Urban Charter School Leadership:What Is Required to Consistently

Achieve Excellence?

Perry WhiteNovember 6, 2012

Too many mistakes, too little time.

(Trust me)

Citizens Academy

• Founded in 1999• 406 students• 99% African American• 75% Single Parent• Median Household Income $20,000

Citizens Academy, 1999-2012

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Citizens Academy Ohio Cleveland

Solon

Rated Excellent with Distinction

National Blue Ribbon Award

Rated Academy

Emergency

What Turned This Around?

- Higher Expectations- Better Use of Time

- Better Decision Making

Exercise I: How Do You Spend

Your Time?

(worksheet)

School Leader Worksheet

• School Leader ActivityWhat Were the 2-3 Most Time Consuming Things You Did Each Day Last Week?

• Of the Above, Which Do You Think Were Good Uses of Your Time?

• Which Weren’t Good Use? • Not Good Use + Who Should Be Doing This?

Group Discussion: Right Use Of A School

Leader’s Time

(co-created, on board)

Best Uses of Leader’s Time

SetVision

Org Culture

Right Resources/Great

Staff

Goals and Strategy

Accountability Systems

InspirationalLeadership

Public Relations

Leadershipwith Board

Set Vision

• How Can I Successfully Lead Our Community to Fulfill Our Mission if I Can’t See What the Mission When Fulfilled Will Look Like?

• Envision What Success Will Look Like When the Organization’s Mission is Fulfilled?

• How Will I Describe The Vision to Cause Our Community to Embrace It?

Design Culture

• What are the Values, Standards, and Social Behaviors Our Organization Needs to Enhance Our Organization’s Ability to Fulfill its Mission?

• Values• Standards• Decision-making

Identify Values

• What Should be your Organization’s Most Important Values and Ideals and Why?

• Examples• We make decisions solely on doing what’s best for

children• We work with a sense of urgency• We come to work each day at our best• We take responsibility for our actions; No excuses• School’s explicit values / virtues

Select Standards

• At What Level Are We Expected to Perform?

• Lousy• Mediocre• Good• Excellent

Making the Right Decisions

• Professional Expertise or Intelligence of Group?

• Top Down or Bottom Up?

• Use of Intuition or Goals and Data to Measure Progress?

Devise Strategy

• What are our long-term goals to keep us on track as we

measure progress toward fulfilling our mission?

• What is our overall strategy to move from current outcomes to results that fulfill our mission?

Design How to Hold Everyone Accountable

• Given Mission, Vision, Goals, Strategy, Culture, and Resources….

• How Will You Know Where Your Organization is Succeeding and Failing?

• How Will You Know Where Your People Need to Change What They Do (or Who Is Doing It) to Achieve Org Goals?

Build Systems

Definition – A set of things working together as part of a mechanism or an interconnecting network

• Why Do We Need Systems to Achieve Excellence?

• What are Examples of Needed Systems?

Resources

• Talent

• Time

• Money

• Partnerships

Leadership

• Evoke Energy to Meet Specific Goals through Defined Roles and Practices

• What is your Role Here? • Inspire, Demonstrate Caring and Gratitude, and Lead by

Example

Public Relations

• What Does it Mean to be the Face of Your Organization?

• Why Is this Important?

• Who Is Your Public?

Provide Leadership with Your Board

• Where Does Your Board Need Your Leadership?

• Why is this Important?

Common To All

DecisionMaking

Making Very Good Decisions is

Hard & Crucial

6 Key Risksin Decision Making

– Thinking You’re Smarter Than You Are– Not Gaining Varied Perspectives– Embracing Competing Missions– Not Being Clear about Priority Goals– Avoiding Making Hard Calls– Not Making Decisions Based on the Right Data

How to Consistently Improve Your Decision Making as a Leader

Be Honest & Realistic

Examine What You Do & Don’t Know

Surround Yourself with People Smarter Than Yourself

Ask the HARD Questions

Create Decision Making Methods & Processes

Rigorously Assess & Manage Risks

Use Data & Face Facts

Use the Wisdom of the Group

Multiple Perspectives + Independently Expressed

- Egos = Group Smarter Than Its Smartest

Member Every Time

Let’s Get Lay of Land

Which Group Do You Want Your Students In?

Remember:Set High Expectations!

This won’t happen

overnight

But with Hard Work, Humility, Alignment, Great Leadership, and a

Great Team, You Can Make it Happen!

You can do this, too.

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 201240

50

60

70

80

90

100

110

120

Citizens Academy Ohio Cleveland

Solon

Rated Excellent with Distinction

Rated Academy

Emergency

Work with an Executive Coach

Evaluation Form

• Gentle Reminder

Continuous Learning Plan

Books

Leverage Leadership, Bambrick – Santoyo, Paul, John Wiley and Sons, San Francisco, 2012

Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done, Bossidy, Larry, Charan, Ram & Burke, Charles, Crown Business, N. Y. N. Y., 2002

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change, Covey, Stephen. Franklin Covey, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2001.

Integrity is a Growth Market, Kolp, Alan and Rea, Peter, Atomic Dog Press, 2006. Bratton, William, article, Tipping Point Leadership, in HBR’s The 10 Must Reads on Change Management, Kim, W. Cham, Mauburne, Renee, Harvard Business Review, Cambridge, Mass., 2011

CLP Continued

Web Resources

School Leaders Toolboxhttp://tntp.org/teacher-talent-toolbox(This terrific resource covers the waterfront on matters of talent in schools, including recruitment, hiring, evaluation, retaining, etc. It includes best practice policies, procedures, and forms.)

Marshall Memo: A Weekly Round-up of Important Ideas and Research in K-12 Education - subscribe at: http://www.marshallmemo.com/about.php (A great resource at a modest cost addressing many education topics, including leadership)

CLP ContinuedConsulting Resources

The Rock Group, school management and turnaround consultants offering an array of serviceshttp://www.therockgroup.us/ Perry White Consultinghttp://perrywhiteconsulting.com/ This presenter offers executive coaching and other services on-site and through remote communication. The link to the PowerPoint for this presentation is available in the resources section of the PWC website.http://perrywhiteconsulting.com/index.php/resources