3 Lessons on Educational Leadership
An Introduction to Educational Leadership For New District Leaders
Thankfully, when I first came to the central office, it was during the summer. Those couple of summer months provided me with valuable time to grapple with the idea that I was now in a district leadership role and to begin my educational leadership journey.
But first a simple definition. A leader is someone who provides direction and support for a group or organization. A leader often shares a vision of could be and marshals support for it.
Educational leadership is providing these skills in an educational setting such as a K-12 district.
Educational Leadership is not Managing
One of the first lessons I learned was the difference between managing and leading. Yes, I knew this already, but until I put it into practice, the differences did not seem that big.
I was hired into my central office position to manage a couple of programs, specifically state testing and grant writing. But leadership was also expected.
As a coordinator, I needed to manage my program, so that it ran smoothly. Determine what had to be done and how it should be done. I had to communicate that to our schools.
