Thriving in a COVID World – Call for Submissions

We’ve seen it played out in board of education meetings and broadcast on the evening news – divisiveness, confrontations, and in general, communities at the breaking point as we enter another school year in a COVID world.

Whether it be about COVID protocols, vaccines, controversial curriculum, or the many other hot-button issues of the day, school building leaders are in the middle, and it is taking its toll. Many school administrators are deflated, burned-out already, and/or contemplating their retirement. How do districts support their best and brightest, ensuring they bounce back and not bounce out? How can school leaders such as yourself stay the course and not just survive but thrive?

Some say that honing purposeful and deliberate leadership skills is the key. This includes practicing positivity, studying conflict resolution, nurturing a strong community, and learning the tricks of balancing pulls from multiple directions – all requiring listening and communication skills, empathy, focus, and perseverance. And, of course, without true self-care, a rewarding career in school administration is not sustainable.

All of this and more will be covered in the next issue of Vanguard magazine and we invite you, practitioners in the field, to contribute to this timely and important discussion. Please submit articles to mhebert@saanys.org by October 18. Submissions should be no longer than 1,500 words.