Leadership Matters April 2015

Illinois duo offers hand up to help boost number of minority school leaders

By Michael Chamness IASA Director of Communications Sheila Harrison-Williams and Constance Collins have climbed some pretty steep hills. One was raised on the west side of Chicago, the other in Gary, Indiana. They attained their doctorate degrees, they have achieved their goal of becoming school superintendents, and each of them has a lengthy and impressive list of awards and recognitions. Making it to the top of their profession in public education didn’t come easy, and now they are lending a hand up to other aspiring superintendents. This summer, they will be hosting their fifth annual National Alliance of Black School Educators (NABSE) Aspiring Superintendents Summer Institute. The three-day institute is scheduled for June 21-23 in Downers Grove . For the school administrators from around the country who are selected for one of the coveted 40 slots, the institute is a professional development and networking bonanza. For Harrison- Williams and Collins it is a way to give back and help others overcome the daunting odds facing minority candidates for the superintendency. “We became educators to have a positive impact on the lives of children,” said Harrison-Williams, who serves as superintendent of the Hazel Crest school district in south Cook County. “I truly believe that the work we are doing is a calling.” Noting that African American superintendents comprise less than 3 percent of the nation’s more than 13,000 public school superintendents, Collins says that minority children need more role models in

those leadership positions. “The road is not easy and as a result of our own journeys, we are aware of the struggles African Americans encounter during their ascension to the top position,” said Collins, who is superintendent of the Round Lake school district about 50 miles north of Chicago. “The increasing number of minority students across our nation validates the need for an increased number of minorities in the superintendency.” Indeed, Illinois in 2014 for the first time became a “majority minority” state, with Hispanic (24.6 percent), African American (17.5 percent), and other minorities totaling 50.1 percent according to the state’s interactive report card. However, according to statistics from the State Board, minorities comprise only 9.4 percent of the superintendents, 16 percent of the assistant superintendents, 22.9 percent of the principals and 17.8 percent of the teachers in Illinois. -- Hazel Crest Superintendent Dr. Sheila Harrison-Williams, who is co-director of the NABSE Aspiring Superintendents Summer Institute “We became educators to have a positive impact on the lives of children, I truly believe that the work we are doing is a calling.”

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