School Administrator: February 2021
The Shift to 
Remote Schooling

A Conversation With Liz Wiseman: The Default to Assumptions and Answers
The fourth installment in our Thought Leadership Series features an interview of Liz Wiseman, author of Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter, by former superintendent Suzette Lovely.

• Other books by Liz Wiseman

The Pivot to Remote Instruction
BY CHRIS W. BIGENHO
The new norms for personalized learning and teachers’ roles in virtual settings, according to the director of a Texas school district’s Virtual Learning Academy.

• Gregg McGough: Guerilla PD to address teachers’ immediate needs
• Joy Silk: A digital redesign on the fly
• Jay Goldman: Hiring virtual teachers for the long term
  
   

Remote Learning’s Essential Questions
BY STEPHEN A. KOSSAKOSKI AND ALEXANDRA ENAYAT
Lessons from the leader of a well-established virtual school about student-teacher relations, use of time, supervision and the need for consistency.

• Jaron Fried: “Fitbit” for monitoring student voice
• Joseph Sweeney: Replicating building culture in remote mode

Advancing Equity
BY BETH A. TARASAWA
Supporting students with social-emotional learning amid COVID-forced school closings. The author is NWEA’s executive vice president of research.

 

STARTING POINT
Turning to authorities with experience in the remote teaching arena.

STATE OF THE SUPERINTENDENCY
Engagement Activity
How often do superintendents connect with district parents?

BEST OF THE BLOGS
Four excerpts from thought-provoking blog posts by AASA members.

ETHICAL EDUCATOR
A Disqualifying Act
What to do about a board candidate for a state superintendent association who is known to have committed domestic violence?
 
LEGAL BRIEF
The Service Animal’s Assignment at School
BY MICHELE V. JONES
The two questions to ask before granting access to the service dog.

SOCIAL MEDIA
Superintendent Blogging in a Pandemic and Beyond
BY CHRIS KENNEDY
An active 10-year blogger on using postings to connect meaningfully with his community.

BOARD-SAVVY SUPERINTENDENT
Your Case for an Executive Coach
 BY PEG PORTSCHELLER
The rationale for bringing on board mentors for superintendents new to this work.

MY VIEW
Expressing Common Values With Our Public
BY HENRY WU
What the Divided Community Project has to say to educators about transforming division into positive action.
 
MY VIEW
‘Not the Sharpest Tool in the Shed’
BY JIM D. HATTABAUGH
Applicable lessons that one superintendent has picked up from his wood-working hobby.

Bringing the Community Into Our Schools
BY HEATHER DAVIS SCHMIDT
Citizens need upclose opportunities to know district programs and build relationships.

Internal Controls Without an Internal Auditor
BY JULIE P. NOVAK
How to monitor your school district’s finances sans a finance specialist.

Partnering With Community to Fight Teen Vaping
BY COSIMO TANGORRA JR.
A suburban district needed community partners to deal with the rising use of e-cigarettes among its high school and middle school students.

 
Reading & Resources

• Book Reviews
• Abstract
• Bits & Pieces

 

  

PRESIDENT’S CORNER
Progress Over Perfection
BY KRISTI WILSON
The importance of focusing on what matters most for students during this disruptive moment in time.

EXECUTIVE PERSPECTIVE
An Expanding Reach Misses a Personal Touch
BY DANIEL A. DOMENECH
Even with remote teaching’s lengthy past, there’s no genuine substitute for in-person learning.

INSIDE AASA
Meghan Moran on Membership Affairs
BY JACQUELINE HYMAN
Our new membership and marketing director on her ambitions for the association.

A monthly compilation of AASA members’ comings and goings. Plus, the Sidelight shines on a children’s book author.

PROFILE: Paul W. Imhoff
BY JULI VALENTINE
AASA’s incoming president models what it means to tackle racial fairness.

READER REPLY