Leadership — A School Librarian’s Challenge
Amidst the current focus on the 2016 presidential elections, all U.S. citizens have an opportunity, some might even say an obligation, to consider the qualifications of a good leader. The citizens are interviewing these individuals, the candidates, for the job as president of the United States, a primary leadership role in the free world. We must consider the essential attributes to fulfill the duties of this very important role. What do we look for in a leader? What are these attributes?
On a more local level, any educator can point out the importance of good leadership in a school. The principal of a school sets the tone and can be a force for motivation and a sense of common purpose. He or she can be instrumental in determining many key facets of the school environment and the climate from openness and camaraderie to the curricular focus and the attitude toward student achievement/failure. A good leader can make or break a school; those of us in the K-12 trenches can attest to this. It is not an exaggeration.
What happens when we are called upon to step up into a leadership role? That is a whole other matter! Whoa! Wait a minute, we might say, “I am NOT a leader!” “I am an INTROVERT!” “I am not COMFORTABLE in the spotlight.” Many of us, myself included, do not feel that we are leaders. OTHER PEOPLE are leaders. They are outgoing, personable, high energy, and able to garner the respect and confidence of others. WE are the worker bees, the drones on the side-lines. We help to get things done and support our leaders in making this happen. But, guess what? You may need to step up. Yes, YOU!
How do I know this? Well, that is the position that I find myself in. I do not consider myself a leader or a person endowed with natural leadership abilities. I like to support and encourage good leaders, to let them know how much I appreciate them and to challenge them when I disagree with something. Yet, it is clear that I need to step up, or “lean in,” in my role as the sole high school librarian and the chair of our department (K-12). I do not feel confident or skilled in this role, though something inside tells me that it is something I need to rise to for the sake of the group. It isn’t about me at all, I am starting to realize, but about stepping up when the need is there and serving on behalf of the group.
Though it is my 17th year as a school librarian here at Waunakee High School, this is the first year that I am the sole librarian. I have worked with three other co-librarians during my time here, first as a new-librarian-in-training under a very experienced librarian and then as a full partner. Though there were significant challenges in working together to lead the library program, I knew that it was a combined effort and that it was not all up to me. Last year, the other librarian left for employment in the private sector and she was not replaced. Suddenly, the direction and success of our library program rested entirely on me. In addition, it is a time of great change in the role of the school library.
While it is true that one person cannot provide the same level of service as two, I find myself peering over the edge of this new challenge: it is both exhilarating and overwhelming. I have an opportunity to work with members of the school community to build a vision for a relevant and dynamic library program that serves students, staff, and community members today and into the future. Given this great opportunity, I ask myself if I have the leadership skills needed to garner community input and support to realize the best school library program possible.
While my status as the sole librarian at the high school was outside of my control, I knowingly threw my hat into the ring as a contender for department chair for our district-wide department. It consists of all of the school librarians (there is one at each school — six of us) and three technology integrators (one each at the Intermediate, Middle, and High schools). Our administrative liaison is the district technology director. I stepped into this role because I felt that it was my turn. I had approached a number of my colleagues to encourage them to take on this role as I believed that they would be good leaders, but none of them were interested. Several of them had already served as chair of our department, one had served two terms. It occurred to me that I cannot always expect others to provide leadership when it is needed. Though I am not confident that I am the best person to lead our department, I will put my best effort forth. I will try to learn and practice good leadership.
When thinking about leadership, I have clear ideas in mind. One is from a book that you may be familiar with, Watership Down, by Richard Adams. Another is from Plato’s Republic when he describes the attributes of “philosopher kings.” The third is our principal at Waunakee High School, Brian Kersten, a person I consider to be an exceptional leader.
I’ll be brief. If you haven’t had the chance to read Watership Down, you should. It is simply the best treatise on leadership that I have ever encountered. The book involves a warren of rabbits who need to relocate due to new construction. Hazel becomes the leader of this band of individuals not because he is the smartest, or the strongest, or the most intuitive, but because he is able to listen and watch and harness the best in all of the members of the community.
Leaders, “philosopher kings,” in Plato’s The Republic do not strive to lead, but are compelled to because they put the welfare of the community ahead of their own personal good fortune and they are aware that their careful and considered understanding of how things are (being philosophers) and of what needs to be done is necessary to to the good of the community. These leaders are born, they are endowed with the special qualities to be philosopher kings.
Our principal at Waunakee High School, Brian Kersten, is the best example of a good leader in real life that I have encountered. He cares about the kids and the staff and he knows who we are. It certainly helps that he has the uncanny ability to remember names and faces. I witness this when I walk down the hall with him and he is able to greet every student by name that we encounter. That is not his most impressive leadership attribute in my estimation, however. I would have to say that he is able to empower people, to give them room to try things and fail and get back up again. Like Hazel, Brian recognizes the special skills and abilities of each member of the community and encourages us to be ourselves and do our best. He gives people the benefit of the doubt and does not micromanage or assume the worst. Like the leaders in Plato’s Republic, Brian is not the kind of person to seek power for its own sake; instead, he is willing to assume the yoke of leadership to benefit all of us because he harbors the special skills and attributes to do so.
I do not know where to place myself in this leadership construct. I certainly do not seek leadership or power for its own sake, and I do feel obligated to take my turn or serve on behalf of all of the members of my department. I believe that I need to bring my best efforts to this challenge, though I do not think that I am a natural leader like Brian Kersten. Is there a way to nurture the “leadership” seeds within myself? How can I inspire others in my department to reach their potential? What can I do to draw out the best ideas, skills, and positive energy from all of our members to benefit the whole community? How can I listen more closely to all of the members of the department? What can I do to offer encouragement and help to celebrate accomplishments? How can I help to foster a collective vision for what could be? I would like to learn and improve upon all of these characteristics of a good leader, but it is not a natural fit.
What can we do work toward harnessing the qualities of a good leader when we are asked to step up? How can we support one another to grow into this role? Is this something we can expect of ourselves when it is not in our nature? Is leadership, like good communication, an attribute that we all need to cultivate in our roles as educators?
