Role of a Superintendent

 

Superintendent Duties and Responsibilities

 

1. Contribute as the senior leader of a school district.
2. Impact the teachers in their district and each student's educational experience.  
3. Juggle various professional relationships, such as working with the board of trustees and dealing with concerned parents. 
4. Make themselves available to the public and be receptive listeners.
5. Work closely with the Department of Education, legislators, and taxpayers.
6. Champion for increased funding and manage the needs of the district.

What Does the Superintendent Do? 

The superintendent is the leader of the school district. They set the tone, chart the district's course, and work closely with the board of trustees. In addition, the superintendent hires and supervises other administrators, such as the chief financial officer and the school principals. The board is the superintendent's boss, which might cause significant challenges for the superintendent. Additionally, the board is responsible for evaluating the superintendent's performance and has the power to hire and fire the superintendent.

The superintendent evaluates the school principals' performance and sees that they are influential leaders, also working with the school's teachers to serve students' needs and meet the district's goals.

During my first three years of teaching at my present job, I went through three superintendents; they resigned or were fired for various reasons. Fortunately, the past five years have gone smoothly with a superintendent that brought many revolutionary ideas that have been positive for the community. His biggest project: start several innovative schools. One positive aspect of these schools is the teachers' salaries. In one of these innovative schools, teachers work one extra hour daily. For these teachers, the starting annual salary is more than 60 K, which is not too bad considering how low our wages are!

The importance of the district superintendent and the potential consequences of superintendent exits should be a good reason to keep in mind during the hiring process!

References:

Meier, D. K. S. (2018, July 20). Duties of a school superintendent. Work. Retrieved August 28, 2022, from https://work.chron.com/duties-school-superintendent-13899.html