Two-Way Conversations

How first-year superintendents are using data to build political capital that enables system change

David Rosenberg and Karen Silverman, October 3, 2016

Many first-year superintendents embark on “listening tours” at the start of their tenures to grasp the realities and needs of their constituents. But the politically savvy superintendent seeks not only to learn. They also bring new facts about the district to each conversation, so that one-directional listening becomes a two-way dialogue.

ERS team members David Rosenberg and Karen Silverman interviewed a dozen current and new superintendents to learn what they wish they knew as leaders of a new school district. In the magazine School Administrator, David and Karen share five examples of how superintendents leveraged key data points to create fertile two-way conversations.

Reprinted with permission from the October 2016 issue of School Administrator magazine, published by AASA, The School Superintendents Association.

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