Next ASD leader, please listen to parents, teachers
In 2013, I packed my life in my car and moved to Memphis to work for the Achievement School District (ASD).
I knew little of Memphis or ASD before I came, but I believed in the mission of the organization. I bought into the words, enthusiasm and passion of the representatives of the organization — without having proof or a track record.
I sat in the cafeteria of Georgian Hills Achievement Elementary School that summer and was presented with the “facts” — dismal pieces of information that painted a picture of Frayser.
I also heard ASD’s goal that became its slogan: That we would move our schools from the bottom 5 percent to the top 25 percent in the state within five years.
I repeatedly asked, “What if we don’t reach the top 25 percent in 5 years?” No one thought of that as an option, not even the district leaders. For the first time in life, I didn’t see not reaching the goal as an option, either. Frayser couldn’t afford for us not to.
Over the years, many have come and gone from the district. I’ve served in ASD schools I wouldn’t send my daughter to. I have given days, nights and weekends to my students. My students and those being served by ASD, direct-run or authorized, never had time for us to try to get it together.
Not then and especially not now. The question I posed 5 years ago is not a probability, it is a reality. Most ASD schools still are in the bottom 5 percent.
As the state looks for the next ASD superintendent, here are my suggestions to the finalists:
❚ Understand that the families and students you serve don’t need your pity. They need excellence. It starts with an excellent leader.
❚ Surround yourself with leaders and thinkers who care more about the long-term effects of their influence instead of obtaining a resume booster.
❚ Be cognizant of the cultural competency of your staff. Be committed to cultural representation in the classroom and curriculum. Be careful not to generalize and not to make decisions for the majority based on generalizations. They don’t work.
❚ Understand what the community needs by asking. I promise, we’ll tell you. Please don’t listen for the sake of listening. Hear, then do. No one likes to be disregarded, especially parents.
❚ Understand what you’re walking into. Your experience will be beneficial, but only if you know how to apply it here. Allow your experience to provide insight for changes you must make — all with children in mind. Ultimately, they deserve different and better.
❚ Have a vision for how your leadership will change the trajectory of the community and students 20 years from now, not five. We need your best, every moment. If you’re unsure, gracefully bow out now.
❚ Be present and purposeful in all your decisions. Students can’t afford more losses. They are apprehensive, fragile and angry. Their time has been taken for granted. The community’s passion has been perceived as refusal. We just want what’s best for our children. Period.
I want to believe so much in the work you do that I would send my daughter to any school in your district. Help us trust again. Do the work. Produce results and see how different things can be.
I promise, when parents and teachers see great things happening for our children, we are the most loyal and consistent campaigners. When we don’t, well, you already know that.
Marlena Little is an educator at Memphis Scholars Florida Kansas, formerly at Georgian Hills Achievement Elementary School.
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