Staff | Policies & Documents

LEADERSHIP IN A BRIGIDINE SCHOOL

"Beyond the Bleak Landscape" John O'Donaghue

WHAT IS LEADERSHIP?

Leadership here is used in the sense of the ability to enthuse others about a vision and call them to hope and action.

A leader is one who has a sense of vision, an ability to envisage new possibilities and directions. A leader is one who can inspire and encourage others and is above all good at clearly reading and expressing the demands and difficulties of the situation ... A leader has the courage and imagination to engage the voices of the new world.

All staff in Brigidine schools are called to leadership. Positional authority and leadership belong to those in named positions but all staff are called to develop a personal authority and leadership. Some elements of responsibility belong to people holding leadership positions at certain times but the

overall responsibility for providing a particular kind of education and creating a particular climate rests with the whole staff. This will mean, among other things, believing in people, being a freedom-giver, promoting creative growth, being in dialogue with people, believing in social change and being a peace-maker.

RELIGIOUS/CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP

Much of the prophetic tradition in Scripture, is about the prophet seeking to know God's will and, often with great difficulty, encouraging the community to believe and act in a certain way.

Speak Lord, your servant is listening (1 Samuel 3: 2-10)

Elijah heard the Lord in the tiny whispering sound ((] Kings 10: 11-13)

Let it be done to me as you say (Luke 1:38) -

Whoever would be great among you must be your servant ... (Mark 10. 42-45)

The basis for all education is a search for meaning and leadership is about empowering that search. In

a Christian context, that needs to be seen as a search for what is humanising as this was modelled by Jesus. This calls for leaders who are ready to serve the 'people of God', in particular to give a 'preferential option for the poor'.

... an option for communitarian, liminal and prophetic structures that will activate and promote justice and well being for the poor in our world. The poor we refer to include

the materially poor, victims of injustice, the marginalized and rejected, unemployed people, refugees, people suffering sickness or pain, the aged (and at times the young) and rich people who feel an inner emptiness

Diarmuid O'Murchu M.S.C.

Jesus modelled collaborative ministry. He sent out the disciples two by two even though they could hardly have been ready; they came back and he taught them. A parallel for us may be identifying the gifts of all others in the community and releasing them. There are challenges for leaders to build a collaborative culture - to enhance self-esteem, to address the hunger that there is for spirituality; to deal with conflict in areas where people feel inadequate.

BRIGIDINE LEADERSHIP

A key concept for describing Brigidine leadership is 'stewardship'. This is used to emphasise the responsibility of everyone associated with each school to build community and to cherish the gifts brought by each individual.

We are stewards of God's gifts and these include different things: spiritual gifts like faith, hope and love; personal and community talents; rich relationships with family and friends; the achievements of human genius and skill As well, we are custodians of the traditions of the Christian people over the centuries, the beautiful land and the rest of creation we enjoy; the education facilities and resources including some beautiful school grounds and places for learning,- the spiritual gifts that have come to us from the lives of many faithful and holy people in the past,- the stories and the riches left to us by those who have established and toiled in Brigidine schools over the past century.

Model of Stewardship Council for Brigidine Schools 1995

In the light of the Guidelines for Brigidine Enrolment, the school is a kind of 'open hearth' that welcomes all to come and warm themselves at the fire of a faith and a tradition built around the story of Jesus. The leaders are then the ones who are the bridge between the wider world and the school community who invite families to 'Come and see'. They are also the ones who have to continually return to the question posed to the first disciples 'But you, who do you say that I am?'

Brigidine documents speak of education as about 'transforming the world', not as being church-centred. Our society is in great need of a new vision where the concept of education is not restricted but seen for what it is - a way of changing the world

Leadership is therefore seen as consistently providing opportunities for the school community to reflect on the day-to-day education offered in the light of the large issues of our times. It is also seen as ensuring that teaching and learning are ways of fostering idealism and encouraging strength and spiritual insights.

A model of leadership which is consonant with overall Brigidine philosophy is the leader as an ongoing learner. Being educated is a process that never ends and as leaders it is important to model this.

The notion of modelling what we say we believe seems a vital aspect of all leadership and is consistently stressed in Brigidine documents. As adults in a learning community, it is essential to be trying to be personally authentic.

The role of school leaders

The following descriptors are especially for staff who hold designated positions of responsibility. However, they are not exclusively the domain of these people. There are times when all staff will have the opportunity to exercise leadership in these ways.

There are other key documents and statements that are common to all Brigidine schools - among these are the Brigidine Core Values, Brigidine Criteria for what makes an education Catholic and the Brigidine Guidelines for Enrolment and these will provide ways to revisit the core mission of the school. It is important for all leaders in Brigidine schools to know what it means to be part of this tradition.

IN BRIGIDINE SCHOOLS LEADERS ARE EXPECTED TO:

Articulate a clear and informed vision for the school

This is a constant imperative for leaders. It is necessary to clarify and restate what is distinctive about the school in ways that will fire the imagination of the school community. The school's total vision will become a reality to the extent to which it is owned and espoused by the whole school community - particularly the staff.

The vision must be rooted in the various traditions to which the school lays claim and be open to the society of which it is part.

The Catholicity of the school needs constant revisiting and the sources of scripture and tradition are so rich that they will never be exhausted. New insights can provide impetus for staff and students to work together to achieve good. As well, it is important to remember tradition, perhaps in particular that the first Catholic schools were mainly devoted to educating those who had been dispossessed - in Australia these were usually the poor Irish. It could be seen that the modem equivalent is educating those young people who have been marginalised by our society or are from Asia and other troubled places in the world and have been forced to migrate to Australia for survival.

The Brigidine character of the school gives colour and cohesiveness and can be used to provide energy and direction. As well, each school also has its own unique story with its dreams, peak moments, 'characters', joys and sorrows, achievements and leamings - the history and folklore of these provide a basis for community.

Moreover, a vision is always something out ahead of us - beckoning us forward. It is never reached but it has to be at least in part attainable. A consideration of the vision should always make us somewhat uneasy because we are 'not there yet'.

Each school has its own Vision statement and it is important to focus attention regularly on the whole statement or parts of it; ideally it should be used to critique all developments in the school. It should also provide a vehicle for critiquing aspects of broader educational and social issues.

Establish and maintain a strong school community

The challenge for all school leaders is to image a bonded community called together to live as disciples of Jesus. This involves reflecting on the gospel accounts which tell of Jesus spending a lot of time with his followers and on his teaching about discipleship. Many times Jesus turned upside down the generally accepted notions of social interaction and gave a new meaning to community. The Liberation theologian, Metz wrote "The cross is a symbol of writing history upside down". It has been said that the cross is our symbol and our stumbling block. It reminds us that the reality of what it means to be community is to be seen by looking at the lives of those at the bottom of the pyramid of society.

Effective leadership in the school will try to model the standard of love that Jesus showed to the sick, the weak, the oppressed and the persecuted.

This style of leadership means that leaders need to know the community they serve. This involves a lot of informal relating to as many people in the school community as possible. It also means being willing to be part of social occasions where different groups from the community will be present.

Translate the vision into goals for the whole school community

Effective leaders can list the goals for their schools and the various components of the school without hesitation. There is always an element of the vision in these goals. They are not simply pragmatic responses to a problem. The goals should be obvious to the whole school community as all groups and individuals will be affected by the actions designed to achieve the goals. The specific goals at any point in history are important because cumulatively they need to have consistency and add up to a statement of the vision.

The vision has actually been translated when the staff, students and parents can express it - in their own way and with some real understanding. An acceptance of the vision has happened when people in the school community talk about the school's successes, when they are enthused by the way the school puts its vision into practice and when there is a sense of pulling together to achieve the vision and the goals.

Since teachers are the key players in translating the goals, the vision will not be achieved if teachers lack a common understanding of the goals, if they have no sense of ownership of the vision or goals but see the responsibility for these as belonging to someone else, if they see themselves as employed simply to teach a subject and function simply as individuals or if they are 'problem-oriented' in their approach to teaching.

It is necessary to take time for both goal setting and for revisiting aspects of the school's direction and specific goals. Parts of staff meetings, days at the beginning and end of terms or part of the tinie taken for staff reflection provide opportunities for this.

Establish a school climate that supports progress towards these goals and expectations

Establishing a climate that supports the vision of the school is essential even though it

may seem an ephemeral quality. In the end it often seems to be the aspect of the school that allows the vision to be implemented or it thwarts it. The school climate seems to be set by the staff and it then flows over to the rest of the school community. A supportive staff climate is gradually built up in multiple ways; among these are shared social events, recognition of individual people's joys and sorrows, time given for preparing new programs, care in matching staff gifts and tasks assigned, work in teams, easy access of staff to the school leaders.

A good school climate is not one without challenge. Challenges can be given to the

whole school community within a supportive climate.

The climate reflects the nature of the community. Part of an effective community is giving everyone (especially the most vulnerable) a sense of belonging. It is also possible in such a community to make mistakes and to learn from them. Leaders need to

recognise this for others, especially students. They need also to show that they

themselves can make mistakes, that they can admit to such and that they can he seen to learn from the experience.

It is important for leaders to constantly spell out what it means to be in this particular school community.

In this time of transition in church the leader needs to continue to be in dialogue about the way people (especially young people) are invited and welcomed into the church as

the community of faith. In this regard it is especially important to ensure that the climate for relationships is good.

maintain the school's focus on effective learning possibilities for all students within a clear and articulated value framework

It is generally accepted that schools need to constantly develop programs and adapt to new learning insights and realities. It is the role of leaders to engender enthusiasm for these changes and this needs to be done within the framework of what makes for good teaching and learning within the vision for this school.

It is important to match teachers and teaching skills with the needs of the students. This often means maximising the complementarity of teacher competencies and finding creative ways for using these in the interests of all.

Leaders need to find as many ways as possible to allocate funding and materials to maximise teaching effectiveness and student achievement.

The priorities set should reinforce and promote the vision. Sometimes these priorities will not be those that would be set by others in the school community - staff or students or parents. It is important not to adopt a 'don't rock the boat' approach or to only honour requests that can be easily satisfied.

Effective leaders will do the best possible time-tabling of lessons and events and take utmost care with assigning teachers in terms of achieving the overall goals of the school.

Continuously monitor progress

It is essential for leaders to 'follow through' school development in the light of agreed goals and action plans. A 'stop-go' approach can destabilise and de-energise the school community. On the other hand, this should not prevent some attempts to be creative, knowing that only some pioneering things will be successful.

The. progress should continually be critiqued in the light of the vision. The different educational experiences provide new value indicators and are a way of revisiting the basic philosophy and beliefs of the school.

Leaders need to be involved in developments in the school and he able to provide specific details about progress. It is sometimes claimed that because teachers are professionals they should be left to work alone; this precludes the leadership that

enables, monitors, supports where necessary. It is important for leaders to gather information both formally and informally. There is limited monitoring actually

mandated by authorities outside the school but good leadership consistently seeks to know what is happening in the school and assess its worth. Determining ways to achieve this is part of the role of the leaders.

Some practical ways may be being part of planning meetings, modelling lessons being involved in appraisal activities.

intervene in a supportive or corrective way when necessary

Leaders need to look for positive features and praise adults and students in the school community for them. This can be done by being part of team meetings, being involved in as many aspects of the life of the school as possible. It is obvious that if the leaders do not have specific information about what is happening in the school they cannot give praise and support; therefore various forms of communication and structures to ensure good feedback are part of good leadership.

Leaders need to be able to spot problems as they occur and take necessary corrective action. They also have to be aware of the times when it is best to offer support and assistance.

At times it will be necessary to set the boundaries for action - sometimes because of practical considerations and at other times because some things are not in line with the schools' vision and philosophy.

CONCLUSION

Our current aim is to establish a network of support for leaders in Brigidine schools. This is both personal support to carry out the challenging role of leadership, and support in implementing the kind of education that the Victorian Province of the Brigidine Sisters has espoused.

The development of Stewardship Councils, the role of the Brigidine Secondary Schools' Council in being proactive about designing a future for the schools, the service offered by the full-time members of the Brigidine Secondary Schools' Council, the Brigidine Leadership days, the establishment of some common informing documents and policies and the involvement of Brigidine Leaders in Principal appointments and Appraisal are ways we are trying to achieve cohesiveness and vision for the whole group.

A symbol often used by Brigidines is the acorn and a consistent theme in Brigidine literature is the idea of planting seeds for the future. We are therefore encouraged to keep exploring a 'strong and gentle' leadership that will nurture and support all those in the school community.

References:

Writers whose work has influenced this paper

Michael Fullan

Ken Leithwood

Peters & Waterman