Learning the intricacies of any new job is made infinitely easier when one has the opportunity to witness a master in action. Although I have worked with her for some time and was aware of her many talents, when speaking with Lisa Lainchbury, administrator at Dormick Park Elementary School in Abbotsford, BC, it became ever more clear that I was in the presence of a masterful educational leader.
As is the case with many leaders, Lisa did not initially see herself as a leader within the school setting. As a new teacher, she found herself thrust into the position of organizing school-wide concerts; a role she took on only because she saw a need to be filled, rather than due to the desire to lead. Over the years, she found herself taking on similar roles, and she gradually began to realize that it felt natural to do so. Still, it came as a surprise when others would refer to her as a leader, and initially she felt no desire to take on leadership in a more official capacity. When Lisa had been teaching for over a decade, one of her colleagues suggested that she might think about becoming an administrator. As her journey thus far had enabled Lisa to see herself as a leader among her peers, she realized that administration was the next natural step for her to take. After working her way through this Master’s in Leadership program, Lisa is now able to use the lessons learned from each of her defining moments to help instruct others on their path toward successful leadership.
When asked how the community in which she works has shaped her as a leader, Lisa immediately pointed out that each community has been so different, and the most valuable lesson she has learned has been to “realize you don’t know what you don’t know.” When she was herself a new administrator, Lisa had the benefit of learning under the guidance of a more senior administrator, but one who was in a new position and in some ways similarly uncertain. Lisa said this guide would frequently discuss concerns with her, and often used the phrase, “Come learn with me” when exploring possibilities and solutions. Lisa has taken this lesson of learning with others, and now applies it to help problem solve with colleagues and parents in her current community. I was struck, as I listened to Lisa speak about this, with how similar her words were to those of Senge (2013): “The more you learn, the more acutely aware you become of your ignorance” (p. 10). Lisa’s willingness to explore her weak areas and to consciously strengthen them has greatly increased her impact as an authentic leader.
Lisa employs several strategies in her quest to share her vision with the staff, students, and parents of the school. One of the most effective, she says, is to remember that just as students need repetition when learning a new concept or skill, so do the adults in the building when trying to embrace a new technique or philosophy. This repetition of message, combined with a leader who exudes a passion for the vision, helps those reluctant to change become believers in their own right. As a leader who recognizes the need to engage parents and the community (Singh & Chanicka, 2015), another strategy to share vision that Lisa uses is the platform of social media. Through Twitter, Facebook, emails to the parents, school videos, and entertaining newsletters, Lisa constantly seeks for ways to make the parents and students feel like informed members of the school community.
Determining her proudest moment as a leader was easy for Lisa; in short, she bursts with pride every time she is able to share with visitors stories of our school’s many heartwarming successes. Knowing that our students feel safe and loved when at school - and knowing that her vision and passion helped to create an atmosphere where that is possible - is among Lisa’s greatest achievements. Having seen for myself the change that has been wrought over her tenure at the school, I have to concur that this should be a source of great joy and pride.
Being a self-aware person, it was similarly easy for Lisa to determine her biggest regret as a leader. She immediately recalled occasions in her early days as an administrator when she had jumped to conclusions regarding the behaviour of students, by picking sides prematurely. She says that at the time she had forgotten that there is a reason why children behave the way they do, and so now always remembers that “behaviour tells a story.” She strives now to “listen with intent” and to refrain from judging prematurely. This desire for “presence” (Starratt, 2013, p. 55) is why Lisa values face to face conversations and makes every effort to give each situation her full attention.
The advice that Lisa “now” - having been an administrator for over three years, largely in an inner city school - would give to Lisa “then” (at the start of her career) would be unequivocally to jump in and embrace every new situation. She stresses that her best advice is to just take the plunge and learn, and that “you don’t have to know everything, but you have to know who to call!” The willingness to ask for help and the ability to know who to ask, can give you the freedom to take risks and do things you never knew were possible.
At the close of our interview I asked Lisa if she had anything further to add. She thought for a moment, and then told me that while having typical leadership skills such as being organized, flexibility, a positive attitude, and an ability to communicate well are all important and helpful attributes, they all paled in significance beside the most important skill: building relationships. Lisa’s philosophy of leadership, summed up simply in her own words, is this: “Relationships first; job second.” That is what makes her such an influential and motivational leader.
References
Senge, P. (2013). “Give me a lever long enough...and single-handed I can move the world.” In
Grogan, M. (Ed.), The Jossey-Bass reader on educational leadership (3rd ed., pp. 3-16). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Singh, H. & Chanicka, J. (2015). How can educational leaders support parent engagement in
schools? In Griffiths, D., & Portelli, J. P. (Eds.), Key questions for educational leaders (pp. 267-272). Burlington, ON: Word & Deed.
Starratt, R. J. (2013). Presence. In Grogan, M. (Ed.), The Jossey-Bass reader on educational
leadership (3rd ed., pp.55-76). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
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