May LM 2024_1

Professional Development

Dr. Courtney Orzel IASA Associate Director of Professional Development

Webinars, Windshields, and Wisdom: A Superintendent’s Winding Road Back

Looking back over the last four years, I’ve gained invaluable insights from other superintendents across the state. Returning to the superintendency, I feel more confident than I did 11 years ago when I first started, thanks to the learning opportunities provided by IASA. Taking on this role in the midst of the pandemic was both nerve-wracking and challenging, but it opened doors to professional learning opportunities I never imagined. On my first official day, I hosted a webinar for over 600 superintendents, despite never having done so before, propelling us to launch one of the largest and most successful remote learning initiatives for educators in the state, if not the country. Through multiple efforts, we recognized the need for greater emotional support for superintendents and their staff, leading us to create academies focused on mental health while continuing to advance in other areas and design personalized learning opportunities to help districts survive and thrive during and after the pandemic. During my four years at IASA, I delivered hundreds of keynotes across the state, reaching thousands of educators. We tripled our academy offerings, started three highly successful new cohorts, and achieved our highest-ever attendance at an IASA Annual Conference last year. Along the way, I had four new windshields in one year, put countless miles on my car, and forged friendships that will last a lifetime. Here are a few lessons I’ve learned: Just be yourself . This role is unique because I see superintendents both with their colleagues and within their districts with students and staff. We tend to be more guarded around other superintendents than when we’re engaging with

students or our own staff. My hope is that we bring more of our authentic selves to region meetings, just as we do when working with our teams and students. People are struggling. In my role at IASA, I’ve witnessed people at their highest highs and lowest lows. I’ve been a counselor, cheerleader, mentor, coach, confidante, and teacher. Despite our titles, we all face struggles. IASA is the best. Working for IASA has shown me that it offers the best collective services of any state association in the country. Our small but mighty IASA staff accomplishes incredible things to support us as leaders. Illinois has the best superintendents, not because I am one of them again, but because I’ve seen their collective strength, resilience, determination, professionalism, and dynamism. We need to support each other. While it seems simple, it’s not always practiced. We’ve seen superintendents displaced for various reasons, often left isolated without support from colleagues, feeling “treated like the plague” by their peers. While many recover in other roles, some leave the profession altogether. My hope is that when you hear of someone struggling, you reach out with a text, call, or note to let them know they’re not alone. Our families are silently suffering. Many people wondered why I would leave the Association, a great job, to return to another job I loved. The answer is simple: my children need me. A few weeks ago, I saw a flyer for an event at my daughter’s school and asked why she hadn’t given it to me. She replied, “Because you’ve never been to a single event for me during the school day.” She was right. It was then I realized that my career choices shouldn’t make my family suffer and that happened the last four years, and it happened while I was a superintendent.

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LM May 2024