By Joel Baum, School Coach and LEAD Project Manager
Nancy Mohr, small schools movement leader, uses the analogy of sailboats and ocean liners in her seminal article, “Small Schools Are Not Miniature Large Schools,” to compare schools of different sizes. She stresses that leadership in small schools differs significantly from that in more traditional settings. External as well as internal influences have a far greater impact in smaller settings; the resulting waves of disruption can easily swamp the fragile vessels so carefully constructed by the school’s founders, literally sinking the hopes of an entire community.
Our experience at BayCES in the past three years bears this out: While the entire staff of a small school faces enormous pressures and obstacles, the weight typically falls most directly and broadly on the shoulders of the formal, positional “captain of the ship.”
The multiple (and sometimes conflicting) demands of leading a small school — sustaining an overburdened faculty, supporting the hopes of an expectant community, interfacing with bureaucratic external systems frequently unresponsive if not down right hostile to the school’s needs, while maintaining a focus on equity and achievement — are at times overwhelming. Such leadership requires an extraordinary combination of technical skill, emotional balance, patient urgency, occasional brinkmanship, and unending optimism in the face uncertain and shifting political winds.
Three attributes are critical in this effort: a powerful vision, a highly attuned emotional compass, and quiet yet courageous sense of presence.
Vision: Land Ho!
One thing remains certain: Newly created small schools face particularly stormy seas. In launching a school through the design and implementation phases, a vision of the future is crucial. Leaders of small schools must be able to support all members of the community to see the still waters ahead even as they handle the challenges of setting sail. Frequently, this requires a sense of counterbalance — identifying those things that are working well and pushing people to not be satisfied or lose focus when the winds die down. A leader’s powerfully articulated vision guides the entire crew, providing a sense of confidence to all.
As important as its ability to provide direction to the efforts of the school, a vision plays an equally powerful role in determining what not to do. Multiple forces bear down in the form of new programs, curricular decisions, design choices, compliance issues and community desires. A strong vision supports assiduous and strategic application of the limited resources, time and energy available. Without it, small school dreams can easily be dashed.
Small schools, compared to their larger counterparts, can more easily lose their way when individual members become tired, suffer personal stress or loss, or are otherwise not at their best. Furthermore, these conditions are more likely in a small school environment because of the larger number of roles and responsibilities individuals must take on. As such, it becomes necessary for the leader to pay particular attention to the physical and emotional well-being of the various members of the school, including the leader herself. This will help school leaders anticipate the emotional icebergs adjust course to avoid them. This also means being willing to seek emotional support for oneself; nothing will cause a mutiny faster than a sense from the crew that the captain is losing it! Thus, school leaders need to maintain and model a longer view for their own and their colleague’s physical, spiritual and emotional nurturance.
Uncharted Waters Ahead
With any journey, there will be detours and unexpected shifts in the itinerary. In facing these unplanned events, a school leader needs to maintain a level of quiet courage to venture confidently into these uncharted waters. In the face of uncertainty, individuals look to the leader to demonstrate a sense of confidence as she moves forward. The crew can draw strength from the leader’s ability to maintain the helm in even the most frightening conditions. This courage does not necessarily mean taking forceful action. Quite the contrary, such bravery often manifests itself in staying the course in the face of challenge. In fact, it has been this audacity to steam full speed ahead in the face of uncertainty that has led to the recent age of exploration and discovery in the new world of small schools.
SMALL SCHOOLS MOVEMENT
