In most states the legislature will start their session sometime in January. Thus, as superintendent, you have about three months left to make sure your legislators know your district and understand the unique challenges you face. We work in a time period when legislative action is evermore polarized and as superintendent you must be prepared to defend your district from legislation which may have a negative impact on your school community.
I believe boards are increasingly expecting superintendents to be involved in the legislative process; therefore to be viewed as effective we must be informed and knowledgeable. As this is the case let’s spend some time discussing how this can be made possible.
To begin we must find a way to introduce ourselves and our districts to our legislators. Our elected representatives are busy so your technique must be informative and memorable, yet brief. One option is to develop a “district profile”, which can be left with your legislative representatives when you meet with them in your district or at their offices. A district profile, in one page, introduces your legislators to key information about your district and any challenges which are currently being faced. Encourage your legislative representatives keep the profile on file for future reference. Also, place your profile on letterhead so that your legislator has your contact info in times of need.
Remember too that ALL of your legislators are important to know and that it is important for ALL to know you and your district as well. I say this because in a polarized environment we don’t know who will end up helping us with our causes. We may philosophically align with certain legislators over others, but it is never smart to dismiss anyone. I have personally experienced times when the legislator I least expected to help stepped forward to assist the district with an issue.
In the next few weeks develop a concise, but informative profile as it will pay dividends for your district. It puts your legislators in the know and will be the first step toward establishing a relationship with those charged with representing your school district.
In the next blog post I will provide a few ideas regarding how you can engage your legislators and encourage them to visit your school district. If you have ideas to share on how you have successfully engaged your legislators, or have seen others do so, please post these thoughts in the comments section below.