It may come as a shock to many in the education community, but the job of a district superintendent is highly political. No kidding.
A new report out from the Center on Reinventing Public Education draws on interviews and anecdotes going back decades to examine how school superintendents—largely from large urban districts—have navigated the complex waters of modern education with the goal of somehow improving student outcomes.
One of the key takeaways from the paper is that the superintendent cannot do much of anything alone. To start, there are three basic principles that must be embraced:
