Publisher.