Interview with Dr. Eugene G. White, Supt. Indianapolis Public Schools

Handling the Tough Decisions: Preserving Student Achievement during Budget Cuts

Handling the Tough Decisions: Preserving Student Achievement during Budget Cuts

Dr. Eugene G.White, Superintendent of Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) in Indiana discusses difficult choices in district leadership with host Mr. Arthur Griffin. An accomplished author and recipient of 2009 Indiana Superintendent of the Year award (also in 2002). Having experience through the ranks from school principal through medium to large urban districts, he has much to share on leadership and coping with the difficult decisions faced in these roles.

Dr. White has authored two books for school leaders including Leadership Beyond Excuses: The Courage to Hold the Rope.

Specific topics included in this interview with Dr. White:

• Most difficult decisions faced across 30 years of school and district leadership
• Coping with large budget cuts while maintaining educational excellence
• Describing priorities, equity, and negotiation during process of budget cuts
• Effective strategies to promote student achievement
• Role of early childhood education
• Challenges facing district leaders today

District Leaders Podcast is always Leading Today for Success Tomorrow!

Biographical Background

Dr. Eugene G. White was born in Phenix City, AL, to a single 17-year-old mother in December 1947. He was the first person in his family’s history to graduate from high school. He grew up in a time of segregation and Jim Crow practices in Southeast Alabama. In high school, he excelled in football, basketball, and baseball. His mother, grandmother and athletic coaches heavily influenced him. He was a starting member of the 1966 Alabama State Championship Basketball Team and accepted a basketball scholarship to Alabama A&M University. He graduated with academic honors and set career scoring marks at Alabama A&M University.He was a teacher, coach and school administrator in the Fort Wayne Community Schools for 19 years. He was the first African American high school principal in the Fort Wayne Community Schools, where he served as principal of Wayne High School from 1985 to 1990. In 1990 he became the first African American high school principal of North Central High School in Indianapolis, serving until 1992. He was Deputy Superintendent of the Indianapolis Public Schools from July 1992 to January 1994. He served as Superintendent of the Metropolitan School District of Washington Township for 11 years. In 2005, Dr. White was named Superintendent of the state’s largest school district, IPS.

Dr. White has served in a large number of leadership capacities over the years, most recently as President of the American Association for School Administrators in 2006-07.

Dr. White has received a wide variety of honors over his career, including:

• 2002 and 2009 Indiana Superintendent of the Year
• 2007 National Association of Black School Educators (NABSE) Superintendent of the Year
• 2006 Modern Red Schoolhouse Distinguished Service Award
• 2001 Alabama A&M University Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee
• 1997 Indiana Music Educators Association Outstanding Superintendent of the Year
• 1995 Center for Leadership Development Education Award
• 1992 named by Redbook magazine as a “visionary leader” as principal of one of America’s  Best Schools

Dr. White is the author of the book, “Leadership Beyond Excuses: The Courage to Hold the Rope.”  He co-wrote a second book, “Leading Schools of Diversity.”

He received an Ed.D. in Education Administration and Supervision from Ball State University in 1982, an Ed.S. in Superintendency from Ball State University in 1977, an M.S. in School Health from the University of Tennessee in 1971, and a B.S. in Social Studies, Health and Physical Education from Alabama A & M University in 1970.  He is a Life Member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity.

Dr. White is married to Jetties White and has two children: Reginald E. White, Dean of Students and Head Girls Basketball Coach, Arsenal Tech High School in IPS, and Kimberly R. White, a teacher and coach at John Marshall Community High School in IPS.

Interview with Dr. Bruce Cooper, Professor of Educational Leadership, and Policy,  Fordham University.  Solutions for School Finance and Policy Issues

Solutions for School Finance and Policy Issues

Dr. Bruce S. Cooper, Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy,  Fordham University, prolific author, well-known expert in school policy and finance and former President of the Politics of Education Society (PEA) is our guest for this special interview with District Leader’s Podcast joining our guest host Dr. Kathleen P. King.  In the field of educational administration, policy, and finance, Dr. Cooper is a trend setter and prolific author, research and mentor of school leaders and superintendents around the globe. In 2009, he also received the Scribner Award for Mentoring from UCEA. Join us for this vibrant discussion as Cooper and King share how school superintendents strategize to succeed during a time of decreased funding and increased demands.

Specific topics include the following hot topic issues in policy and finance related to stimulus funding:

• How can the stimulus funding money be allocated and distributed equitably to your schools?
• How can superintendents efficiently distribute monies across schools, children and special needs?
• Is there a proven method that will help school leaders?
• Why is school effectiveness demanded, and is there anything new about how it can be measured?

District Leaders Podcast is always Leading Today for Success Tomorrow!

Biographical Background
Bruce S. Cooper, Ph.D. is Professor in the Division of Educational Leadership, Administration, and Policy (ELAP) in the Graduate School of Education at Fordham University. A graduate of the University of Chicago (Ph.D. ’74 and M.S. ’72), Dr. Cooper has done extensive research on school finance, organization, policy, and reform, working at Coopers & Lybrand in the development of the In$ite finance model, with Mayor Guiliani on analysis on school-site funding in NYC public schools, and the decentralization of governance in the nation’s most centralized school system (no local districts, boards, or superintendents).

Drs. Ouchi and Cooper received a $1 million grant to analyze organization and funding in six North American districts (NYC, Chicago, LA, Edmonton, and Houston), looking at the relationship between funding, management, and student achievement. He has served on the editorial boards of The Educational Administration Quarterly, Journal of School Leadership, and Policy and Leadership in Schools. He has authored and coauthored 22 books, and over 275 articles, chapters and papers, and serves these last years as national president of the Politics of Education Association.

Cooper co-edited Better Policies, Better Schools with (Allyn & Bacon, 2004) and Handbook on Education Politics and Politics for Lawrence Erlbaum (Drs. Lance Fusarelli and Jim Cibulka). His newest work is The Rising State: How State Authority is Changing our Schools Albany, NY: SUNY Press with Bonnie Fusarelli (2009).

Other recent books and very relevant include

• Better Policies, Better Schools (2004, Allyn and Bacon) with L.Fusarelli;
• Promises and Perils Facing Today’s School Superintendents (Rowman and Littlefield, 2003) with L.Fusarelli;
• Truancy Revisited (Scarecrow Press, 2003) with R. Guare;
• Optimizing Educational Resources (Greenwood Press, 1999); and
• Career Crisis in the School Superintendency? The Results of a National Survey , with L. Fusarelli, & V. Carella (Arlington, VA: National Association of School Administrators, 2000),
• Home Schooling in Full View (Information Age Publishing, 2006) was one of the first books on this new form of private education.

His consulting has included a national survey for Pres. Nixon for the President’s Commission on School Finance, work with Coopers & Lybrand LLP and SchoolNet, and with Mayor Guiliani in NYC on school finance and student achievement and high school to college transition. He’s currently an expert witness in a NY State equity/adequacy case.

Related Web Links:

• Fordham University, Graduate School of Education
  • http://www.fordham.edu
• UCEA, University Council for Educational Administration
  • http://www.ucea.org/

District Leader’s Podcast is produced and copyrighted by The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2007. All rights reserved.

For more information email us at podcast@districtleaderspodcast.org or phone us at 1-866-435-5337 (toll free) and leave a voice message for our co-hosts.

Description

The District Leaders Podcast is proud to present a two part series on – The Stimulus Funding and Economic Recovery Act, RTI and the New Administration. This valuable podcast is brought to you by a distinguished panel of educational leaders:

• Michael Casserly, Executive Director of the Council of the Great City Schools,
• Daniel A. Domenech, Executive Director of the American Association of School Administrators and
• Arthur Griffin, District Leader’s Podcast host and Senior Vice President of The Urban Advisory Resource for McGraw-Hill Education.

These experts bring district level application to recent announcements from the White House and Department of Education. Listen as these key leaders who have participated in press conferences with the US President and Secretary of Education share insights about what is happening from teacher incentives to IDEA funding, Title I opportunities and restrictions, NCLB shifts, new assessment indications and governmental not only in word, but backed by resources and funding…..

Topics for Part 2 (District Leaders Podcast Episode 39)

• Insider’s discussion of RTI (Response to Intervention)
• Opportunities for building current RTI programs- short term and long term
• Undeserved communities- filling the gap; teacher incentives; new assessment emphases? professional development?
• How do the different sources connect: IDEA, Title I and Stimulus Funding?
• Demographic changes, population growth and impact on education and funding?
• Possible shift in attention from early childhood (NCLB) to higher education (Obama)?
• Dollars, resources and expectations for teacher professional development
• Trends in school district plans for use of the Stimulus Funds
• Where is there $5 million discretionary funds…listen in to find out….

The panel presentation was recorded at the 2009 Response to Intervention (RTI) Solutions Virtual Conference . You may still visit the conference and hear other sessions online, at your convenience at the RTI Solutions Virtual Conference website.

Biographical Backgrounds of Panelists

See Episode 38 descriptions

District Leader’s Podcast is produced and copyrighted by The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2007. All rights reserved.

For more information email us at podcast@districtleaderspodcast.org or phone us at 1-866-435-5337 (toll free) and leave a voice message for our co-hosts.

Description

The District Leaders Podcast is proud to present a two part series on – The Stimulus Funding and Economic Recovery Act, RTI and the New Administration. This valuable podcast is brought to you by a distinguished panel of educational leaders:

• Michael Casserly, Executive Director of the Council of the Great City Schools,
• Daniel A. Domenech, Executive Director of the American Association of School Administrators and
• Arthur Griffin, District Leader’s Podcast host and Senior Vice President of The Urban Advisory Resource for McGraw-Hill Education.

These experts bring district level application to recent announcements from the White House and Department of Education. Listen as these key leaders who have participated in press conferences with the US President and Secretary of Education share insights about what is happening from teacher incentives to IDEA funding, Title I opportunities and restrictions, NCLB shifts, new assessment indications and governmental not only in word, but backed by resources and funding…..

Topics for Part 1 (District Leaders Podcast Episode 38)

• Introduction of expert panelists
• Why is the Economic Recovery Act important for our schools?
• How significant could this be for our nation?
• What are possible challenges for implementing the Stimulus Package?
• Why is creativity suggested as being needed at this time of potential additional funding?
• How do the different sources connect: IDEA, Title I and Stimulus Funding?
• Evidence of new administration challenging assumptions of NCLB!
• and more…

The panel presentation was recorded at the 2009 Response to Intervention (RTI) Solutions Virtual Conference . You may still visit the conference and hear other sessions online, at your convenience at the RTI Solutions Virtual Conference website.

Biographical Backgrounds of Panelists

Michael Casserly, Executive Director of the Council of the Great City Schools. Dr. Casserly has served as Executive Director of the Council of the Great City Schools (Chicago, IL) since January 1992. Casserly also served as the organization’s Director of Legislation and Research for 15 years before assuming his current position. As head of the urban school group, Casserly unified big city schools nationwide around a vision of reform and improvement; launched an aggressive research program on trends in urban education; convened the first Education Summit of Big City Mayors and Superintendents; led the nation’s largest urban school districts to volunteer for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP); led the first national study of common practices among the nation’s fastest improving urban school districts, and launched national task forces on achievement gaps, leadership and governance, finance, professional development, and bilingual education. He is currently spearheading efforts to boost academic performance in the nation’s big city schools; strengthening management and operations; challenging inequitable state financing systems; and improving the public’s image of urban education. He is a U.S. Army veteran, and holds a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland and B.A. from Villanova University.

Dan Domenech, Executive Director of the American Association of School Administrators. Dr. Domenech has served as executive director of the American Association of School Administrators since July 2008. A native of Cuba who moved to the United States at the age of nine, Domenech has more than 36 years of experience in public education. Prior to joining AASA, Domenech served as senior vice president of the Urban Advisory Resource for McGraw-Hill Education. In this role, he was responsible for building strong relationships with large school districts nationwide and increasing awareness of McGraw-Hill’s educational programs and services. Prior to his position at McGraw-Hill, Domenech served for six years as superintendent of the Fairfax County, Va., Public Schools, the 12th largest school system in the nation with 168,000 students. Domenech began his teaching career in New York City, where he taught sixth grade in a predominantly black and Hispanic community in South Jamaica, Queens. He then became program director for the Nassau Board of Cooperative Educational Services, which is the largest intermediate school district in the State of New York. Following this, he was first named superintendent of schools for Long Island’s Deer Park Schools and then became superintendent of schools for the ethnically diverse South Huntington School District, also on Long Island — a position he held for 13 years. From 1994 to 1997, he was district superintendent of the Second Supervisory District of Suffolk County and chief executive officer of the Western Suffolk BOCES. Domenech, an AASA member since 1979, served as president of AASA from July 1998 to June 1999. He is also a past president of the New York State Council of School Superintendents, the Suffolk County Superintendents Association, and the Suffolk County Organization for Promotion of Education. He was the first president and co-founder of the New York State Association for Bilingual Education. In addition, Domenech has served on the U.S. Department of Education National Assessment Governing Board, on the advisory board for the Department of Defense schools, and on the board of directors of the Association for the Advancement of International Education. He currently serves on the boards of the Institute for Educational Leadership and the Education Policy Institute. He earned a bachelor of arts degree from Hunter College in New York City and a Ph.D. from Hofstra University in Uniondale, N.Y.

Arthur Griffin, Jr., Senior Vice President for Urban Advisory Resource, McGraw-Hill Education Mr. Griffin is senior vice president of Urban Advisory Resource for McGraw-Hill Education, the premier provider of teaching and learning materials for the pre-kindergarten through 12th grade, higher education and professional markets. In his role, Arthur works closely with sales teams, school administrators and school board members in identifying solutions and strategies to achieve their number one priority – student achievement. Currently, he serves on the Board of Directors of the National DropOut Prevention Center, the Board of Trustees of the National School Board Foundation and the Executive Council of the Metropolitan Center for Urban Education- New York University. Arthur has over 21 years experience in public education. Prior to joining McGraw-Hill Education, he served 17 years on the Charlotte-Mecklenburg (North Carolina) Board of Education. Arthur distinguished himself as chair of the school board from 1997 to 2002. He received the Richard R. Green Award, as National Educator of the Year, sponsored by the Council of the Great City Schools. Mr. Griffin has been a guest lecturer at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, the Broad Superintendents Academy, University of Virginia’s Partnership for Leaders in Education, member of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Advisory Committee and a resident faculty member of the Broad and Texas Institute for School Board Members. Mr. Griffin is registered with the Texas Education Agency as a school board trainer. He is a nationally recognized resource in the area of public school governance. He has served on the Executive Committee of the Council of the Great City Schools and Steering Committee of the Council of Urban Boards of Education. He earned a Bachelor of Science – Liberal Studies, from the University of the State of New York at Albany. Mr. Griffin served as an infantry platoon leader in Vietnam and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army.

Related Web Links:

• 2009 Response to Intervention (RTI) Solutions Virtual Conference
  • Presentations and conference experience available on- demand until May 2010
    
• Council of the Great City Schools (Chicago, IL)
• American Association of School Administrators
• Urban Advisory Resource

District Leader’s Podcast is produced and copyrighted by The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2007. All rights reserved.

For more information email us at podcast@districtleaderspodcast.org or phone us at 1-866-435-5337 (toll free) and leave a voice message for our co-hosts.

Interview with Dr. William R. Hite, Jr., Supt of Prince George’s County Public Schools, MD First Interim Superintendent, then Superintendent!

Categories: Communication · Parents and Community · Financial Issues- Coping · Partnerships · Change Process · High Stakes Testing · Leadership · Making the Tough Decisions · Improving Student Performance · Trends in Education · Urban Education ·ARCHIVE ·

Biographical Background
Dr. William R. Hite, Jr. was named Interim Superintendent of Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) effective December 1, 2008 by the Prince George’s County Board of Education. Dr. Hite was hired as Deputy Superintendent of PGCPS in June 2006. Ensuring that all students graduate college- and career-ready, his work in Prince George’s County has been focused on school leadership development and improving the conditions for teaching and learning. This work continues at a rapid pace and without interruption, while the Board of Education implements a search for a new superintendent.

As Deputy Superintendent, Dr. Hite provided direct support to schools and was responsible for the departments of academics and accountability in addition to all six zone offices. He has led the work to reform high schools and restructure central support to enable need-based service to schools. Additionally, he developed systems used to measure central leadership effectiveness against student and school performance.

Previously, Dr. Hite was an Assistant Superintendent in the 106,000-student Cobb County School District in Georgia. While there, he supervised elementary, middle and high school principals and was responsible for the instructional programs for schools within his area.

Previously, he served as Director of Middle School Instruction in the Henrico County School System located outside of Richmond, VA. He also worked as a high school teacher and principal, and a middle school principal. Dr. Hite taught at the University of Richmond as an adjunct faculty member in the School of Continuous Learning.

Dr. Hite is a member of numerous local, state, and national boards including the Doctors Community Hospital Foundation. In 2005, he completed the Broad Superintendents Academy. Dr. Hite holds a Master of Education in Educational Leadership from the University of Virginia, and a Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership from Virginia Tech.

Related Web Links:

• Prince George’s County Public Schools
• PGCPS Office of the Superintendent Web Page

District Leader’s Podcast is produced and copyrighted by The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2007-2009. All rights reserved.

For more information email us at podcast@districtleaderspodcast.org or phone us at 1-866-435-5337 (toll free) and leave a voice message for our co-hosts.

Interview with Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District Superintendent
Dr. David Anthony

Coping Successfully with Financial Hardships

Coping Successfully with Financial Hardships

In this interview, Dr. David Anthony of the Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District, of Cypress Fairbanks, Texas, is interviewed by District Leader’s podcast host Jason Marshall. Dr. Anthony, considered to be one of the state’s most knowledgeable, and active leaders in the issue of public school finance and funding in Texas.  Dr. Anthony speaks about the funding crisis in Texas, and what is being done at the state legislative level, and local level. The Texas Education funding crisis is seen by many to be dire, and has hit Cypress Fairbanks particularly hard. This piece provides educational insight into the Texas public school finance issue, and how it relates to larger districts. Cypress Fairbanks is the largest school district in Texas given the rating of “Recognized”.

Dr Anthony is also well known and respected for bond referendum success and community satisfaction. Dr. Anthony discusses strategies related to the communication, planning, management, and expectations in dealing with bond elections. Enjoy this podcast with one of Texas’s most respected educational leaders.

Large, geographically spread out districts can also fall prey to communication failure. Dr. Anthony discusses his philosophy related internal and external communication in a way that will be enjoyed by all.

Cypress Fairbanks is the 3rd largest school district in Texas, and the 29th largest district in the nation with 97,000 students. There are 186 square miles of land within the boundaries of Cypress-Fairbanks ISD. This makes it the second largest school system in land area out of the 22 districts in Harris County. Bordered by seven other school districts—Houston, Spring Branch, Katy, Klein, Aldine, Tomball and Waller—it is also the second largest district in terms of student enrollment. There are more than 96,000 students enrolled in CFISD for the 2007- 2008 school year—second only to Houston ISD.

Biographical Background
Dr. David Anthony began his career as superintendent of schools in Cypress-Fairbanks ISD on July 1, 2004. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Secondary Education from East Texas Baptist College in 1974, a Master of Education in Administration and Supervision from Northwestern State University in 1977 and a Doctor of Education degree from NSU in 1986. Prior to accepting the position of superintendent in CFISD, he served as superintendent in McKinney ISD, Texas City ISD, Mount Pleasant ISD, and High Island ISD.

Related Web Links:

• Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District, of Cypress Fairbanks, TX

District Leader’s Podcast is produced and copyrighted by The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2007. All rights reserved.

For more information email us at podcast@districtleaderspodcast.org or phone us at 1-866-435-5337 (toll free) and leave a voice message for our co-hosts.