As a result of a resignation of the previous Hopkins Public Schools Superintendent, I was named Interim Superintendent in April 2006. The school district fell into Statutory Operating Debt and had serious fiscal issues that needed to be resolved. The School Board directed me to implement the “Three R’s.” In this interim year, they wanted me to focus the organization's work on restoring fiscal health, renewing community trust, and refocusing the district. Leadership has focused on developing an educational program that can be sustained by the revenue the district receives from the state. This has required an expenditure reduction of $4.25 million dollars.

This work has been challenging, as we are considering closing an elementary school and redefining the junior and senior high programs. At the same time, it is exciting to identify those points in our conversation where opportunities are created with which to build hope, direction, and a future for Hopkins children. Restoring fiscal health must be accompanied by a vision for the educational future of the community, not only a focus on fiscal management. I have the privilege this fall to begin the development of a new strategic plan, which will identify the marks of excellence of the Hopkins School District.

As Hopkins begins to emerge from financial difficulties and make decisions toward a healthy budget, it is becoming exciting to examine our educational program and identify those skills that children will need to be contributing members of the 21st century. Discussions about eliminating the achievement gap, expanding world language, developing Hopkins World Class Standards, integrating technology, and further expanding the skills and talents within the teaching staff have been ideas that will project Hopkins into a position where education is relevant, personally challenging, and dynamic.

2. How have your past experiences as assistant principal, curriculum assistant superintendent and science education lecturer at the University of Minnesota prepared you for your role as Hopkins superintendent?

My past experiences as a school administrator have been a priceless preparation for my current work. The most important thing I learned in my previous positions is the importance of developing and nurturing relationships with all constituents that make up a school district. There is no one relationship that is more important than the other; I think of relationships as key tools for the work of an educational leader. For example, one relationship with a community member involves monthly discussions on how to improve the learning environment of children. This gentleman is a member of a private college council and is a wonderful resource for building relationships with educational institutions that receive Hopkins students. In another relationship, there is the opportunity to understand the broader community in which the Hopkins School District finds itself. I meet occasionally with a senior member of the city of Hopkins. She is very knowledgeable about city politics and the attitudes that citizens hold. As only 18 percent of the District’s residents have children in our schools, it is important to maintain these relationships to garner support for the work of the District.

My work as a science education lecturer at the University of Minnesota has proven to be very useful in my work. Given the opportunity to train teachers and to work with adult students gave me an understanding of the skills and knowledge needed in working with the teachers that we place in classrooms. In addition, the commitment and practice of collaboration and cooperation with the talented faculty in curriculum and instruction prepared me to lead educators using collaboration and cooperation. I learned that it is better to develop a collaborative spirit than a leadership style that is based on authority.

As a director of teaching and learning, I had the opportunity to manage curriculum, instruction, and assessment. These elements are the heart and soul of a learning organization. The delivery of skills and content through a caring teacher is central to the work of Hopkins Public Schools. I learned that supporting the teaching staff in the understanding of the relationship between the curriculum, instruction, and assessment is important to student achievement. In addition, engaging teachers in this three way relationship is very motivating for teachers in their daily work.

I have a belief that every district administrator should be in the role of a site administrator. Understanding the day-to-day operations of a site is key to understanding the dynamics of providing quality education to any school community. The challenges faced by a teaching and administrative staff reflect the challenges currently in our society. Having the experience of an associate principal also builds empathy and an understanding in working with site leaders that hold the responsibility of implementing initiatives and programs the community, board, and other constituents see as valuable to student learning and achievement.

3. What are your core beliefs about successful educational leadership?

My core beliefs that guide my work are…

• All people can learn.
• Learning is constant, it never ends, and new experiences motivate more learning.
• Every person is unique and has unlimited intrinsic value.
• The perspectives of many are more important than the authority of one.
• Families are the first and most important teacher in a child’s life.
• Every person has the responsibility to contribute to their community and society.
• Collaboration and cooperation are key in developing educational programs for children.
• Nurturing many relationships is important in order to invite and include the many voices, beliefs, and contributors that provide education to a community.
• Empowering leadership is critical to the success and harmony of a complex school system.

4. How have you chosen to lead according to those core beliefs?

I have chosen to lead by developing educators to understand that all people learn and that every individual has a unique and unlimited intrinsic value. My leadership can be characterized as being cooperative and collaborative. Although an educational administrator is a decision maker, the decisions that I am responsible for making are inclusive of the best thinking available. A school district community is made up of multiple perspectives and beliefs. It is imperative that a school leader seeks out and listens to these multiple perspectives in his or her deliberations and interactions.

I also set expectations for others that our job is to teach our constituents what it takes to ensure a child learns and achieves. I look for opportunities for my constituents to discuss and debate the curriculum, instruction, assessment, and services the school district offers. It is through these conversations that individuals learn to establish relationships with school personnel and leaders, and set a new direction for the educational program a school district provides. Through this, it is important that school leaders engage the public and parents to communicate how the programs provided will prepare children to be contributors and work productively within an ever-changing global society.

5. How do you see the educational landscape changing in the next five years? What challenges do you see ahead for educational administrators?

One of the biggest challenges I see in education is the presence of the educational achievement gap. Leaders from the government, school districts, parents, and the business community must come together to identify the variables that influence this achievement gap. Although school measures indicate the presence of the gap, there are many contributors to this gap that go beyond schooling. Race, housing, and parent communication are but a few of the issues that need to be managed to successfully ameliorate the gap.

Another challenge facing education is the rapidly changing face of technology and the skills a student will need to be successful in a highly technical society. Curriculum will need to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful 13 years after beginning their journey as a student. The knowledge and skills being taught today to our elementary students will more than likely be irrelevant for the student upon graduation from a public school. Leaders will need to reckon with the relevance of curriculum in the ever-changing dynamics of society.

Another challenge is the slow integration of research-based instructional strategies. Educational research is successful at identifying and measuring the effectiveness of a given strategy within a given population of students. There needs to be a better system for disseminating findings from educational research into modern classrooms. Schools and colleges of education need to collaborate and build partnerships in order to develop systems that create a dialogue with which to address the challenges of today’s educators, and promote the use of the most effective teaching strategies and curriculum to improve learning and student achievement.