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Jason Grey superintendent Riley CCSD #18

Building a Support Network in the Superintendency When we were hired to be superintendents of our respective school districts five years ago, we were brimming with excitement and ready to embrace our new role as school leaders. Our respective school boards put their faith in us that we were the right people to lead our districts forward. However, within weeks, each of us realized the role of superintendent was more complex than we imagined, especially in smaller districts where you’re also asked to be the lead person on finance, curriculum and human resources matters. By the time we arrived in Springfield for the IASA New Superintendent’s Conference, we had the mindset that, in order to learn on the job and survive, we needed to build a support network. IASA’s New Superintendent Conference provided that opportunity. We were seated next to each other, struck up a conversation and quickly learned we had a lot in common. Our districts were nearby in the Northwest regions and served students from similar backgrounds. The seeds of network building were planted that day and have continued to grow ever since. That’s the origin of why we recently presented together on this topic in a

Dr. Alex Kashner superintendent Eastland CUSD #308

24 LM October 2023