The Importance of Visibility.

I thought it would be appropriate to review a leadership characteristic that sometimes escapes school leaders...the importance of visibility.  Perhaps I shouldn't say "escapes."  Principals, assistant principals, activities directors...essentially anyone who works with effective administrators knows that from the moment one of these leaders walks through the door (or wakes up) their plans for the day are greeted with a whole list of other issues that arose in the last eight hours (or less) since leaving school the night before.  So administrators aren't escaping being visible; it is simply that perhaps we are not the ones seeing them.  It is critical to remember, on both the part of the teacher and the administrator, that the principal cannot do it alone.

Robert Marzano identifies in his book, "School Leadership that Works" with Waters and McNulty (2005) that visibility, or having quality interactions with students and staff, is one of twenty-one leadership responsibilities that positively correlates with increased student achievement.  So here is my beginning plan for being visible as an administrator...
 1. At least one hour per day, no excuses, I am scheduled to visit classrooms.  I can monitor and evaluate learning based on what I observe. If I am the instructional leader...I need to observe instruction! I can also identify strategies used by teachers that are worth sharing with other educators.
2. Stand in the hallway and greet students during passing time.  No my office door is not glued shut.  Also, this helps me with learning the name of every student in my school (we will get to that later).
3. Arts and athletics.  Attend the activities that are taking place in my school.  If it's the school play or band concert, I will be in the front row (even though I know as a theatre director that the best seat is half way back, in the middle).  If it is a football game, softball game, basketball game, tennis meet, cross country meet, swim meet, or Dungeons and Dragons Club...I am there alongside the parents and community members, cheering on my kids.
4. Parent advisory board.  Create the expectation that parents are to be involved in the life of the school.  I want to meet with parents for lunch, breakfast, coffee...whatever so I can ask the three things that are important to me... What do you think we are doing well? What would your child say we are doing well? What does the community say we are doing well?

I am not a principal.  At least not yet.  However, I am an idealist with a touch of reality. I am a teacher.  I want only the best for my students and I believe that if my energy can excite a room full of kids about writing and literature...maybe I can spread that energy around a little.  I am not Harry Potter...so until I am, I am hanging up the invisibility cloak.