Towards the end of March, I sent Jerry Almendarez, the recently appointed superintendent of Santa Ana Unified and my most recent boss, a text.  Basically, in less than three months on the job, he had already had to address a nearly 50 million dollar projected budget deficit, inherited some contentious charter litigation, and now was facing the COVID-19 pandemic and historic physical closure of schools (as close a scenario to a zombie apocalypse as I could imagine).   My text was basically a thank you for stepping up to what might be the leadership challenge of a lifetime.

While my time with Jerry was short, just under 6 months, his impact on my leadership development has been formative.  I try to live life with as few regrets as possible, but I have to admit that I am genuinely sad that I didn’t have a little more time to work with and learn from Jerry.  Here is my attempt to capture just a few of the most important lessons Jerry has taught me during our time working together.

Personal & Authentic

Yes, it’s the title of a book by author Tom Murray that Jerry invited us all recently to read together.  It also reflects Jerry’s desire for all of the employees in SAUSD to invest time and energy into developing caring relationships with the students and families we serve.  It’s a reminder that education is much more than just academic skills – it is about supporting our children across all aspects of their development.  It is a reminder that each student has a story, and that it is incumbent upon us as educators to learn those stories, validate them, and build on them in meaningful, personalized ways.

Jerry’s invitation to be more personal and authentic in our work as educators resonates even more deeply as he is a superintendent who strives to model personal connection in his own leadership practices.   Whether he is making time to attend senior exit interviews, joining school site staff meetings to say hello, sending an unexpected text of encouragement, or personally hosting a book club with teachers & classified staff, Jerry prioritizes time to connect and build relationships.

Lead Learner

Jerry is a leader who is open about what he doesn’t know and his need to keep learning.  Education administrators are notorious for their desire to always have the right answers and perfect solutions.  “Expertise” is the sometimes damaging currency of education leadership.  Admitting you don’t yet have the immediate answer or that you will have to rely on others to help develop a strong solution is often the first step in drawing more out of your team.  Instead of taking it all on your shoulders as the leader, you distribute responsibility and ownership of the problem by being honest about where you will need help.  Indeed, at the heart of the learning organization is a recognition that you are being asked to do things that you don’t yet have the capacity or skill to do.

As the “lead learner” Jerry is fearless in calling on members of the organization to step up their efforts to learn and grow.   He models what it means to collaborate with and rely on one another to address complex challenges.  I have been in many management team meetings where Jerry or other team members have identified a gap in our current operations or knowledge set, only to be immediately followed by a collective invitation to build capacity in that area.  Jerry embraces his need to learn and address gaps in his own leadership practice, just as he expects everyone in the organization to do the same.  Even before COVID-19 hit, virtually every conversation or cabinet meeting with Jerry included a reminder that what matters most is investing in the development and improvement of each member of the SAUSD team.

Centeredness

Back when I worked for Envision Education, we did some work with the McKinsey consulting group on leadership development.  They introduced the idea of “centeredness” as the most foundational of leadership skills.  Essentially, “centered leadership” was the term they used to describe a leader who is secure in his or her abilities, focused on the things that matter most, unruffled by the inevitable but temporary ups and downs of daily leadership and crisis management, and aware that life is more than just our professional work and identity.

Jerry strikes me as falling in this category.  His years of experience in demanding leadership positions have tempered and weathered him well to address challenges without taking setbacks or disagreements personally.  His isn’t reactionary, and he finds opportunities for personal connection and humor in the midst of crisis.  He knows when he needs to engage more intensely, but is willing to let us know when a personal matter requires his more immediate attention.

Centeredness is about realizing that in any situation, we have choices to make as the leader.  As opposed to being a victim, the centered leader chooses to chart a deliberate path forward.  When a centered leader makes mistakes, they don’t try to hide it.  For example, when someone pointed out to Jerry in a meeting that his demeanor in a recent board meeting had seemed flat, instead of being defensive or dismissive about the observation, Jerry acknowledged and then laughed about it.  Turns out it really had been a long day and he and the Board had worked through a lot of challenging issues together.  That’s what leaders do.  Jerry was secure enough in his leadership not to get stuck because he had a down moment.