School boards and superintendents should work in concert

When it comes to discussing, implementing, and communicating potentially controversial decisions, the superintendent does play a featured role — but this isn’t a solo recital.

In his December 2020 Kappan column, Joshua P. Starr pointed out that an important role of a district superintendent is to protect school leaders and district staff from the “political maelstrom that tends to swirl around change efforts.” To illustrate, Starr recalls the character of Cici from The Godfather Part II being asked by a senator if he’s a “‘buffer’ — meaning someone who stands between the head of the family and the action on the ground.”

Few movies match the intensity of The Godfather, and, for educators, few eras in recent U.S. history have been as intense as the COVID-19 crisis. Over the past 18 months, superintendents have had to make tough decisions they could not have previously imagined, and they will no doubt continue to face politically challenging dilemmas in the months ahead, not only as the pandemic lingers but also as district leaders are pulled in every direction on several hot-button issues, including, but not limited to, policies and practices related to discussing race and racism in school and rights of transgender and nonbinary student athletes. But we disagree with Starr on one important point: It shouldn’t be the job of the superintendent alone to absorb political blowback, acting as a buffer to protect teachers, staff, and administrators from controversies that could disrupt their work. That job should fall to the entire district leadership team, including the school board.

During the most intense scenes in The Godfather series, the musical score enhances the action on the screen. In a sense, the orchestra buffers the viewers’ experience, serving to amplify, soften, and otherwise mediate their emotional response to dramatic events. In much the same way, district leaders and school board members can and should work in concert. When it comes to discussing, implementing, and communicating potentially controversial decisions, the superintendent does play a featured role — but this isn’t a solo recital. Board members must also be ready with their instruments and willing to play their part, working collectively to soothe anxieties among local community members, heighten their awareness of urgent priorities, and rally their support behind the difficult decisions that must be made.

Challenges and opportunities

Collaboration between superintendents and school boards can be awfully tricky. For one thing, because the school board has the power to hire, evaluate, and fire them, superintendents have good reason to tread cautiously and steer clear of potential conflicts with the board. If they antagonize board members in any way, stir up controversies, or make unpopular decisions, they know that their performance ratings — and their job security — may suffer.

Complicating the relationship still further, while superintendents tend to have experience in school systems and extensive training in educational leadership, many board members are laypeople, with a limited understanding of the intricate details about the day-to-day functioning of school districts. Moreover, many of them have full-time jobs, which limits the amount of time and attention they can devote to this work. Thus, superintendents may doubt board members’ ability to grasp the nuances of local policies and practices, and they may be reluctant to ask for their help in communicating with the public, out of fear that they’ll botch the message. As a result, superintendents often end up hoarding information and responsibilities, missing important chances to cultivate allies.

If superintendents and board members are to work together more effectively, then they will have to learn to trust each other. However, because the superintendent serves at the pleasure of the board, and because their job is so precarious, it’s not realistic to expect them to take the first step, inviting board members to join them in the orchestra. Rather, school board members themselves will have to take the lead, creating the conditions that allow for successful collaboration.

Understanding the issues

First, board members must educate themselves deeply about the challenges facing their schools. When the superintendent recommends an improvement plan — a way to overhaul the curriculum, for example, or to build a new school-based health clinic, or to change the high school start time — it’s not enough for board members to understand the plan itself; they must also understand why the superintendent has recommended this plan and not others. Unless they fully grasp the problem at hand and the pros and cons of each available solution, board members cannot expect the superintendent to treat them as partners — no more than a renowned violinist would want to play with orchestra members who’ve neglected to practice their scales or even tune their instruments.

Moreover, unless they understand the superintendent’s reasoning, board members can’t perform their public-facing mission either. They have to know the issues deeply in order to share accurate information with their constituents, explain difficult decisions, and bring valuable input back to the next board meeting, ensuring that a diverse range of community members, especially the most vulnerable students and families, have had opportunities to be heard and share their concerns.

Centering students

While most school board members are publicly elected officials, they must balance the interests of the voters who elect them with their responsibility to ensure that all children in their community receive equitable educational services and supports. As such, when talking about educational decisions with community members, school board members must place students at the center of the conversation and redirect community members when that focus gets blurry.

Take, for example, Halifax County (VA) Public School’s decision to return students to school during the COVID-19 crisis. The superintendent and school board members debated this decision at length, attempting to balance the need to protect student health and to provide the best possible learning environment. District leaders — including the school board — agreed that ensuring safety was the No. 1 priority and that successful learning outcomes were more likely in a safe environment.

As the COVID-19 pandemic progressed, the school board and superintendent employed a matrix that was aligned to recommendations and data from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention and the Virginia Department of Health and used data tailored to Halifax County to focus their decision making for returning students to school. By allowing health experts and data, rather than political rhetoric, to drive their decisions, the board and superintendent kept students at the center of the conversation, constantly asking: What is most safe for students, their families, and their teachers?

Developing common language and communication

Because mixed messages often derail relationships among district leaders and community members, board members must take great care that the information they share with their constituents is aligned with communications from district administrators. In the fall of 2020, for example, when the leaders of Van Wert City Schools in Ohio were deciding how to design and implement COVID-19 safety measures, they developed a shared Google document to coordinate their communications. Every time the superintendent, a principal, or a school board member was presented with a question from the public, they entered it into the shared document, along with their initial response. Together, leaders reviewed their statements, flagged any contradictions or disagreements that arose, and decided on shared language and common ways of explaining the district’s plan. In essence, they made a concerted effort to play from the same sheet of music, providing their community with clear, precise, and trustworthy information about the schools’ response to the pandemic.

Protecting the superintendent

In his column, Starr describes how district superintendents often serve as a buffer between critics of the schools and the people who work there, protecting teachers and staff from distractions and abuse. Board members have a similar role to play, acting as a mediator between the superintendent and the community.

School boards have a responsibility not just to recruit and hire a capable superintendent but also to make sure they can devote their energies to crafting and executing their strategic plans, rather than spending their time responding to a slew of complaints from members of the community. By absorbing that criticism, board members show their respect for the superintendent’s expertise, give them the space and time they need to do their job effectively, and demonstrate that they see themselves as true partners in governing the district. At the same time, they can also protect the community by absorbing any harsh or disappointing news that comes out of the superintendent’s office, figuring out how to communicate it to the public in a clear and productive way, explaining the rationale behind the superintendent’s actions, and creating a healthy feedback loop between their constituents and the district office.

Reference

Starr, J.P. (2020). Superintendents must be willing to take the heat. Phi Delta Kappan, 102 (4), 60-61.