Eugene 4J in dire need of strong superintendent
Our students need equitable access to a high-quality education. Ensuring this begins with our education leaders: school boards and superintendents.
Eugene School District 4J is without a permanent superintendent. This is an urgent situation. We need a permanent leader if we are to move forward in supporting our students, closing achievement gaps and setting students on a path to a bright future.
Finding a leader is a solvable problem. Last fall, our school board, which is responsible for hiring and overseeing the superintendent, brought on a national search firm, Alma Advisory Group, to lead the superintendent search. However, last month Alma determined it could not keep working on our superintendent search unless the school board addressed issues of “trust and cohesiveness” amongst itself and reached a place of “healthier discussion.”
The firm felt the discord in our school board is so urgent that we should delay hiring a superintendent. The board agreed to improve its working relations and decided to continue the superintendent search.
We hope the improvement will last. A good place to start is for the board to align shared values for the superintendent.
As local leaders of Stand for Children, we are parents, educators and community members who advocate for children and equitable public schools. Our goal is for every Oregon student to have equitable access to a world-class education that prepares them for life. Our members want the Eugene school board to hire the best superintendent possible.
A superintendent’s unique responsibilities include leading the district by overseeing the district's big picture and prioritizing student success. Our superintendent must be an instructional and equity leader who can find useful ways to assess whether our schools are truly equitable. They must also make student mental health a priority. Our school board should come together and prioritize not just the search but also prioritize the following goals for our permanent superintendent:
Equity for underserved students: closing the gaps so all kids have a fair shake and hiring and supporting more diverse teachers
Effective instruction including using evidence-based curriculum and data in decision-making
Student mental health supports, especially to help students re-engage after the pandemic
Even before the pandemic rocked the nation’s schools, achieving educational equity was an urgent priority in Eugene. Our old system of some schools operating independently increased the disparity between “haves” and “have nots.” Eugene’s permanent superintendent must be an effective instructional and equity leader, meaning they will work from a lens of serving all students, across the district as well as at specific school sites.
They should be knowledgeable about research-based, student-centered instruction and require proven approaches within the classroom and as a component of continuous improvement. “Student-centered” means a humane, creative approach toward academic success.
As a community, let’s do our part. Let’s come together now and ask the school board to get the job done and prioritize these values in a superintendent. Talk to our board members. Urge them to do hard things together, not at odds with each other. Whoever is chosen will have an enormous impact on our district, on re-engaging students and making access to opportunity real for every child.
Milagra Tyler and Kelly Colvin Smith are parents of Eugene 4J students who have been active in their schools for years. They are the co-chairs of the local chapter of Stand for Children that works for good education, equity, and racial justice. stand.org/oregon
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Eugene 4J in dire need of strong superintendent
