In this episode of Build Momentum, we are joined by Dr. Buddy Berry, the superintendent of Eminence Independent Schools in Kentucky. He founded the innovative model “School on FIRE” (Framework of Innovation for Reinventing Education). He was recognized by the Obama Administration as one of the top 100 School Superintendents in America for his district’s implementation of digital learning and invited to the ConnectED Superintendents Summit at the White House.

Some Questions We Ask:

• Please tell us about your career as a superintendent. (01:13)
• What is the most rewarding aspect of being a superintendent? (04:53)
• What can you say about the 2023 RAND study and how do you cope with the stress your career brings? (06:06)
• How has scrutiny of the superintendency changed over the years? (07:41)
• Do your experiences represent other school administrators' experiences across the nation? (09:21)
• How do you bring the community to see your vision? (11:02)
• What are the core values or core metrics that you focused on to change the community’s view of the education system? (16:52)
• What is your advice to other district leaders for building a community? (23:55)
• What is your take on humanizing the role of superintendents and how can the community benefit from it? (26:48)
• What advice can you give supporters of K-12 education about advocating for district leaders? (28:45)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• About Dr. Buddy Berry (01:39)
• Rewarding aspects of being a superintendent (05:02)
• His take on the 2023 RAND Study and coping with stress (06:33)
• Scrutiny of the superintendency (07:46)
• Comparison of his personal experiences to other administrators’ (09:30)
• Building a community with one vision (11:17)
• Establishing core values across a district (17:24)
• Advice for district leaders (24:18)
• Humanizing the role of superintendents (26:56)
• Advice to those advocating for superintendents and district leaders (29:13)

Quotes:

“Enrollment has doubled in the last decade. Test scores have gone from the eighth percentile to hovering around the 80s. We started the first early college high school program in Kentucky that's on a college campus. … We've had 500 kids go through that program, and 498 have earned a degree or are college right now. Crazy results from a population that's, you know, 70% free and reduced lunch, 18% homeless, and the vast majority first-generation college.”

“I'm a big believer that your teachers live in the community. They're the people that are mostly talking to everybody at the grocery. And so if you can win your teachers over to your vision and your thinking and what you're doing, they'll sell it for you.”

“You can't win everybody over in one day. So it's about that consistency and that transparency and just being real to them—that I think eventually does win everybody over.”

Stay in touch with Dr. Buddy Berry:
School on F.I.R.E
School on Fire Innovating Instruction

Stay in touch with Sarah Williamson:
SWPR GROUP Website
LinkedIn

Stay in touch with Chad Bolser:
LinkedIn

About "The Secret to Transformational Leadership," which Sarah co-authored with Dr. Quintin Shepherd:
Transformational Leadership Secret website
Purchase the print or ebook

In this episode of Build Momentum, we are joined by Dr. Matthew Hicks, Superintendent of Northeastern Wayne Schools in Indiana. He is also currently a lecturer at Purdue University and a dissertation chair at Indiana Wesleyan University. Earlier in his career, he served as a language arts classroom teacher and as a principal at the high school and middle school levels. He has volunteered as a Den Leader for Crossroads for America Council, Boy Scouts of America for the past eight years.

Some Questions We Ask:

• Can you share more about yourself and your career as a superintendent? (01:46)
• What is the most rewarding aspect of your career? (03:58)
• Do you agree with the 2023 RAND study? And how do you cope with the stress your career brings? (06:56)
• Has scrutiny of the superintendency changed over the years? (09:27)
• In comparison with other administrators you interact with across the nation, do you believe your own personal experiences align with their experiences? (11:21)
• How do you bring the community to see and share your vision so you can build it together? (13:07)
• How do you communicate with the community and connect with educators and families through creative storytelling? (15:04)
• What is your advice for other district leaders who are struggling with building a community? (16:50)
• Why do you think it’s important to see superintendents as humans and not just robots? (19:16)
• How can the community support and advocate for superintendents? (21:52)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• About Dr. Matthew Hicks (01:56)
• Rewarding aspects of being a superintendent (04:05)
• Thoughts about the RAND study and coping with stress (07:31)
• Scrutiny of the superintendency (09:34)
• About his personal experiences in district leadership vs others’ (11:32)
• Uniting a community around one vision (13:17)
• Effective communication strategies (15:17)
• Advice for district leaders (16:55)
• Humanizing the role of superintendents (19:25)
• How the community can advocate for superintendents (22:05)

Quotes:

“There are things in education that happen that are just very difficult to deal with. Losing a student is an absolute nightmare scenario for that family, for a school community—and it is one of those things that reverberates through time. You don't forget those moments because they hurt so bad. Those sorts of things will unfortunately be a part of the role.”

“And our [vision statement] is that we're a nurturing family where each Knight belongs, grows, and contributes. That's our whole vision. And so if I can't run something through the ‘belong, grow, or contribute’ filter, then we're not doing it. If it doesn't fit into that filter, that's not us. That's not what we're doing right now. And so it really has helped with the decision-making. It puts us in a position to give a quality ‘no’ for the things that don't fit in that vision and an enthusiastic ‘yes’ for the things that do fit within that vision.”

Stay in touch with Dr. Matthew Hicks:
Email: mhicks@nws.k12.in.us

Stay in touch with Sarah Williamson:
SWPR GROUP Website
LinkedIn

Stay in touch with Chad Bolser:
LinkedIn

About "The Secret to Transformational Leadership," which Sarah co-authored with Dr. Quintin Shepherd:
Transformational Leadership Secret website
Purchase the print or ebook

In this episode of Build Momentum, we are joined by Dr. Rachel White, Founder and Lead Researcher at The Superintendent Lab, a hub for data, research, insights, and innovation on the public school district superintendency. She is currently the Associate Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy at the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. White has also taught at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and Old Dominion University and has served as a school board member and volunteer coach at Van Wert City Schools in Ohio. She is a member of the University Council for Education Administration, the American Educational Research Association, and the Association for Education Finance and Policy.

Some Questions We Ask:

• Tell us about yourself and The Superintendent Lab. (01:31)
• How do you humanize the role of superintendents and incorporate that in your research? (04:26)
• In what ways did the RAND study inspire your research? (08:08)
• How has scrutiny of the superintendency changed over the years, and is turnover being addressed by retention programs? (11:52)
• In your research, have you looked at partnerships between superintendents and the community? (16:07)
• Which of your research findings are most alarming? (18:34)
• In your opinion, how will the new administration impact K-12 leadership? (24:48)
• How can the community support and advocate for superintendents? (28:06)
• Tell us more about your hopes for The Superintendent Lab. (30:26)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• All about Dr. Rachel White and The Superintendent Lab (01:40)
• Humanizing superintendents (04:34)
• Dr. White’s research (08:13)
• Scrutiny of the superintendency and retention programs to address turnover (12:22)
• Partnerships between superintendents and the community (16:33)
• Research findings that alarm her (18:40)
• Impacts of the new administration on K-12 leadership (24:58)
• Advocating for superintendents at the community level (28:22)
• Hopes for The Superintendent Lab in the future (30:32)

Quotes:

“Superintendents that have strong trusting relationships with their school board—and particularly their school board president—are significantly less likely to be job seeking.”

“What we know is that principal stability impacts teacher stability, and we know teacher stability does impact students outcomes and educational experiences, right? So it's sort of like doing a stepwise process to get to what is the impact of superintendent turnover.”

“Any sort of changes at the federal level may mean that superintendents really have to step up right and make sure that we continue to say, ‘We are going to serve every kid that walks in our door, and we're going to do whatever it takes to do that.’”

Stay in touch with Dr. Rachel White:
LinkedIn
The Superintendent Lab website
Email: rachel.white@austin.utexas.edu

Stay in touch with Sarah Williamson:
SWPR GROUP Website
LinkedIn

Stay in touch with Chad Bolser:
LinkedIn

About "The Secret to Transformational Leadership," which Sarah co-authored with Dr. Quintin Shepherd:
Transformational Leadership Secret website
Purchase the print or ebook