Education Week - March 18, 2015 - Special Report - S2

EDUCATION WEEK MARCH 18, 2015
n
The Chief Academic Officer > www.edweek.org/go/CAO
S2 |
Regardless of Title,
CAOs 'Set the Tone'
Chief academic officers have many names, one unifying mission
A
s the pressure to raise
student achievement has
intensified, many school
systems have responded
by assigning a single administrator
to oversee
that difficult work-an
individual whose exact
title, duties, and status
within the K-12 chain of
command varies from district to district.
In some cases, those administrators are
known as chief academic officers, though
they go by many other names, too: assistant
superintendents for teaching and
learning, chief innovation officers, and curriculum
coordinators, among them.
While districts' interest in designating
point people charged with focusing on academic
improvement dates back years, perhaps
decades, the roles of chief academic
officers have grown increasingly defined
and commonplace, many observers say.
Numerous district officials point to the
gradual ramping up of academic expectations
and testing from the standards-andaccountability
movement of the 1990s
through today as having given districts
more impetus to create cao-type positions.
The nature of caos' work typically requires
them to navigate a range of needs.
Academic chiefs need to accommodate the
goals of the superintendent-whose academic
vision caos presumably share-with
the needs of the principals and teachers
charged with making learning happen.
And caos need to make sure all the
pieces contributing to academics-instruction,
assessment, and professional training,
among them-are working together.
"They're the messengers for the values
and beliefs of school systems and their communities,"
said Sheila Brown, the director
of the education and society program at
The Aspen Institute, based in Washington,
who works with a network of superintendents
and caos from relatively large districts.
"They play an incredibly important
role in prioritizing high standards for all
kids," and "really set the tone."
BROAD DUTIES
This Education Week special report explores
the diverse roles that caos play in
school districts from several angles.
One article looks at the professional
backgrounds of today's caos and examines
the types of professional experiences that
have shaped them. Another explores the
relationships between school superintendents
and caos, each of whom are likely to
be judged by their ability to bring academic
improvement to districts.
And the role that caos play in overseeing
the summative, formative, and interim
tests in districts, and how they use that information
to guide instruction, is the focus
of another story.
Other coverage in the report dissects the
interaction between caos and chief technology
officers, who are charged with integrating
increasingly complex digital tools and
systems with instructional goals. Another
story examines the different ways in which
caos work with, and in many cases, oversee
school principals.
Finally, the report presents three Q&As
with caos working in districts in Colorado,
Missouri, and Ohio, who talk about the
challenges they face.
SURVEY REVEALS INSIGHTS
Coverage in this report is bolstered by
a nationwide survey conducted by the
Education Week Research Center, which
provides insight on the day-to-day duties
of caos and where they fit within the hierarchy
of K-12 leadership.
Overall, 80 percent of caos responding to
the survey were from relatively small districts,
with less than 5,000 students.
The survey categorized respondents as
caos if they identified themselves as the
highest-ranking official in their district responsible
for curriculum and instruction.
But the survey also reveals the somewhat
amorphous nature of the job.
The vast majority of respondents said
their title isn't cao; it's more likely to be
an assistant superintendent overseeing a
group of academic-oriented areas, or a curriculum
coordinator. Some superintendents,
all of whom worked in smaller districts,
identified themselves as the cao; in other
cases, principals said they filled that role.
Many caos surveyed say their duties
extend far beyond curriculum and instruction.
In addition to those duties, 60 percent
of those surveyed said they're also the most
senior testing/assessment officials in their
districts; 22 percent said they're the human
resources chiefs; and 19 percent said they
oversee special populations, such as special-needs
students and English-language
learners. (See chart, Page S3.)
Among other significant responsibilities
of administrators who serve as caos: 44
percent said school principals report directly
to them.
Seventy percent of caos said they report
directly to their district's top official,
typically the superintendent. Far fewer, 22
percent and 23 percent said they reported,
respectively, to their districts' heads of finance
or human resources.
The influence of caos also extends to
purchasing, the survey finds. Compared
to other central office administrators, caos
have more influence over purchasing related
to teacher professional development,
assessments, learning management systems,
technology, and other areas.
CONNECTING ACADEMIC DOTS
One survey respondent with cao duties,
Mary N. Peraro, the assistant superintendent
for teaching and learning in the
3,200-student Branford, Conn., school system,
is typical in that she juggles responsibilities
across academic departments.
She oversees the district's use of assessments
and study units, professional development,
and implementation of the Common
Core State Standards. She sees her
role as "connecting the dots" so teachers
and others see how standards, classroom
lessons, and professional development all
mesh with academic improvement in mind.
Ms. Peraro has spent about 40 years in
education, as a teacher, principal, and administrator,
all of which she regards as essential
preparation for working as a cao.
Academic chiefs need a "depth of experience,
to understand where teachers are,
and how to move them," she asserted.
For years, many districts have assigned
specific administrators to take leadership
roles on academic issues, noted Linda P.
Chen, the chief academic officer for the
Baltimore city schools, who has researched
the role and evolution of caos. But those assignments
have become more common over
the past 10 to 12 years, she said.
Some of the recent interest clearly stems
from the pressure to improve student performance
in the era of high-stakes testing,
Ms. Chen said. Others say the rise of new
teacher evaluation measures is a factor.
But the growth of interest in having a
cao in a leadership role also comes from a
broader recognition that it makes sense to
have someone promoting a shared vision
for academic improvement across schools,
particularly among principals and teachers,
she added. While the idea of giving
individual schools and principals greater
autonomy holds appeal in many districts,
so does having various parts work together.
"There are certain areas where you need
to have coherence," Ms. Chen said. "The
work of schools has become increasingly
complex, ...[and] the business of schools is
academic work." l
BY
SEAN CAVANAGH &
MICHELE MOLNAR
http://www.edweek.org/go/CAO
Education Week - March 18, 2015 - Special Report

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