I can not believe we are on the last class! Reflecting on all we have learned, I realize it really has been a lot. Each competency has a focus and below I identified where I feel strength, need for growth and how I have grown as a leader.
Domain I Leadership of the Educational Community – In all honesty I feel this is my biggest strength. Competency one is about fairness and integrity. I have always made sure what we do, even in the most challenging situations is in the best interest of the children and the community we serve. Competency two is focuses on shared vision and over the years as a learner I have had to learn to open myself up and allow for others to participate and share to allow me lead even better. Competency three is where I feel the most comfortable. I am the biggest advocate for parental involvement, as I honestly believe it takes a village to raise a child and for children to be productive their parents must be productive and aware of all the possibilities available to their children. Competency four focuses on the superintendent looking at the bigger picture and conveying this to its constituents. This also comes with experience and time. Here I feel I have grown especially with this legislative session and having to explain these budget cuts and how it affects us at our campus. In looking at al of the competencies I find them all to be strengths and I feel confident that I will do well in these areas. Of course I have places to grow within each competency, but this would be the domain I feel most competent of and able to work with my district to benefit those I serve.
Domain II Instructional Leadership- Competency five focuses on accountability and relating this to instruction. This is another area I feel confident in, though I do feel after going through this program I am much more aware of how our district looks as a whole compared to just my school or level. I am focusing on looking at the bigger picture and seeing how the results my school contributes makes an impact on the whole. Competency six discusses motivation, organization and using resources effectively. I feel confident that I have improved in this area and can continue to grow in this area. Competency 7 focuses on staff development and evaluation. I am a firm believer in the need for staff development and growth for teachers to be able to highly impact students. Evaluation of these tools, their implementation and staff is also important and many times forgotten. Overall in this domain I feel competent and ready to lead.
Domain III Administrative Leadership- Competency 8 is about budget and finance. This would be the domain I have almost no experience with and the area I feel least comfortable. Though we learned so much about the responsibilities of the superintendent in this area, I still feel this is an area of weakness for me. As when one becomes a principal, it is only then that one usually becomes aware of how to work with the budget and then is when you learn the most, when you need to. I think that will be the same for me when I become a superintendent, I will have a lot to learn. Competency nine covers crisis response and physical plant, again another competency where I feel I must grow. I take for granted that the building is cared for and maintained. This summer with the drought and heat wave, I have had to learn about water pressure and how the AC unit/HVAC unit works and how they interact. I have also learned how much an HVAC unit costs and that this isn’t in our budget, but it is a need, so we are working together to decide how we will proceed with this need. Competency 10 really says teamwork and are we working with the team to make changes and decisions for the team – our district. Watching our new superintendent make this happen has been an eye opener for me. She has worked hard to involve the board at all levels, she has worked hard to keep them informed and keep her principals informed of all the hard decisions that are coming. I have learned a lot here and am working hard to channel this level of teamwork to my staff.
Overall this program has really enlightened me and educated me on the role of the superintendent. I have learned so much about all that a superintendent is charged with and feel that when the times comes, I will be ready for the challenge. Our cohort has really worked hard to keep each other informed, making good choices and we really have embodied teamwork. Though we have worked online, we really have made this work.
