From Superintendent to Professor

Superintendents moving into higher education will want to consider the AASA Journal of Scholarship and Practice as a place to submit their scholarly writing.

The journal publishes four times a year, focusing on research and evidence-based practice relating to K-12 education and school leadership. Submissions are refereed and blind-reviewed by external educators, meaning published work typically counts toward advancement and tenure decisions at colleges and universities.

The publication, which has been produced digitally by AASA since 2004, is designed to benefit AASA members and full-time and adjunct professors.

The journal’s editor is Kenneth Mitchell, an associate professor at Manhattanville College in Purchase, N.Y., and a former superintendent.

Author guidelines and past issues can be found online.

Mitchell also welcomes interest from active and retired superintendents to serve on the publication’s editorial review board.

Resources exist for easing the transition to higher education from a work role in public education.

The International Council of Professors of Educational Leadership, or ICPEL, runs a mentoring program, Mentoring Mosaic, for those who are new to their role as professors in educational administration.

Although it does not specifically target former superintendents and administrators, “our programming will address leaving K-12 and a variety of other topics,”  says Kelly Brown, who co-directs the mentoring initiative.

Navigating Tenure

The program is designed to help educators understand and navigate the “different structures and different systems,” says Brown, an assistant professor of educational leadership at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. “You have to create your own syllabus and course.”

The mentoring support includes navigating the tenure process, service to the university or education department and teaching skills for higher education. Programs will be added to help members develop a five-year plan for their faculty research, defining what quality research looks like and what scholarly journals count for the tenure process.

Even something as basic as grading can trip up those moving from K-12 to higher education, Brown says. In one of the courses she taught, “in my head I was under the assumption that everybody knew what an A was, and what a B was. I gave someone a B.”

The pushback she received helped Brown realize that “expectations and procedures have to be very clearly laid out. I was so new I didn’t even know what I didn’t know.”

Remote Support

During the pandemic, Mentoring Mosaic has moved into a virtual and interactive model.

“With going virtual, we can bring in experts on various topics,” Brown says. “Instead of one person, one mentor, participants will now have a network and build relationships. The mentor experts will be able to engage with mentees who need support in that particular area.”

Besides monthly webinars, participants can discuss matters off-line and engage in Q&A sessions for “as interactive an experience as possible,” she adds.

Mentoring Mosaic participation requires a faculty member be an ICPEL member.