While CEOs and other leaders in the business sector often make use of executive coaching, superintendents and school administrators haven’t always had the opportunity to access quality, one-on-one coaching that meets their unique situations. Seeing a need for school administrators to receive the same level of support in their careers, TASA Deputy Executive Director, Member Engagement and Support, Charles Dupre and Executive Director Kevin Brown developed the TASA Executive Coaching Network.
“We want to support the effectiveness of our leaders,” Dupre says. “We are focused on transformational leadership, and to be transformational as a leader, you need time for reflection.”
For many public school leaders, the idea of participating in executive coaching can be uncomfortable. They might worry about the costs, or the optics of investing in themselves when budgets are tight. TASA is able to offer executive coaching at a far reduced rate compared to corporate-based offerings, and most administrators have professional development built into their contracts.
“Anybody in the business space, any constituents or board members would see this and think, ‘This makes sense, our CEO does this,’” Dupre says. “Even as superintendents, they have to invest in themselves to be better for their organization and to lead more productively. And effective leadership translates to improved student achievement and a positive district culture.”
The coaching TASA provides focuses on reflective inquiry. Coaches ask questions and reflect their client’s words back to them in a way to help them understand their goals, the obstacles and a path forward.
“The feedback I get most often from experienced superintendents is they never realized how much they needed somebody who can sit with them for an hour every couple of weeks to just process in a space that is totally safe and confidential,” Dupre says. “For some it’s about resolving dilemmas about major decisions or their personal wellbeing, or sometimes it’s about board relationships — a coach can sit and help them process all of those things.”
The Program’s Expansion
In August 2022, TASA kicked off the executive coaching program with a pilot group of first-time superintendents. Since then, more than 100 Texas school administrators have participated in the coaching program, and the feedback has been nothing but positive. With that resounding initial success, the association is now expanding the program to be more customizable and available to a wider group of school district leaders, including not just newbies, but seasoned superintendents.
TASA has increased the number of available executive coaches from an initial 10 to 24. Anyone interested in signing up for executive coaching can select their own coach by reading the bios on the TASA website and scheduling a discovery call with a prospective coach. The goal is to connect administrators with the ideal coach for them, say someone who has experience in a rural district, or has worked in a certain part of the state.
New Coaching Packages
Participants also get to choose whatever scheduling works for them. Originally the program included once-a-month meetings, but best practice is a bi-weekly schedule, so TASA encourages administrators to sign up for an initial 12-session package, meet with their coach every two to three weeks, then schedule as needed and on their schedule once the relationship is established. The goal is to make the program as flexible and customizable as possible, allowing participants to mold the specific type and amount of coaching they need.
“All coaching should be about the client,” says Brandon Core, TASA Associate Executive Director, Professional Learning & Member Engagement. “The client should be in the driver’s seat to choose the package that works best for them, one that meets their needs and helps them with the goals they want to accomplish.”
TASA offers 12-session coaching packages and 6-session coaching packages that enable clients to continue at whatever pace works best for them.
Group Coaching
Another new aspect to the program is group coaching, where one executive coach meets with a small group of leaders. The group may be self-selected or randomly assigned, based on the client’s request. This could be several administrators from neighboring districts who want to go in together on coaching specific to their needs.
Team Coaching
It could also be a district’s leadership team coming together for coaching in a way where the coach can address the unique circumstances of that district, not just broad, general leadership topics that might be the norm in large group professional development sessions for school leaders.
This spring TASA is also expanding programming to include individual and team coaching for executive leaders other than superintendents to help support the overall effectiveness of district leadership teams.
With more than 100 happy executive coaching recipients already served, praise continues to roll in for the program as TASA works to expand and improve offerings. From first-time superintendents to those who have held the role for a decade or more, program participants have found that coaching has been not only practical from a job standpoint, but has also helped them to feel personally reengaged and revitalized in their work.
“Every superintendent who has been participating in coaching has only good things to say about the experience,” Dupre says. “It’s helping them feel like they can thrive, like they’re not isolated in the job anymore, and that they’re able to have somebody on their side as their thought partner to celebrate the wins and grieve the difficult times, but more importantly to help them navigate the day-to-day decision-making and dilemmas every superintendent faces.”
