As we wrap up an intense 14 months and with Los Angeles approaching normalcy (with the magical date of June 15), time for some reflecting on leadership.
So lessons learned:
Focus on community and take care of people. We are stronger together emotionally and spiritually and that should take priority over financial, academic, or - even- legal considerations. Approaching a crisis situation with a hierarchy of the vulnerable and asking what can we do to support each group seems like the best path forward.
Lean into your network and don't reinvent the wheel. Collaborating with other principals on wording, documents, ideas, approaches, and resources was a much better path than waiting on guidance on above or responding to questions/issues from below. You might not anticipate everything, but with 10-15 experienced heads in the room, you'll probably have an answer for most situations.
Be vulnerable and honest. Sharing your own struggles - in an appropriate manner - can give others permission to do so. Being honest about the situation and where you're at certainly is the way to go. Lying to appear strong, in control, or gain advantage seems to lead mainly to your own ruin.
Switching to essentials. If you know your mission, how to ensure accountability, and have a strong culture, you can weather struggles and focus on what's essential. Because I trusted my team, knew I could count on them, knew how to (roughly) support them, and knew we were all focused on the well-being of our students, I knew we could handle a phased and uncertain re-opening program, moving from 24 students on campus in October (being one of the first schools to submit a waiver request, especially with our socio-economic profile) to 240 or so on campus today.
More to come!