Monitoring Report - Operational Expectations (OE) Policies

Policy: OE-02

Title: Emergency Superintendent Succession Interpretation and Monitoring Indicators

Status: Active

Adopted: August 29, 2023

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To: School Board, Ferndale School District (WA)   

From: Kristi Dominguez, Superintendent  

Date: July 25, 2023 

 

Subject: 2023 Monitoring Report 

Operational Expectations Policy 2 (OE-2) 

Emergency Superintendent Succession 

 

 

Superintendent’s Introduction 

The purpose of Policy OE-2 is singular and straightforward. The School Board has one employee -- the Superintendent -- whom they have charged with carrying out their vision, values, and goals within the School District. Through this policy, the Board is directing the Superintendent to make sure that they have adequately documented the business and operations of the District and appropriately prepared one of more members of their team to take over if some unforeseen event should prevent the Superintendent from continuing to serve. 

As Chief Kevin Turner of the Ferndale Police Department reminded us earlier this year regarding safety protocols, you “plan for the worst and hope for the best.” This policy has been enacted twice in the history of the district, elevating the importance of its existence.  

In 2009, then-Superintendent Dr. Roger Lehnert came to work and went home for lunch as usual, and sadly passed away. During the 2021-22 school year, the district also needed a solid succession plan as Dr. Linda Quinn announced her retirement later in the hiring season. Mark Deebach (Assistant Superintendent of Business and Support Services) was asked to serve as our Interim Superintendent, giving the Board time to execute an exhaustive superintendent search. This allowed for a robust process that drew in highly qualified candidates from around the world. 

The job of the Superintendent is complex; it requires a leader that can manage and maintain the health and wellbeing of the organization. This includes oversight of the day-to-day operations, as well as looking forward to the development and implementation of a mission and vision centered on increasing student outcomes. A more formalized succession plan makes the transition easier for the new superintendent and, more importantly, is better for the organization. 

Within this monitoring report, we will address both a succession plan for our current school year (2022-2023) and an ongoing succession plan that supports the work of the District moving into the 2023-2024 school year. 

 

Policy 

The Superintendent will designate at least one other executive staff member who is familiar with the Board’s governance process and issues of current concern and is capable of assuming Superintendent responsibilities on an emergency basis.  

 

Interpretation 

We understand this means we need to have a plan in place that guarantees the District will continue to operate effectively, efficiently, and legally without interruption or impact if the Superintendent should unexpectedly become unable to provide leadership. 

To meet the expectations of this policy, we must ensure that our Assistant Superintendent and Executive Directors are prepared to assume the Superintendent’s duties under the direction of the School Board, with a deep understanding of priorities and services essential both to operating the organization and to maintaining our emphasis on student learning.  

Monitoring Indicator(s) 

We will know we are in compliance when we can show evidence that our Assistant Superintendent and Executive Team are prepared to assume emergency leadership effectively. 

They have clear understanding of both Administrative Policies and Governing Policies. 

 

As of July 2023, all five members of the current Executive Team are well-versed in both the Administrative Policies and the Governing Policies of our School District. These policies guide the work of the district, as they serve as the “what” we focus on. The Executive Team, led by the Superintendent, consistently work on the “how” to implement these policies. 

Current Assistant Superintendent (and former Interim) Mark Deebach participated in five days of Coherent Governance training with the School Board in late 2017. With the support of the Communications Team, all members of the Executive Team have been involved in writing policy interpretations, indicators, and goals. All of them have engaged in the work of monitoring our compliance and/or progress with the policies.  

Our Executive Team also possesses a working knowledge of the District’s collection of Administrative Policies, which are divided into six categories and numbered accordingly (1000s, 2000s, 3000s and so on). The Executive Team is currently working to review these policies, making recommendations for revisions based on WSSDA’s updated model policies. This is a process we are a bit behind on, so we need to prioritize this work in the near future. 

 

They have established positive relationships with the School Board, the Administrative Team, and Union Leaders. 

The Executive Team regularly engages in discussions with the School Board, working to ensure that the work of the district is relevant, clear, and continually focused on increasing student outcomes. The team has made it a priority to support the Board, and provide any needed information in a timely fashion. For instance, when a Board member has a question regarding a monitoring report or a situation within the organization, the appropriate Executive will work directly with that Board member to answer their questions as well as engage in a feedback loop. Examples of this can be seen during some Board meetings. Our Executive Team views themselves as part of the Board’s team, and they work in service of the Board and the system at large.  

Likewise, our Executive Team works closely with the other members of our District’s administrative team, interacting with them regularly in one-on-ones, small groups, and all-hands meetings. This past year we have worked to ensure that we understand we are all working towards a common goal to increase student outcomes for each child.  Given a previous lack in clarity regarding a district-wide mission and vision, the district is partnering with Dr. Tammy Campbell. She has been serving as a facilitator, guiding the District and Board through a process that will help us narrow our focus, while always keeping our students at the center. A District Strategic Plan is set to be completed in the winter of 2023-2024. 

Finally, the members of our Administrative Team consistently work to maintain positive relationships with the leaders of our unions. Relational leadership is foundational to moving the organization forward as a collective group. In order to create systems that are proactive, it is essential that we are all at the table wrestling with the issues and creating solutions together. All the members of our Executive Team, as well as key members of our administrative team, participate in one or more of the regular meetings that we have with our labor leaders.      

They have strong knowledge of the District’s established decision-making and communication processes and procedures. 

The Superintendent and members of the Executive Team meet every Tuesday morning to review, reflect, and refine the work of the organization.  The Superintendent also meets bi-weekly with each member of the Executive Team to discuss matters regarding their leadership development and to support the work of the organization.  Each of these meetings are structured to attend to the technical aspects and adaptive needs, attending to the items that support the daily operations and help set the system up for work to come. Examples may include staffing, program implementation and review, data review, safety, capital projects, major initiatives, contracts, and so on.  Most of the major administrative recommendations and decisions are collaboratively made in this space. Although the rapid pace at which we work precludes everyone knowing everything, the expectation that everyone is made aware to ensure cross-leadership can occur. When major events occur that haven’t been discussed ahead of time, we debrief them in one of our Executive Team meetings after the fact, or a special meeting is called. As needed, we also ensure that other Administrators are made aware of critical information as well as Labor Leaders.  

 

Superintendent’s Final Remarks 

This succession planning policy is designed to ensure that if the Superintendent is unable to perform the duties of the position, we have a systematic approach to providing leadership continuity within our organization. The focus is on identifying an immediate and short-term replacement. I feel confident in assuring the School Board that we are in good shape on this front. If the Superintendent is unable to perform the duties of the position, Mark Deebach, Assistant Superintendent, would be the first appointed individual, with Executive Directors, Kellie Larabee and/or Trina Hall, being the third in line. Each member of the Executive Team has both the knowledge and the leadership capacity to run the School District should the need arise.  Having an interim allows the Board time to run a thorough Superintendent search to find a more permanent placement.  

  

ANNUAL WORK PLAN (GC-6-E) 

MONTH	YEAR 23/24  Receive Report at Board Meeting	YEAR 24/25  Receive Report at Board Meeting
June	OE-9 Learning Environment  T & L
July	OE-2 Succession Planning   Supt	OE-1 Global Expectations   Supt
August	OE-4 Personnel Administration   HR  Policy Updates	Policy Updates
September	R-2.1 English/Language Arts   R-2.2 Mathematics   R-2.3 Science   R-2.5 Social Studies   T & L	R-2.1 English/Language Arts   R-2.2 Mathematics   R-2.3 Science   R-2.5 Social Studies   T & L
October	OE-7 Asset Protection   Asst. Supt	OE-8 Communication with the Board   Supt
November
December
January	OE-5 Financial Planning   OE-6 Financial Administration   Asst. Supt	OE-5 Financial Planning   OE-6 Financial Administration   Asst. Supt
February	R-1 Mission   Supt	OE-3 Relationship with the Community   Supt
March	OE-11 Facilities   OE-12 Safety   Asst. Supt	OE-12 Safety   Asst. Supt
April	R-5 Early Childhood Readiness  T & L	R-4 Character/Social Emotional Learning  T & L
May	R-3 Civic Engagement   T & L	OE-10 Instructional Program   T & L
June	R-2.6 Arts  R-2.7 Health and P.E.  R-2.8 Electives  R-2.9 World Languages  T & L	R-2.4 Technology   R-6 Career Readiness   T & L or Exec Team

  

Responsibility Key: “T & L” = Teaching and Learning