This article is meant to provide a clearer, more hopeful picture of the superintendency. Its purpose is to help superintendents – and those who aspire to the job – to identify and develop the skills and mindsets needed to thrive in this complex role.
A secondary aim is to help establish a clear and realistic vision of the superintendent role for the benefit of leadership preparation programs and all the stakeholders who play a role in identifying, developing, and supporting sitting and future superintendents.
Every ten years or so we see an uptick in superintendent retirements. Much hand wringing ensues. Articles are written about the difficulty of the job, its unattractiveness. “Crisis” gets whispered speculatively. But the crisis never really materializes. After a few months or a few years, turnover rates stabilize. New leaders step into the superintendent role. Life and the work of school districts moves on.
Eventually, we realize that this was just another demographic wave as an unusually large crop of superintendents reach retirement eligibility together. Is this what we are going through in the post-pandemic years as news of superintendents heading for the exits have dominated headlines?
Maybe. But something feels qualitatively different.
At The Holdsworth Center, we have a front row seat to public education leadership. Our partners range from long-tenured, expert superintendents with decades of experience who are celebrated across the state and even the nation to newly minted, first-time superintendents.
Regardless of tenure, experience, geography or district size, we are witnessing superintendents being stretched to—and often beyond—their limits. They are exhausted. Some are confronting health problems their doctors say are associated with the hours they work and the weight of the pressures they carry. As they attempt to succeed in an all-encompassing job in service to the children in their community, many are dissatisfied with what is ‘left over’ for their own families.
What we see are mission-driven people sacrificing themselves for a cause they believe in. Their efforts and commitment draw our admiration and gratitude.
But when you look deeper, you see signs of trouble. The role of the superintendent has always been hard— at least for mere mortals. But something in the past decade has shifted it from beyond hard to downright impossible. Here’s the thing about impossible jobs: even the most capable, mission-driven people can’t sustain themselves for long.
Impossible jobs grind people up and burn them out. Impossible jobs deter capable, talented people from signing up for them in the first place.
That’s what we are seeing with the superintendent role today. We may not have the data yet to prove it, but all the signs are there. If you’ve talked to a superintendent recently, you know it’s true.
We can’t just wait to see how this plays out. We must act now. Ensuring that each school district is led by a capable and effective superintendent, and that great superintendents can sustain their work for more than a few years, is critically important to the short and long-term success of public education in this country.
What must be done?
Download article to read more: Four truths about the superintendency and why we avoid them
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