My Educational Leadership Philosophy

Every conversation in, and regarding, schools must begin and end with the best interests of the students in mind. If administrators, teachers, parents, and politicians can adhere to this, regardless of individual philosophies, the outcomes for students can only be positive.

Educational leaders must be responsible for the success of all the constituents of the school. Leaders must be responsive to the needs of the individual and must still be able to keep moving the school forward in the context of the school mission. This is a difficult balance to achieve and it is a challenge to be the supervisor, to be the one with the “superior vision”. This is the vital role the educational leader plays in the school setting.

Schools need to be the place where the individual student remains the center of the learning process. Schools should be the place where everyone is encouraged to use their gifts to their greatest potential, communities where everyone works towards a common goal of success for everyone, places where everyone comes to learn and share and take chances and know that they can do so in a safe environment.

The skills that an individual needs to be successful in administration and those for success as a teacher are not so different. I believe that first and foremost we are all educators and facilitators. Everyone involved in the development of young people must always keep in mind that they are there for the sake of the child.

Educators must be knowledgeable of what is appropriate for young people at the various stages in their lives. Too many times, people who are not successful in education are those who insist on making the child come to where they expect the child to be. Instead, we must be able to reach the child where they are and find the way to bring them to where they need to be.

It is important for educators to have passion for their calling, as they are role models for the children. They must show enthusiasm, motivation, a genuine love for what they are doing. It is important to maintain this passion and for those around to feel it and want to share in it.

Educators must be good communicators. Communication must be constant, coherent and encompassing. It is important for all members of the community to know what is going on all the time. Newsletters, phone calls, memos, and so on. Everyday, parents entrust schools with the lives of their most cherished family members and it is their right to know what is happening at the school. Administrators and teachers must constantly communicate with each other to display a strong, united team atmosphere to the community.

Educators must be positive and approachable at all times. We are there for the sake of the students and must be able to look at life with a sense of humor. It is important that the students can feel comfortable talking to the adults around them. It is important that staff members feel comfortable relating to their peers. An atmosphere of trust is developed when everyone feels “part of the team”.

Knowledge, passion, organization, forethought, communication, trustworthiness, and enthusiasm are skills that all educators must possess, beyond the skills of being able to teach, instruct, facilitate learning, advise, coach, mediate, encourage and motivate. All educators must know how to develop curriculum, manage their classrooms, develop the culture of the community in which they work, and test and evaluate effectively.

The administrator must possess all these skills in abundance. However, the administrator must demand excellence from himself/herself and from all those around them. Often, the most time-consuming job of the administrator is educating and motivating the teachers. The leaders of a school are the reflection of the spirit, the excellence, the success of the school. Everyone looks to the administrator for the measure of the school.

The administrator balances between being friendly and approachable and a role model for all, to being the ‘decider' of success and failure.

An effective administrator must be equally caring and demanding. An effective leader must develop the desire in others to excel and must be able to reprimand or even fire those who are unable or unwilling to do the job.

An effective leader also recognizes talents in others and knows how to utilize those talents to make the school a better place for the students. A good administrator knows how to “do it all”, but a great administrator knows how to find others who can do it better and encourage them to be excellent.

One of the greatest challenges in administration is to manage the financial aspects of the institution. It is necessary to be aware of where every dollar is spent and to actively attend to developing a strong capital fund. There is a balance to be reached between fund raising and fund spending. It is important, and difficult, to keep a business approach in a non-business atmosphere. Being constantly vigilant and professional, creating a sound balanced budget, planning for worst case scenarios, and working towards developing a strong development fund will allow an administrator to create a harmony between what is desired by the school community and what is necessary to the effective financial functioning of the school. This will ensure that the students are constantly receiving the quality resources they need for a strong educational development.

Finally, a truly effective administrator has a clear vision of the direction the school must take in order to find excellence and must be able to clearly articulate that vision to others. An effective leader is able to stir the passions of those involved to want to be part of that vision.

Educators have a challenging job. Many aspects of the challenge are similar and many skills are necessary to be successful as either a teacher or an administrator. An effective administrator is a teacher, and more.

In essence, the administrator is responsible for developing and maintaining an atmosphere that encourages everyone to do their best at all times. Parents and students must be happy and feel that they are truly receiving a quality education, and teachers must be motivated and encouraged that they are providing this quality.