Bill Clow is director of community outreach for Harvard CUSD 50 and Sherry Douglas is board/administrative coordinator for Schaumburg CCSD 54.
It is widely said that one of the most important jobs of a school board is the hiring of a superintendent. But what happens after the decision is made and a new superintendent is hired?
Experience has shown that school board members play an important role in maximizing the opportunity for a new superintendent to be successful. A forward-thinking board has a number of potential steps it can take to provide for that strong, successful start. Fostering confidence in the superintendent fosters confidence in the school district, so this should be important to the school board!
Building trust
The success of a new superintendent depends largely on how successful that individual is in building trust relationships with the board, staff, parents and the community. The board members can help generate a feeling of trust by sending public signals that they are supportive of the new leader and his or her agenda. While building trust with constituents is a superintendent's responsibility, a school board can and should do what they can to support this.
Many decisions go into hiring a new superintendent, including the candidate selection, details of the offer, setting of initial priorities and goals, and more. It would be naïve to assume that a board will always reach all of these decisions unanimously. During the hiring process, it is appropriate for board members to share and debate these differences of opinions. However, once the board has voted, it is very important that the board present a united front, especially to the media. In truth, this is true of all board decisions, but it is vitally important with the seating of a new school district leader. This is an excellent way for a school board to show trust.
Who is this new leader?
A school district superintendent must work with a wide range of publics, including district staff, students, parents and community leaders. It is important that the school board allow their new leader the time and opportunities to tour throughout the district to visit and speak with the entire range of publics.
This may require patience on the part of board members, who are anxious for their new hire to start making changes and improvements discussed during the hiring process. It is important that board members not let this desire for quick results sabotage the new superintendent as he or she is reaching out to staff and the community.
This step allows the new superintendent to hear what issues are on the minds of important constituents. These early meetings can also be used to lay the groundwork for some of the changes and ideas that may be presented in the near future.
Establish priorities, then get out of the way!
Part of any effective hiring is to establish the goals and priorities of the position for the new employee. This is no different when a school board hires a superintendent. It is important, however, for school boards to stay focused on the goals and priorities and not on the processes and methodologies.
Presumably, the board has hired someone in whom they have confidence. It is important for the development of a good board/superintendent relationship that the board expresses that confidence by not micro-managing the new leader and by allowing their new administrator to work through problems and rough spots.
The board needs to let staff, parents and the public see the superintendent as the leader of the school district by not stepping in too quickly to "fix" problems.
When a new superintendent arrives in a school district, typically more changes than the name on the door. Good superintendents bring experiences and ideals that shape the way they operate and the way they feel a successful district should operate.
Hopefully, if the superintendent is allowed time early on to meet with staff, parents and the community, those ideas will be shaped by the realities of the district, and the perceptions and values of the staff and community.
Regardless, a board should anticipate that a new superintendent would most likely have his or her own way of doing things. Common processes and procedures may change. The board should anticipate this and support it.
Help is available
School boards have several directions they can turn for help in making the transition to a new superintendent as successful as possible. First, the superintendent can and should be a source of assistance. He or she has as much or more interest in making the transition as successful as possible. In addition, if the candidate is an experienced superintendent, chances are he or she has navigated a few transitions in the past and can apply lessons learned to your current situation.
Also, if your district has the advantage of having a communications/public relations person on staff, it can be very beneficial to use this resource during this important transition. PR people are experts at crafting and managing messages, establishing and nurturing relationships, and evaluating and anticipating the responses to different actions and messages. A school board can streamline the transition phase and improve its effectiveness by involving the district's PR/communications person early in the process, perhaps even prior to the final hiring of a candidate.
School boards also have resources outside the district to which they can turn for assistance. Professional development opportunities through organizations such as the Illinois Association of School Boards and the National School Boards Association offer training and support, as well as valuable networking opportunities.
A change in leadership brings opportunities for a district to accomplish new and exciting things for students. A school board that is publicly unified in its support of a new superintendent and knows its role is to establish policy and goals and evaluate progress towards those goals is a board that will set the stage for a new superintendent to be successful.