There are more than 14,000 public school
districts and 70,000 school board members in the United States. Most school
board members and administrators try to do everything that they can to improve
the quality of education provided to students in their district. They are
focused on setting effective policy, approving an appropriate budget and hiring
the best superintendent possible. However, some school boards are handicapped
by conflict. They suffer from public and private disagreements, constant
bickering, holding grudges and arguing frequently. Research suggests that public
school boards in conflict ignore many of the needs of the district they are
supposed to be leading. Unhealthy school board relationships lead to ineffective
policies, mediocre administrative leadership, inadequate teaching and poor
student academic performance.
School board and administrator conflict comes
about because of the inability or reluctance of members to reach an agreement about
controversial issues based on an understanding of each other’s perspectives. School
board members frequently fight about board leadership roles and
responsibilities, committee assignments, school budgets, curriculum, facility
issues, community involvement, programs, policies and local politics. The
personal “baggage” between school board members and administrators can prevent board
members from ensure that the district they lead provides a thorough and efficient
education to the enrolled students. The only way to address this type of conflict
is to use an approach to conflict resolution that I call “Effective Empathy.”
Empathy
Overview
Empathy
is one of the most important school leadership skills because it is the foundation
of leadership and district success in today’s complex world of public education.
Individuals with the skill of empathy know how to anticipate and meet the needs
of other board members, administrators, teachers, students, community members and
politicians. I define the word “Empathy” in the context of school boards as “the
ability of school board members to understand other board members and
administrator’s feelings, experiences and influences by imagining what it would
be like to be in that person’s situation.”
School
board members and administrators who are empathetic have a more refined understanding
of the perspectives of others. However, there are different levels of empathy.
Some people understand the perspectives of others however they act in a way
that benefits themselves and ignores the viewpoint of others. I call this “Ineffective Empathy” because it can
potentially exacerbate school district conflict. This leadership style is particularly
damaging because it often establishes an unhealthy culture throughout an
entire public school district. In contrast, “Effective Empathy,” in the context of a school board, is the
process of “understanding other’s feelings and recommending solutions to
challenges that are beneficial to both individuals involved in conflicts or
disagreements.” School board members and administrators demonstrating Effective
Empathy work more collaboratively with others, are more engaged in their job,
become more successful leaders and minimize school district conflict.
Need for Empathy Training
and Coaching
How
do you help school board members and administrators change their perspective from
one of Ineffective Empathy to Effective Empathy? Some people do not believe
that empathy can be taught. However, in writing my book Intelligent Influence: The 4 Steps of Highly Successful Leaders and
Organizations, I discovered that the secret of teaching empathy is helping
people understand the role of influence in every person’s perspective and
behavior. All people are a product of their influences. Their language, accent,
culture, favorite music, preferred sports teams, political beliefs, etc. are
developed from the many different influences in their life. People do what they
do, think the way they think and accomplish what they accomplish because of
influence.
All
school district conflicts are caused by the different influences and
perspectives in the lives of each person in the disagreement. Once people
understand that their differences are rooted in their influences, the conflict
becomes much less personal. The skill of empathy can only be developed when a
person understands how their own influences relate to other people’s
influences. I developed the Effective
Empathy training program (for multiple people) and coaching program (for
individuals) to help people, especially school district leaders, through this
empathy growth process.
The
Effective Empathy training and
coaching program teaches school district leaders how to communicate and work
more effectively with each other. In addition, it helps leaders become more
successful in working together, setting effective policies, approving an
appropriate budget and hiring and evaluating a successful superintendent. Too
many school board members and administrators utilize an Ineffective Empathy approach that causes tremendous conflict within
a school district. The Effective Empathy training
and coaching is successful with school boards and administrators because it
utilizes four powerful steps that apply to individuals in any organization in
any part of the world.
Effective Empathy
Training and Coaching Steps
Step
1: The first step in the training and coaching process is called “Empathy Awareness.” Many school board
members and administrators are not aware of their personal influences and do
not understand why they do what they do. If they are not aware of their
personal influences and perspectives they will never be able to work
effectively with other people who have very different influences. In this
section of the training or coaching, we help school board members and administrators
uncover their personal influences and learn how to develop a healthy
“Self-Empathy.” This self-awareness is the foundation of the process of
enhancing a person’s ability to empathize with others.
Step
2: The second step of the process is called “Empathy Impact” where we identify the areas where the school board member’s
influences have made them empathetic or insensitive to different people or
situations. We discuss participant’s empathy strengths and weaknesses and the
impact that they have on other board members, administrators, teachers,
students, community members and the school district as a whole. This step helps
to uncover the influenced-based root of the conflicts between school board
members.
Step
3: The third step of the process is called “Empathy
Management” where we teach the school board members how to enhance their
empathy skills based on our findings in Step 2 of the process. We develop
specific customized strategies to help board members reduce conflict by overcoming
their empathy weaknesses and building on their empathy strengths. This includes
establishing a growth mindset, enhancing trust between family members, initiating
crucial conversations and frequently following restorative justice principles.
Step
4: The fourth step in the process is called “Empathy Maximization” where we teach school board members how to work
more collaboratively with others and maximize the effectiveness of their empathy
skills in the school district. We utilize real life scenarios, videos and role
play to help school board members develop and enhance their Effective Empathy skills in a way that
will be beneficial to their fellow board members, administrators, teachers,
students, parents, community members and politicians. It is important to note
that it is not essential for school board members to like each other to work
together effectively. The Effective
Empathy training and coaching process is unique because it enables people
who do not like each other to work together for the benefit of the students in
their district.
Contact Information
The
Effective Empathy training and
coaching will help school board members not only work through conflicts, it
will provide valuable leadership skills to every participant. It is essential
for public school districts to implement an Effective
Empathy culture to ensure that they can provide the most thorough and
efficient education possible. If you would like more information about our Effective Empathy training and coaching program
please contact Dr. Dale Caldwell at Strategic Influence LLC by phone at (800) 838-8414
or by email at DCaldwell@StrategicInfluence.consulting.
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