Excellence

"High Achievement always takes place in the framework of high expectation." - Charles Kettering



Friday, October 22, 2010

Administrator Evaluations

There is a topic of conversation that routinely arises this time of year. "Why is the administrator evaluation on the agenda every month for 4 or 5 months and intermittently throughout the year?" Click on the post to view the policy regarding Evaluation of the District Administrator. It is a pretty inclusive process that is time consuming when the board members remain the same. With the addition of new board members, the level of complexity rises exponentially. New members want history and help with the process. The evaluation paperwork is extensive and when done correctly, takes about 20-30 hours to complete. Research into the goals and results must be done. Data must be compiled and presented and, most challenging, result in a consensus united front to present to the administrator. This process is mind-numbing when there is only one boss. Now think of it being done with 7 bosses, all of whom have been around less time than the administrator and each of them with a different slant on their priorities as they pertain to the district. Seven people arriving at consensus on the sometimes contentious issues in an evaluation is always difficult, if not impossible, to achieve. Mr. Pierick takes a very methodical approach in the evaluation process and the resulting package presented to Ms. Carvin in the three years I participated in the process was thoughtful and produced a useful working document. I'm not sure everyone agrees with that, but at least there is a monumental effort to make the process meaningful. This is why it gets on the agenda so frequently. There is no issue beyond trying to provide a useful administrator evaluation to help the district run as smoothly as possible. Every time the board personnel changes, another level of challenge is introduced. So be patient and trust your board to be the good bosses they are by doing the thorough job we ask them to do. Don't read anything into the evaluation popping up frequently on the board agenda. They are following policy and taking their boss roles seriously!

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