Superintendents Discuss Leadership in Troubled Times

The latest Askwith Education Forum brought public school leaders front and center to advocate for bold leadership and the ambition to meet the moment.

The event, "Redefining Education Leadership for Turbulent Times," featured a panel discussion of education leaders, including three former school district superintendents, as they weighed the challenges that lay ahead for public education leaders amid a divisive political and social landscape.

Senior Lecturer Jennifer Cheatham hosted the discussion, noting that in recent years disruptive events like the COVID-19 pandemic and partisan politics have impacted district leaders in unique ways.

“Public education leadership has always been challenging. We are setting out to do something that is extraordinarily ambitious: to provide a high-quality education to every child in America, no matter how they are situated in relation to opportunity,” said Cheatham. “But in the last decade, the challenges inherent to our work have been amplified and intensified.”

As Cheatham noted, leadership stability is necessary to effect positive change, which is why a recent uptick in turnover across districts nationwide is particularly worrying. But, again and again, those on stage signaled optimism that well-prepared and supported leaders can rise to meet the moment as not just a challenge, but an opportunity.

“Some might say that these are especially turbulent times. But at HGSE, we view the challenges of this period as an opportunity to reimagine what leadership in education could and should be,” said Interim Dean Nonie Lesaux in her introduction. “Turbulent or not, schools and communities continue to look to civic leaders to charge a course that advances learning and well-being with equity and resilience at the heart of their work.”

The evening’s panel discussion featured Carl Cohn, project co-chair of the Collaborative on Political Leadership in the Superintendency (CPLS); Kristine Gilmore, associate executive director, Leadership Network, AASA, The School Superintendents Association; Robert Runcie, CEO of Chiefs for Change; Caitlin Sullivan, co-founder and executive director of Leading Now; and Ross Wiener, vice president of the Aspen Institute and executive director of Education and Society Program.

During the wide-ranging conversation panelist reflected on their own time in education leadership, as well as the skills superintendents need to develop in order to succeed. Handling controversy, outlining goals, and building support networks frequently featured in the conversation and in questions from the audience in Askwith Hall. Many speakers noted the tone of disagreements and dialogue between educators and the public has shifted in recent years.

“A piece that I think is becoming more and more complicated is people’s voice. When I started people disagreed, but now people disagree in a much more disrespectful way than they ever disagreed,” said Gilmore. “But I still believe schools are the common threads of our communities. They’re the place where people that are different come together and find commonality.”

Gilmore noted an example of a viral controversy she dealt with in her school district that, while false, required an official response and disrupted school learning environments. It was a useful example in how modern leadership must meet moments that didn’t exist in an age before social media and the Internet.

“It is so easy to react to the five parents on a Facebook group or the 12 people who show up at the board meeting and lose sight of the denominator,” said Sullivan, describing how they advise superintendents to “respond proportionately” to controversy. “Usually the loudest voices in the room get quieter when they’re in smaller spaces. So how do you actually bring them into a listening mode?”

The panel discussed politics-fueled controversies and how to handle local issues becoming national news stories, but the educators also stressed the willingness to make bold changes is the mark of an effective district leader.

“I think you have to think real big and bold and not focus so much on incremental change,” said Runcie, noting the difficulties of taking risks in public education spaces. “If we’re going to change these systems and have an impact, you’re going to have to think big and bold and really push hard.”

“I think our country is starving for moral leadership,” said Wiener. “In some ways one of the most important roles of the superintendent is actually being a champion for what children and communities need.”

Wiener argued a “thriving public education sector” is necessary in a thriving country, and leaders are necessary to make that happen. It was a common refrain from the assembled educators on Thursday, even in the face of an uncertain path ahead for public education in the years to come.

“I would argue this is an incredible time for the right kind of leadership to step up, especially at the local level,” said Cohn. “We’re going to need absolutely the best kinds of leaders to be out there engaged, moving things forward. If we can’t guarantee a safe space for all kids, we shouldn’t be in this business.”