Moving Forward: 8 Guideposts for Strategic District Leadership

<p>Dr. Gerald Hill engages in a rich conversation with Bob Maxfield and Suzanne Klein, reflecting on his district leadership experiences, guiding principles and vision for re-imagining teaching and learning. Drawing upon a wealth of experience as an educational leader and insight as a forward thinker, Dr. Hill shares his perspective and advice for current district leaders offering eight essential guideposts:</p><p><strong>1</strong>.<strong>School Finance</strong></p><p>“Try to be as transparent as possible, so everybody knows what we have, where it is and how we utilize the resources that we have. One of the things I’m most proud of is that we have corrected the district’s financial situation going from less than a 1% fund balance when I started, to about a 19% fund balance this year…It is so critical to have the finances right, because the resources enable us to set goals and priorities.” </p><p><strong>2</strong>. <strong>School</strong> <strong>Board Relations </strong></p><p>“Superintendents need to have a really good working relationship with their boards of education and that's a lot easier said than done. As superintendent, share your vision with your board and bring them along, developing a set of operating principles. Have the board make the same commitment to work toward the goals. If board members change, you have a new dynamic; but  that communication is a constant.” </p><p><strong>3. Staff Relations</strong></p><p>“If I am leaving any kind of  legacy here, it's that everybody has a seat at the table. All voices are heard and all opinions and perspectives are respected. The teacher leaders, the principals, the superintendent, the school board; we're in this together…As a team we will make it work or not work.  Once we start splintering then we're already losing; we're losing that edge to be creative and innovative on behalf of the students that we serve.  We can have conversations around the difficult issues but it’s student-centered and student-based.”</p><p><strong>4. Organized Abandonment  </stron