Leadership Matters: Leadership Really, Really Matters!

Leadership is one of the most critical components of every organization and plays a crucial role in the success of the organization.  In all walks of life, we know that leadership matters.  The military has always known how important leadership is to success and been purposeful/intentional in training leadership, as well as having a structure to sustaining leadership when a leader goes down.  Leaderless armies would be a massacre and tragedy waiting to happen.  Businesses also know how important leadership is and are purposeful in making sure they have leadership that can lead the organization to great performance and often financial gains.  Churches also have leadership structures and know that the leader of the church sets the vision and expectations for everyone in the church.  What’s the first thing an NFL or NCAA team does when they have a losing season?....fire the head coach and replace them with someone they think can lead them to more wins and championships.  Everyone may not explicitly say it, but we all know that leadership definitely matters! 

 

I’ve always felt that any organization’s success is directly tied to the people in the organization, not the programs or material things.  Two positions in a school are the most critical for student academic success:  the principal and the teacher.  Great teachers and great leadership are the two most important parts to any school being successful.  The foundation of effective and successful turnaround is built on the foundation of effective leadership, hiring or building better leaders in schools and districts.  In the majority of school turnaround models originally utilized, replacing the principal and/or replacing the staff or a percentage of the staff were mandated to turn around a failing school.  There were also models like restart or closure, which still shifted people or shifted students to staff that was more effective.  Turn around models from NCLB, RttT, and the CARES Act have all been targeted at improving instructional leadership capacities within schools.  In building great leadership, we also have to remember that great leaders also help others to grow and improve their leadership capacities so that an organization’s improvement is sustained and continuous.  The investment is in people and there is more than enough science and research that shows how to build instructional leaders, but the key is in doing and putting that knowledge to work and in practice.  

 

Many principals and superintendents inherit schools or districts that are not only underperforming but also have a myriad of issues and concerns from students, teachers, parents, and the community. They are pulled in many directions every day. The jobs of superintendents and principals can be very fragmented and it is easy to put aside the most important work of school or district improvement. Leaders must be intentional about what they focus on. What the leader focuses on is exactly what the people in the school and district will focus on.  Everyone in an organization knows what the leader is focused on by where they spend their time. When leadership makes learning and building instructional capacity a priority, everyone in the organization focuses on this and this is the focus of the school.   In the current state of education, with shortages of great teachers and leaders, it’s more important than ever for leaders and organizations to build capacity in their people.  This is especially true for building instructional capacity in both teaching and leadership.  Real school improvement does not happen one teacher at a time. Real school improvement requires a collective, cohesive effort. This collective effort is led by a leader that understands the role of the lead learner is to build the capacity of the staff on an ongoing basis. There is an urgency that exists and helps to accelerate the learning of everyone involved. The schools and district understand that accountability for learning and results is everyone’s job.  Everyone is responsible for every student’s learning.  

 

The two best ways to improve an organization are to hire better people or make the ones you have better.  Great leaders do both!  Leadership matters!: It Really, Really Matters!

Chasing Rainbows: Don't Give Up, Don't Ever Give Up!

This weekend, my wife and our kids traveled to the Great Smoky Mountains for our anniversary.  In visiting Pigeon Forge, there's a building in Dollywood that's named "Chasing Rainbows."   There's also an award given out annually (Chasing Rainbows Award) under the banner of the National Network of State Teachers of the Year (NNSTOY) to a teacher that has inspired children to chase their dreams.  The meaning behind the phrase is clear that you should chase your rainbow, follow your dreams, and that you can accomplish anything in life that you put your mind to and are willing to work/persevere for.   It reminds us of Jim Valvano's Espy Speech and "Don't Give Up, Don't Ever Give Up!"   It also resonated that Dolly chasing her rainbow had a profound impact on the entire community in that area of Tennessee and the Imagination Library has brought the gift of books and reading to kids worldwide.  

While walking through the exhibit and reflecting, the message hit a chord with me and the journey in education so far.  Getting accepted into an education program wasn't easy for me after a pretty rough academic start in college.  The dean of the College of Education at NC State told me that I was wasting my time trying to get into education and that I'd never make it to be able to be a certified teacher.  Talk about smashing someone's dream and telling them there's no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.  I realized that I didn't have the greatest start academically in college, but I always wanted to teach and coach in my hometown.  I wanted to see students and players have the same type of awesome experience that I was able to have in high school.  There was even something in me that wanted to lead a schools and a school district to have a positive impact on the lives of as many students and athletes as I could. Leading a school district is a dream that I've always had that would allow me to give back to so many that have helped me along the way and to have a significant impact on the lives of generations of children and an entire county or community.  It was at that point where the Dean of Education told me that I would never be able to make it into education, and return to do that in my hometown, that I was determined to chase my rainbow and have a career in education and educational leadership. I took tons of extra classes and alternative licensing to be able to be a certified teacher; however, a couple of years after completing certification I also completed the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards (national board certified teacher).  I also went on to get a master degree, educational specialist degree and doctorate degree in Educational Leadership.  I was able to be a principal at all levels in K-12 education and in two states.  I fulfilled another goal of working for the NC Department of Public Instruction to help transform low-performing schools so that ALL children can have the right to a great education so that they'll be able to chase their dreams.  I'm still chasing my rainbow and enjoying the ride along the way.  It's been a long journey that has led me through tons of detours that have helped to prepare me for the next step in the journey.  I've met so many people that have been influential in my career and have helped me to grow professionally.  This journey has taken me to places and positions I would've never imagined, but I know it's all part of the path that the Lord is leading me on to prepare me to do His work in education!

I had rainbows I chased as an athlete and a coach.  I always wanted to play college football and win weightlifting competitions.  Somehow I was able to be a member of the Wolfpack football team and go to a bowl game in college.  Through dedication and hard work, I was able to win individual State Championships in both powerlifting and olympic weightlifting.  I was able to coach several kids that won state championships in weightlifting, coach teams that won state championships in weightlifting, and even coach kids in college that competed at the Collegiate Nationals in Reno.  All of those championships started with a friend that encouraged me to get kids to a weight meet in Savannah, GA.  We had no money and little hope of winning, but we found a way to scrape up enough money to pay for gas, slept in the truck, and took food with us to eat.  There's true power in hope and not letting the word "can't" be part of the conversation.  I was blessed to coach football in my hometown for many years and see the program rise to tremendous success with many players going on to play college football.  Making it to the playoffs became the norm and playing at least into the 3rd and 4th rounds became the expectation year in and year out in trying to win a state championship.  The lessons learned as an athlete and as a coach have translated into school administration and leadership.  

I chased rainbows in my personal life too.  I always wanted to be married and have kids, family.  It took a long while for this dream to come to fruition.  I am blessed to have a wife and two kids.  Recently, I had a substantial injury that required surgery and will take many months to recover.  My wife was there through every part of it with me, from surgery to doctors appointments and physical therapy, even helping with the basic things like getting in the house and to the bathroom and getting dressed.  You find out how much people love you and care about you during tough times.  That means more to me than I could every put into words, but I will always love her and be indebted to her for standing by me during this time.  You are truly blessed in life if you have someone like that.  

We have a lot to be grateful for each day when we think about it.  There are many rainbows that we've already found in our lives and some that we we are still chasing.  Don't ever let someone destroy a child's dream, don't ever let someone destroy your dream!  If you want it, go get it.  Where there's a will, there's a way.  There are people along the way that will try to keep you from your dream and others that will be positive and encourage you to chase your dream.  God puts both of those types of people there for a reason.  I hope each of us in education is one of those people that inspire others to chase their dreams!  I'm still chasing mine professionally and will as long as the good Lord allows me to chase it!   This rainbow that I've been chasing in my professional life isn't about me, but about having a significant impact on the lives of others, making a positive difference and being an advocate for ALL children, and making the place where the Lord calls me to a little bit better for others!  Keep Chasing Your Rainbows and keep being a bright spot in the lives of others!