July 2025: School Administrator

Best of 2024-25
This issue compiles articles and columns of the past year examining school culture wars, superintendents as education advocates, artificial intelligence, parenting in the public eye and much more.
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Additional Articles
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Breaking Through for Positive Change
For a corporate executive with Pfizer, a colleague’s contested pursuit of a school board seat contributes to practical counsel on communicating amidst division.
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Psychological Safety for School Board Members
The importance of providing a sense of support amid criticism and hostility for the public service roles they fulfill. The author, who recently served on a board of education, is an associate professor of education at Seattle Pacific University.
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Leading Through a Political Morass
In these hyper-partisan times, working with your school board members requires situational leadership.
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Navigating the Political Landscape
Simple ideas to depoliticize education for the benefit of all students.
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Embracing AI Through Our Staff Development
How Wichita Public Schools in Kansas rolled out new tools to ensure understanding, comfort and ease of use for all staff.
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A Mindshift Over Cellphones in Schools
How can school systems make classrooms phone-free again? A former superintendent illustrates strategical pathways.
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Can You Block the Public from Posting?
How a recent court ruling impacts what board members may do in their personal use.
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Employee Privacy on Personal Technology
Transparency laws may affect how school staff use their communication devices.
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Because It’s Cutting-Edge Doesn’t Make It Better
The superintendent in Dublin, Ohio, shares the thinking behind his shift away from one-to-one devices in primary classrooms.
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Toward Transformational Engagement
Topeka’s superintendent on how school systems can move into authentic levels of parental participation.
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When Did We Say It Was OK?
A superintendent’s grim stance on the normalization of extreme student behaviors.
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Parenting in the Public Eye
Four personal accounts by superintendents about what it’s like to parent a child in the same school district you lead.
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Generating Momentum on Better Attendance
The executive director of Attendance Works draws on school districts’ experiences to share several avenues for improving student attendance.
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Engaging Student Voice
A district administrator in Washoe County, Nev., on the value of building strong staff-student connections and offering genuine opportunities for student expression.
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My Faith-Filled Leadership Empowers Others’ Growth
A superintendent considers the Bible an invaluable resource for guiding her professional decisions.
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Leading with Soft Skills
Early-life struggles shaped the author’s impactful superintendency around relationships and a fearless sense of empathy.
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What Moves the Dial on Inclusion? Our Mindsets and Beliefs
Share the research, tell stories and listen to students’ voices when you’re ready to move students with disabilities into classes with their peers.
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Standing Alone in Public Defiance
Our panel analyzes whether it’s appropriate for a superintendent to defy a governor’s restrictive policy regarding transitioning teenagers’ names and pronoun use in school.
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Curbs and Ramps
The perspective of a superintendent and father on inclusivity through the experiences of a son with intellectual disabilities.
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All Means All
Schools where students living in poverty thrive typically operate with two key design principles at their core.
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Dousing the Flames of Grading Reform
District administrators should be prepared for passionate opposition to assessment practices in schools that differ from the norms.
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Committing Rookie Mistakes
How superintendents can prevent the common errors new board members make.
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Shun an Intolerant Colleague?
Our panel analyzes whether a gay school administrator should willingly share his model practices with a colleague who’s hostile to cultural responsiveness.
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In District Budget Cutting, Count on These Five Factors
A veteran superintendent shares the certainties you can expect when planning spending reductions.
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Rebuilding for the Future
As more than just buildings, schools are the cornerstone of our democracy and economy.
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Do Sweat the Small Stuff
AASA’s executive director reflects on how encouraging one poor-performing student made a huge impact during his time as a principal.
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A Skewed View of Women Leaders
How should a principal respond to a sexist comment by a friend in a private discussion?
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What a Superintendent Learns from Board Service
What the author picked up from his own school board membership that he could apply when running a district.
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Taylor Swift’s Masterclass: Lessons in Leadership for Us
At a recent concert of the pop megastar, this superintendent was left with remarkable discoveries on how to transform others.
Staff
Editor's Note
Recommended Reading Redux
This marks the seventh year that the staff of School Administrator has created a digital-only July issue that showcases what we consider the “Best of” from the past publishing year. We believe this issue, which is the only one that does notappear in print, serves a couple of useful purposes.
Jay P. Goldman
Editor, School Administrator
703-875-0745
jgoldman@aasa.org
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