SRN LEADS/Stanford University: School Redesign Network — Leadership, Equity & Accountability in Districts & Schools

LEADS past events

LEADS Superintendents/Liaisons Leadership Session
January 17-18, 2008, Miami-Dade County School District

Public Access
• Agenda
• "Change is Constant" — A powerful slide show developed by Knox County
• Synopsis
• Rudy Crew's PowerPoint
• Newsletter recap (pdf file)
• Selected clips from Rudy Crew's presentation
• Photos (coming soon)

Network Members Only

• Participant Roster

 

Synopsis: Miami-Dade Leadership Session

On January 17-18, 2008, we held a dynamic leadership session for LEADS superintendents and liaisons from 8 of the 11 LEADS districts. The session focused on the superintendents’ role in leading change and developing leaders in their districts; sustaining leadership development; and integrating LEADS Network assistance.

The one-and-a-half day session, held in Miami, was co-hosted by Miami-Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS) and SRN LEADS. The session began with dinner hosted by MDCPS at a South Beach restaurant with fantastic views of the water. MDCPS administrators sat with participants to talk about the district, preparing us for the second day.

Friday began with a panel and interactive discussion on issues and challenges in school and district leadership development, facilitated by Ash Vasudeva, and featuring panelists Richard Middleton, Superintendent, North East ISD, Sam Molinaro, Deputy Superintendent, Mapleton Public Schools, and Donna Wright, Assistant Superintendent, Knox County Public Schools.

The panel was followed by a presentation/conversation with MDCPS Superintendent Rudy Crew on “Leading Change and Developing Leaders in Complex Organizations.” Dr. Crew shared his insights over the years as a superintendent, and stories from his recent book, Only Connect, which was distributed to all participants. Following, Bill Andrekopoulos, Superintendent, Milwaukee Public Schools, reflected on the presentation.

In the afternoon session, Kriner Cash of MDCPS provided an overview of models being used in Miami-Dade for assessing district and school leadership in direct correlation with the district’s goals. Dr. Crew finished up the afternoon with a synthesis and his final thoughts on leadership.

Many thanks to Dr. Crew, Kamela Patton, Ava Byrne, and to all the MDCPS administrators for their planning, presence, and hosting this Leadership Session. Miami’s January warmth was not just at South Beach — it was radiated throughout the session by our Miami-Dade hosts.

"LEADS focuses on a critical arena in school reform, and it is founded on operating principles that promote high quality practice and effective outcomes. First, all arrows point to instruction. The implicit, sometimes explicit theory guiding the work is that districts are there to support effective teaching, and every practice and policy needs to be assessed in that light. Second, it emphasizes the importance of evidence - decisions informed by careful analyses of information - which is so critical and all too rare at both district and school levels. Finally, LEADS stresses the importance of documenting knowledge that can be shared among participants and beyond. We spend too much time re-inventing the wheel in education. Learning about best practices is just as important at the district level as it is at the classroom level, and LEADS participants contribute to as well as benefit from that knowledge base."

— Deborah Stipek, Dean, Stanford University School of Education