Written by Molly McMahon, Ph.D., director of leadership programs, Roche Center for Catholic Education, Boston College, [email protected]
Picture this: a teacher comes into your office on the brink of tears about a parent email questioning curriculum; staff are not finding common ground about school priorities at a staff meeting; you are called into another classroom to help with behavior management… If you are a Catholic school leader, you know this could all be in a single day’s work. But it doesn’t have to be. How can Catholic school leaders create more sustainable systems and a clear direction for their schools so that the community becomes a self-sufficient and well-oiled machine?
The National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) released the second edition of the National Standards and Benchmarks for Effective Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools (NSBECS), which includes Standard 6, stating “An excellent Catholic school has a qualified leader/leadership team empowered by the governing body to recognize, prioritize, and successfully embody the school’s mission and vision.” Standard 6 provides Catholic school leaders with a roadmap for sustainable, school-wide practices. However, with eight different sub standards incorporated into Standard 6, benchmarks for Catholic leadership can be an overwhelming amount of information to digest individually and to help your team to make sense of.
To make these national standards and benchmarks for Catholic school leaders more accessible and practical, we are introducing the Governance and Leadership Monograph. The monograph aims to be an interactive guidebook in which Catholic school leaders and their teams break down Standard 6, benchmark by benchmark, and reflect on how to implement these elements of leadership into their school communities. While the NSBECS concisely articulates what the standards for Catholic school leadership are, the monograph series fleshes out recent research related to these standards and connects theory with concrete steps for practice.
Each chapter provides an overview of the Catholic leadership benchmarks as well as examples of what these standards would look like in practice and how to get organized as a team to implement standards using sample meeting agendas. Throughout the chapters, there are reflection questions in the margins, under which there is ample space provided to take notes. Exercises that can be completed as a team and key reflection questions are included at the end of each chapter, making the content accessible.
Leadership creates the culture of the school community. This responsibility can feel daunting when school leaders must juggle managerial, instructional and spiritual competencies. According to NSBECS Standard 6, Catholic school leaders should:
- Take advantage of archdiocesan and statewide requirements for licensure;
- Continuously revisit a strong school mission and vision;
- Form staff from hiring to continued mentoring and professional development;
- Create systems of collaboration throughout the school community;
- Lead continued faith formation;
- Direct continuous innovation in curriculum development and academic excellence;
- Collaborate with the governing body to support school infrastructure aimed at whole-child formation;
- Communicate new school-wide initiatives;
- Build capacity for shared leadership.
Grab the monograph, read about best practices and reflect on where your school currently is. If you are part of a leadership team, make this reflection process a part of your professional meetings. If you are not, find more local leaders interested in using this to discuss the end-of-chapter questions. This monograph will provide you with all the tools you need to make the benchmarks of leadership fit into the context of your unique community, setting the wheels in motion for a positive and adaptable school climate.
Want more?
Molly will be presenting at CLS 2024 on Sunday, October 13, during the New Superintendents Academy and Tuesday, October 15, at the Catholic Leadership Summit.
NCEA members can download the Governance and Leadership Monograph for free at the NCEA Bookstore.
Upcoming Webinars
Wednesday, November 20, 2024, 12 PM ET
Effective Governance for Catholic Schools: Exploring the NSBECS Monograph Research & Resources
Wednesday, December 4, 2024, 12 PM ET
Effective Leadership for Catholic Schools: Exploring the NSBECS Monograph Research & Resources
