The Superintendent's Fieldbook


Book Description

"The goals and challenges for district leaders are constantly changing. Leadership and governance are only parts of the puzzle when other elements such as the NCLB legislation, budgets, standards and assessment, changing demographics, and public engagement are brought into the picture. Today's superintendent needs an effective tool to help steer the school district to success. Drawing on the experiences of nearly 200 superintendents over the past ten years, The Superintendent's Fieldbook offers guidance that can be referenced again and again. Written for current and future superintendents, principals, school board members and teachers, this valuable guide is divided into nine sections--each offering ideas to implement, practical lessons, exercises, and questions for reflective practice. The authors identify seven key "commonplaces" of the successful modern superintendent including: Leading within a governance structure; Understanding and addressing standards and assessment; Considering race, class, and the achievement gap; Developing your schools' principals from building managers to leaders of learning; Exploring collaborations with agencies of government and organizational allies; Engaging your community to construct a shared vision of the future. Vignettes describing real events and situations will help you connect lessons learned to your own district experiences, and help you and your district thrive in the rapidly changing world of education." -- Publisher.




The Superintendent’s Rulebook


Book Description

A concise and accessible text, The Superintendent’s Rulebook explores the human-resource, political, and leadership dimensions of the superintendency. This important book is designed for new aspiring superintendents and Boards of Education, helping readers to apply the many leadership lessons taught in training programs and education leadership courses to their everyday practice. Full of real-world examples, takeaway strategies, and supplemented with discussion and "inbox" questions, this valuable resource encourages reflection, while capturing the day-to-day spirit and complexities of district-level leadership.




Achieving Success for New and Aspiring Superintendents


Book Description

This comprehensive how-to guide for aspiring and new superintendents provides examples and covers the full range of topics from preparation through strategic planning.




The Superintendent's Guide to Controlling Putting Green Speed


Book Description

Let renowned expert Thomas Nikolai bring you up to speed on establishing and maintaining the best green speeds for your course. He covers it all: playability, environmental and weather factors, mowing, turfgrass species selection... every consideration that influences how fast and how far a given putt will go. Dr. Nikolai -- turfgrass academic specialist at Michigan State and green speed specialist for The Golf Course Superintendents Association of America -- distills a wealth of research and first-hand experience into easy-to-follow advice on how to deal with the common problems associated with green speed, techniques on how to find the ideal speed for your greens, and the correct use of current technology, including the Stimpmeter. His non-technical language makes the information accessible whether you're a golf course superintendent or a student. Order your copy today.




Effective Superintendent-School Board Practices


Book Description

"The authors fill a gap in the literature by providing a practical, experience-based look at how superintendents should approach the most important relationship in their professional lives. Working effectively with school boards is what it is all about, and this book shows you how." -Paul D. Houston, Executive Director, American Association of School Administrators "This book provides practical insights and useful ideas to help district leaders who are serious about keeping the educational interest of children first among their priorities." -Pedro A. Noguera, Professor, New York University "Clearly lays out the important role the superintendent has in leading the district in partnership with the board of education. This book is well worth the time of every current and aspiring superintendent and school board member!" -Anne Bryant, Executive Director, National School Boards Association "This book is a useful tool in building district governance teams. The authors′ collective wisdom provides valuable insight for superintendents and school board members." -Luan B. Rivera, President, California State Boards Association "A wonderful, clear, and jargon-free primer on how to be a successful superintendent. This book is must reading for superintendents and a real plus for school boards." -Dede Alpert, Former California State Senator, Former Member, California State Assembly "An outstanding fieldbook for those interested in down-to-earth strategies for navigating the complexities of providing leadership in school districts." -General Davie, Jr., Retired Superintendent of Schools Foster a strong superintendent-school board relationship centered on quality teaching and learning! Effective Superintendent-School Board Practices helps current and future superintendents and school board members develop an effective governance team that prioritizes quality teaching and learning. Designed for practicing and aspiring superintendents and school board members, this exceptional book relates the everyday experiences and challenges faced by this important district team. Combining 84 years of service as superintendents in urban, rural, and suburban school districts, the authors offer: Real-life vignettes that highlight problems, successes, key points, and useful practices Indispensable information on building relationships, creating a team, managing conflict, and staying focused on the mission and priorities of the district Reflective practice questions and self-assessments throughout This rich resource offers knowledge, skills, and strategies to teach and inspire current and future leaders, based on the experiences of practitioners who have learned what works and what doesn′t, leaving valuable time to focus on student achievement.




So Now You're the Superintendent!


Book Description

Addressing common issues such as transitions, culture changes, finances, staff supervision, and team building, this guide offers strategies for the crucial first years of the superintendency.




Superintendent's Handbook of Financial Management


Book Description

The key to any successful business is the effective management of revenue, costs and of course profitability. This book provides golf course superintendents with the necessary tools to manage their daily financial operations by explaining basic accounting principles such as pricing, budgeting, cost control, payroll and cash flow. With chapters on financial statements, golf course operation schedules, breakeven analysis and operating budgets this is an invaluable tool for all owners, operators and managers of golf courses. * The first edition has become the standard industry tool for understanding and making sound financial decisions (1575040395, Ann Arbour Publishing, 1996) * Schmidgall is the industry's leading authority of financial practices for golf-course superintendents




The Construction Superintendent’s Handbook


Book Description

A construction professional with more than 30 years experience in the industry offers a practical manual designed for the construction superintendent that helps to simplify today's complex projects while offering highly accessible and easily referenced technical data on most common construction components. This handbook begins by analyzing the key factors that must be considered before the actual start of construction. Complete discussions of construction contracts and documents and basic construction law are designed to prevent costly legal problems among the superintendent, architect, engineer, client and subcontractor. Coverage also includes scrutiny of the plans and specifications, and insights into the responsibilities of all participants in the construction process. Superintendents obtain clear guidance on how to formulate job policies and procedures, and how to ensure that the soomth day-to-day running of the project with the aid of a 30-day look-ahead schedule. Helpful advice and warnings on pitfalls to avoid are liberally sprinkled throughout the handbook.




The First-Year Experiences of Successful Superintendents


Book Description

These qualitative case studies give the prospective superintendent a real-life look at life on the other side of the district CEO’s desk. Two dozen superintendents reflect upon their first challenges and growth opportunities that arose during that all-important first year.




Elevating Construction Superintendents


Book Description

To be a great superintendent, you need training. Without this, you may become defensive, learn to accept waste and low standards, or even espouse false concepts that will lead to certain failure. However, with proper fundamental training, learning from the best builders throughout history, and effectively using the modern concepts of lean, we can guide superintendents to have the best trained role in construction. Right now in our industry, project managers and project engineers are better trained, better paid, and are becoming leaders of the entire team. The positions of superintendents and project managers should be equal, but to be equal, we need to step up and take our place as the driving force of the project. This book will help you to do that and bring respect back to field positions everywhere. Before writing Elevating Construction Superintendents - The Art of the Builder, I had never found a book available for the art and form of being a superintendent. Yes, there are books about lean; yes, there are books about construction management; and yes, there are books about the skills of a superintendent, but there are none that cover the art of the builder in construction and the back-to-basics fundamental attributes of a true leader in the field. This is the first revision of the book we need and want for our wonderful builders in the field of construction. This book is filled with principles and actionable steps for assistant superintendents. I invite you to learn these, take massive action, and implement each step one-by-one. Please keep driving until everything on your project brings you joy. That is the measure of success. Expect more - Step up - Let's go