Interview with Waterbury CT Superintendent
Dr. David Snead
Mobility and Poverty: Urban Education and the Role of the Superintendent

Key Topics include: Leadership | High Stakes Testing | Teacher Training |  Vocational Education | ARCHIVE | Trends in Education | Urban Education |  Making the Tough Decisions |  Improving Student Performance |  Professional Development

Dr. David Snead, Superintendent of the Waterbury (CT) Public Schools, joins host Ed Milliken for an interview which discusses vital topics effecting schools, superintendents, students and society today. They particularly focus this session on the topics of pupil achievement from the perspectives of poverty and mobility. In just one example of the depth and relevance of this interview, Dr. Snead emphasizes and explains how standards level performance is difficult to achieve when students live in an environment of poverty and children and families are very mobile. This school leader calls for curricular consistency as a powerful way enable students to progress in a learning sequence. He also points out that many of these same strategies are available to assist struggling students as they are available to educators and school districts, however additional resources are needed.

Join the District Leader’s Podcast for this 20 minute segment of refreshment and encouragement. Reaching out to superintendents, school leaders and school board members around the world, this series provides support, refreshment, resources, insight and encouragement.

Dr. Snead is optimistic about the future for the next generation of school superintendents and educational leaders. Listen in as we discuss curricular issues, leadership challenges, poverty, racism and teacher professional development within the reality of our schools and society.

Biographical Background

David Snead, Ph.D., is currently the Superintendent of the Waterbury (CT) Public Schools; a position he has held since August, 2000. The district, a department of the City of Waterbury, serves nearly 18,000 students (27% African American, 40% Hispanic, 31% white) with an annual budget of $123.5 million.

After teaching in Detroit, he served as a Detroit high school principal and named Principal of the Year. He became Superintendent of the Detroit Public Schools in 1994, and named Superintendent of the Year in Michigan in 1995. Since his arrival at in Connecticut, the Waterbury Public School district has undergone major changes, including the implementation of K-12 curriculum revisions, the updating of outdated textbooks, the initiation of new staff evaluation procedures, the establishment of diversity training for staff, the opening of a Family Intake Center for new student registrations, among other things. The district has a new inter-district magnet middle / high school for fine and performing arts and created e-mail accounts for all staff along with an extensive web site for parents and the community. Under his leadership, test scores rose significantly across the district. Due to the schools’ scholastic improvement, Waterbury received the “Outstanding Academic Leadership Award” from the Connecticut Association of Urban Superintendents in 2002-03. The district has begun closing the achievement gap between minority and majority students.

On numerous occasions, Dr. Snead has been recognized for his excellence in education. He was named one of the top ten Administrators in the United States by the National Council of School Safety, “School Administrator of the Year” by the Michigan Alliance for Arts Education, “Executive Educator of the Year” by the IBM Corporation and the Executive Educator Journal, and “Michigan Superintendent of the Year” by the Michigan Association of School Administrators. He is also the recipient of the Septima Clark National Education Award from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

Related Web Links:

• Waterbury (CT) Public Schools
• Connecticut Association of Urban Superintendents
• National Council of School Safety

District Leader’s Podcast is produced and copyrighted by The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2007-2008. 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 Jericho School District Long Island, NY Superintendent
Henry Grishman
Leadership- Innovative Approaches to Curriculum – The Role of the Superintendent

Key Topics include: Vocational Education · Career and Technical Education · Teacher Training · High Stakes Testing · Leadership ·

Henry (Hank) Grishman, Jericho School District (Long Island, New York) Superintendent of Schools, is interviewed by our podcast co-host Ed Milliken on the subjects of leadership and how to improve student performance. This vital interview emphasizes the achievement focus driving today’s schools, while Hank Grishman recognizes the learning disparities and raises concerns about the performance gap. School leaders around the country are not alone in coping with the variety of issues that arise from the situation. Listen in to this episode of the District Leader’s Podcast to gain support and additional strategies in leading your district and schools. What are the stress on schools and teachers? How can testing, school calendars, teacher professional development, curricula and programs be changed to bear results in this volatile matter?

With the many demands on schools, educational leadership positions are not particularly attractive. These conditions result in fewer career educators aspiring to the position of superintendent. Interesting information revealed in this interview shows that when asked, some of the elementary pupils in the Jericho School District offer their perception on the role of the School Superintendent.

Join us for another episode filled with insights for leadership success!

Biographical Background

Hank Grishman has been a superintendent of schools for 29 years. In 2008, he will celebrate a 30 year longevity anniversary as a New York State school superintendent. For the last 12 years, Hank has been Superintendent of the Jericho School District which has been recognized for its students’ high academic performance.

With his extensive background in educational leadership, Hank serves as the current President of the New York State Council of School Superintendents. Also, he is Vice President of the Nassau County (NY) Council of School Superintendents. An advocate of extra curricular and support programs for students, Hank is a member of the Executive Board of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association and Chairman of the Nassau County Superintendent’s Board for Athletics.

He began his education career as an elementary and middle school mathematics teacher. His first administrative assignment was as an Elementary School Principal in the Yonkers City, NY, School District, where he grew up. In 1978, he received his first appointment as a Superintendent of Schools in the Sharon Springs School District.

His collegiate experience includes an undergraduate degree from Penn State, a master’s degree from William Patterson University, and an educational leadership program at NYU.

Related Web Links:

• Jericho School District Long Island, NY

District Leader’s Podcast is produced and copyrighted by The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2007-2008. 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.