Turnaround principals: an unmistakable conclusion: site-level success stems from superintendent support

School Administrator, June, 2005 by Harold J. Burbach, Alfred R. Butler, IV

We recently were privileged to spend five days with a group of 10 talented principals who have been charged with turning around academically low-performing schools in their respective districts. These principals were selected as participants in a Turnaround Specialist Program initiated by Gov. Mark R. Warner of Virginia and designed by a group of faculty from the Darden Graduate School of Business and the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia.

The first part of this program consisted of a five-day experience designed to help participants frame the issue and provide them with some conceptual and practical tools from the worlds of business and education for addressing the challenge they would face in fall 2004.

From the team of university faculty and practitioners who drew upon various areas of expertise, we gained a better understanding of what it takes to set an academically low-performing school on the road to success.

More pointedly, we focus here on those pieces of the turnaround puzzle that have direct relevance for what we believe needs to be done at the district level to give turnaround principals every chance of success. Through conversations over the course of the week, we came to an unmistakable conclusion: The initial commitment and the level of support needed for success can be directly traced to the district superintendent.

Job One

As every superintendent knows, the single most important factor in turning around an academically low-achieving school is the selection of the right principal for the job. At the heart of this selection lies a key question: What leaders are best suited for the task of turning around a school? While we assume that all superintendents will weigh the qualifications of every principal candidate against the commonly recognized qualities of good leaders, we focus here on three qualities that we believe should distinguish those who are hired to lead turnaround schools.

* Someone who is seeking the job for the "right" reasons.

In reflecting on the reasons our group offered in discussions of why they accepted a position as a turnaround principal, we were struck as much by what was not mentioned as by what was mentioned. For example, we heard no references to money, career advancement or anything having to do with material gain or practical considerations. Though expressed in various ways, the most compelling reason for taking their respective positions was a heartfelt desire to help raise the achievement level of academically low-achieving children and thereby enhance these students' chances of success in life.

This came up over and over and there was no mistaking its true meaning. The unambiguous message was that it was a higher order of moral calling, one that in some cases spanned both the religious and social domains. The implication for superintendents is that they should give some serious thought as to what they consider to be the right reasons for applying for turnaround positions and those reasons that are of lesser value.

* Someone with a richly textured conceptual understanding of and an affective sensitivity to the unique challenges faced by academically underachieving children.

Certainly a primary prerequisite of an attractive candidate is someone with a clear conceptual understanding of what the job of turning around a school entails. To our way of thinking, these are individuals with a capacity for big-picture thinking and a grasp of the social, political and cultural crosscurrents at work in turnaround schools and their communities. Further, we believe the best candidates should be conversant with the latest writings on organizational change and the special learning needs of low-achieving children.

A second prerequisite, though less easy to assess at an empirical level, is a person with an abiding sensitivity to the unique challenges of children with a history of poor academic success in school. This point was brought home to us early in the program through the personal and often poignant stories participants shared about their schools or even themselves. One principal recounted his firsthand experience as an academically underachieving child. As his story unfolded it was quickly apparent that his childhood experience in schools was a critical factor in the culture he was working to create in his school. Put simply, it was a culture characterized by a deep sensitivity to the needs of children who populate the lower rungs of the academic ladder.

While this particular story stood out, this same authentic sentiment permeated the stories told by everyone in our group. In some cases it could be traced to a history of teaching in low-achieving schools. In other cases it was the result of working in a successful community-based program with children from low-income families, but in all cases some hands-on experience served as a primary motive for wanting to be a turnaround principal. We concluded that something akin to this affective understanding of the job would be a distinct plus.