Year #3…

This month marks the start of my third year as either the interim or permanent Superintendent for Saline Area Schools.  As I reflect on the district and my role in leading it, I see the need for planning.

Most of you probably agree – teachers imparting information to students in a one-way direction – is outmoded.  I also think that we as school administrators need to make the same kind of adjustments.  As classrooms move from content to knowledge, education leadership must also shift. We must cross the road from management to leadership.

As leaders we must ask questions.  I tend to preach about the ever increasingly complex society – in doing so I need to recognize the increasing complexities of my own role.  My job is to understand the interests of every constituent group in the system and to ensure that my team has taken these interests into consideration before moving ahead.

To be successful in 2020 students will need to navigate a complex world, appreciate different cultures, and make sense of endless sources of information.  To have a system that accomplishes this – we need a plan.

Over the next few weeks you will begin to hear more about a strategic planning process that Saline Area Schools will be initiated in December, 2009.  It is my hope to use this process to add clarity to where we are heading.