As we are anticipating, it will soon be time for the Baltimore School Board to choose a new leader for our school system. The question is, will this leader be another one of the same mold as Copland or Cooper Boston or will this leader be a component of a larger form of school reform?
As I was reading the editorial, “A New Approach to city schools CEO” in the Baltimore Sun, I was again struck at how a seemingly simple decision, a hiring of one person, can completely reshape or continue the cataclysm in our schools. The editorial suggests the same concepts that have been discussed in panels and in the reform class. The School System needs to hire a CEO that knows how to be a CEO. They need to look at people who are successful at running businesses, not classrooms or schools. They need to find someone who has a vision for the school system and is able to carry it through.
However, I have my doubts. As much as I feel that we need a strong, dynamic, new leader. How much will this really change things? Will they be able to stay in the position long enough to be more than a catalyst, if that? How much power does the CEO have?
With a school system that changes CEOs as frequently as one might change their undergarments, I feel the main goal of the school board should be to look for a candidate that is in this for the long haul. A leader who will not only kick off new programs, partnerships, and initiatives, but also see them through until they can be claimed as a complete failure by all or a success by a few. Another quality I feel is overlooked is a leader who values their employees, especially those considered at the bottom of the barrel, like teachers.
1 comment:
Personally, I change my undergarments more than once every year or so (and I hope that most of the BCPSS employees do, too).
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