Many observers use the terms “superintendent” and “administrator” interchangeably, but today’s K12 leaders aren’t driven to manage buildings. They set out to build student-first cultures rooted in innovation, strategy and community connection.
In recent interviews with District 91心頭istration, several superintendents described how they and their teams work to orchestrate ecosystems of learning, trust and opportunity. Superintendent Pamela Nathan rallieseveryone in the Edgewater Park Township School District tosee themselves as educators who build environments where young minds thrive.
It’s a high-stakes push she describes as an “I cure cancer” mentality in which every voice is heard, ideas keep emerging and all initiatives connect to a clear, shared purpose.
“If we get the environment rightpsychological safety, clarity of purpose and room to experimentour teams will continue to design solutions we couldnt have scripted from the top down.”
Nathan says her leadership philosophy centers on empowering every stakeholder by anchoring them in a common purpose.
Leadership Lens is a monthly column featuring the insights of K12 leaders who are navigating common opportunities and challenges. Many of the leaders have participated in the .油油
“I believe culture, strategy and innovation are inseparable: culture creates the safety to try, strategy provides the focus, and innovation is the natural outcome when people feel trusted and aligned,” she points out.
A mighty student-first belief
Student-centered leadership means operationalizing empathy in the Johnsonburg Area School District in rural northwestern Pennsylvania, says Superintendent Karen Haberberger, who leans on her background as a special education teacher.
“We might be a small district, but we lead with the mighty belief that we take care of our own before we can even expect them to excel academically. Socioeconomic status never dictates somebody’s belonging.”
In partnership with a local nonprofit, the district operates a resource shop to help families obtain essentials such as winter clothing, toiletries and formal wear. At the high school level, the shop is run by students who develop leadership skills and agency.
Haberberger has developed her leadership philosophy over 33 years in public education, and believes in Bren辿 Brown’s concept of “brave leadership.”
“I feel like you can either lead with love or you can lead with fear, and I choose to lead with love,” she says. “That means practicing authentic leadership and being present, compassionate, and empathetic toward the people who entrust me to lead them.”
Haberberger became a certified yoga instructor a few years ago, and shares meditation and mindfulness practices with staff and students. She has done sessions with the girls’ volleyball team and starts PD sessions with a short meditation.
“I hope that by teaching my staff how to manage the internal noise, I’m helping build a resilient, focused and healthy workforce.”
5 guiding principles
Five guiding principles anchor the leadership of Superintendent David Clendening, who has led near Indianapolis for 17 years. Individual student growth is No. 1.
“Everybody in every school could say that, but we really focus on trying to make the experience and learning unique to the kid,” says Clendening, a former Indiana Superintendent of the Year. “We don’t look at everybody as cookie-cutter. We want them to reach their full potential.”
He cites a new preschool center as proof that the district is following its second guiding principle: communication with the community. One of Franklin Community Schools public-private partnerships is the 300-student facility that opened in August, which Clendening says was a project driven by families interest in quality early learning options.
Partnerships that send students to learn in Europe and Japan illuminate the third guiding principle, collaboration.The other two guiding principles are systemic continuous improvement, which focuses heavily on financial stability and strategic decision-making, and trust.
“It’s getting as many people to tell us what they think the problem is through the voice of the customer, and then weighing the best solutions for our district, and then coming back with the answers, and then tracking them,” Clendening explains. “If we follow the first four principles well, then I think the community trusts us.”
‘Are we done yet?’
City Schools of Decatur was a high-performing district with an achievement gap when took the helm as superintendent in 2023. When Whitaker dug deeper, less than 40% of the Atlanta-area system’s economically disadvantaged students were reading at grade level.
“That was a challenge for me because I said, ‘I’m about to hand students a diploma and it’s a Decatur High School diploma and I don’t know if they can read it,'” says Whitaker, who previously served as deputy chief academic officer and an area superintendent in Fulton County Schools. “My deep knowledge in how to support all students in their learning is probably my greatest strength.”
Academic improvements over the last three years have been driven by sharp increases in the number of economically disadvantaged students performing at or above grade level across elementary, middle and high school.
“Our achievement gains have happened without regression to the mean,” she explains. “And that’s ultimately what you wantthat rising tide where all ships rise.”
Whitaker has made major changes, such as implementing a science of reading curriculum and a universal screening tool. Now, seven in 10 students are meeting or exceeding their growth goals and the district has surpassed pre-pandemic end-of-grade performance benchmarks.
“Are we done yet? No,” she continues. “But when you look at what I’m most proud of, we have tackled literacy, we’ve tackled communications, we’ve tackled organizational leadership with measurable results and we’ve set up systems that will outlast personnel shifts.”
*AI assisted in the compilation of this article from several previous District 91心頭istration reports. The image was also created with AI.
