Organizing Dispositions for Educational Leadership Virtual Conference
October 22-24, 2020
Organizing Dispositions — the particular sensibilities to follow the wisdom, expertise, and leadership of those most negatively impacted by inequities, with attention to developing trusting relationships and strategic partnerships
Traditional educational leadership frameworks focus on increasing capacity and effectiveness of classroom practice and managerial skills. However, school and district leaders increasingly are addressing the importance of the social, cultural, and political elements of educational institutions. In fact, as educational leaders make decisions about how to do school in the midst of a global pandemic and contend with the historical legacies of white supremacy and anti-Blackness that undergird much of our schooling practices and institutions, it has never been more important to be responsive to the needs and wisdom of the most historically marginalized and vulnerable. For public schools to be remodeled in ways that are truly responsive and relevant to the needs, hopes, and dreams of the communities they serve, educational leaders must understand how to effectively engage, partner, and lift up the wisdom and expertise of community members whose roles and titles do not traditionally fall within the scope of the day-to-day operation of schools and districts.
“As educational leaders make decisions about how to do school in the midst of a global pandemic and contend with the historical legacies of white supremacy and anti-Blackness that undergird much of our schooling practices and institutions, it has never been more important to be responsive to the needs and wisdom of the most historically marginalized and vulnerable.”
On October 22-24, 2020, our conference took up the question of whether and how organizing dispositions might be employed by educational leaders serving in both traditional and non-traditional leadership positions. During the conference, researchers, education leaders, community organizers, and education reform support organization staff engaged to theorize and deepen understanding about how we might integrate what we know about educational/school leadership with what we know from organizing theory and practice. Conference goals included fostering dialogue within and across participant role groups to encourage inquiry and critique of existing leadership frameworks; articulating how organizing dispositions are an important leadership competency for school district administrators, principals, and teachers; lifting up examples of the ways in which educational leadership can come from outside those with positional authority; and generating ideas and vision for the integration of organizing dispositions into district/school leadership practices, educator preparation and professional development, and educational research agendas. We offer our conference session recordings and resources here with hopes that we will continue to deepen the ways in which the field of education will learn from and follow the wisdom of community organizing. This conference was made possible with the support of a Spencer Foundation conference grant.