Imagine a mother who decides after becoming pregnant that she is not fit to raise a child and begins seeking a qualified parent to stand in her stead. After the child is born, the mother immediately places the child in the hands of the carefully sought out adoptive parent and trusts that parent to raise the child right. Now imagine a parent of a fourteen year old child who is told that she must give up her child because soon she may not be fit to continue raising the child. She would be devastated even if the new parent were dependable and completely trustworthy.
This is where I find myself everyday. My CEO who is the school founder is very hands on and actively involved in running the school. My principal is new to the school but had the impression that she would run the show. This dynamic causes confusion when one person decides a thing but the other decides something different. Or when daily operations need to run through both the principal and CEO before decisions are made. I have dropped the ball or communicated wrong information because I was told two different things by my leaders. In the end it's my responsibility to know policy and act accordingly. But it's difficult feeling like the monkey in the middle.
According to a research study by the Hawaii Educational Policy Center"... others feel the CEO model is not applicable to school principals because CEO’s have much more control. If principals are to be held accountable, they reason, then they must also be given full authority. Some say trust is an issue. They do not trust the system, and the system does not trust or respect them."
I don't feel the CEO model works here because principals are the school leaders and faculty and staff must see them as such. Discussions and training between myself, my principal and CEO must be held behind doors not on the job for every follower to see. I feel that maybe the trust is not fully there and it limits the training I received and the confidence to make sound decisions. This is an ongoing debacle, any suggestions much appreciated!
Link to article: Does Principal As CEO Work?
I think it is time to do the tough thing. You need to sit down with both of them together and talk about what is going on. One method that worked in a situation where a colleague and I weren't on the same page might work her for you as well. My principal sat down with me and asked what was going on. He then sat down with her and asked her what was going on. Then he sat down with both of us and said, "Talk to each other." This was hard for me because I thought I had been talking to her. We had been talking at each other. Neither of us was willing to listen to the other. He helped us presume positive intentions (one of the seven tenants of collaboration) and work through our issues.
ReplyDeleteIn your case, I might sit down with each of them individually and ask them the boundaries of their position and what they see you should bring to them. Then is there appears to be overlap as to what each one wants you to bring to them, sit down with them both and review the overlapping situations. It might be just as easy to sit down with them up front and start with, "When I need to make a decision about _____, I am getting differing options from each of you. This makes me feel..." Then see where things go. You can't deny that a meeting in the middle needs to take place. No one likes being caught in the middle of a power struggle. Do you see it as a power struggle or just the founder not being able to let go?
Patrice-This is certainly a complex issue. I would imagine that both your founder and principal are also very frustrated. It doesn't seem that there is an easy situation to this issue. However, the one piece of advice I'll suggest is one way to deal with many issues....communicate, communicate, communicate! If possible, send emails so you have documentation and include both leaders on the emails. Even when you meet face-to-face, you may want to send an email to "capture" the content of the conversation.
ReplyDeleteMy guess would be that if this behavior continues, either the founder or the principal will be leaving sometime soon.
Nick
Thanks for sharing, Patrice.
ReplyDelete"Founders Syndrome" is a common issue in start-up schools. What is your position at the school? It seems like Tim's advice is pretty good. Are you in a position in which you would be able to facilitate such an interaction?