Policy: 12
ROLE OF THE SUPERINTENDENT
The Board recognizes the need for one (1) person to be in charge of the management of the District in order to provide coordinated leadership. Therefore, the Board designates the Superintendent as the Chief Executive Officer of the Board and delegates to the Superintendent responsibility for overall effective administration of the District. The Superintendent ensures that leadership is the shared responsibility of everyone within the organization and builds leadership capacity within a team-oriented, collaborative environment. The Superintendent provides reports to the Board that focus on governance implications and is accountable to the corporate Board for the conduct and operation of the District and for ensuring compliance with legislative requirements. All Board authority delegated to the staff of the District is delegated through the Superintendent.
Specific Areas of Responsibility
1. Student Well-Being
1.1 Ensures that each student is provided with a safe, anti-racist, and caring environment that fosters and maintains respectful and responsible behaviours.
1.2 Ensures that learning environments contribute to the development of skills and habits necessary for the world of work, post-secondary studies, life-long learning and citizenship.
1.3 Ensures the safety and welfare of students while participating in school programs or while being transported to or from school programs on transportation provided by the District.
1.4 Ensures the facilities adequately accommodate District students.
2. Educational Leadership
2.1 Provides leadership in all matters relating to education in the District.
2.2 Ensures students in the District have the opportunity to meet the standards of education set by the Minister.
2.3 Implements education policies established by the Minister and the Board.
2.4 Provides support and advises principals on matters related to school operations.
3. Fiscal Responsibility
3.1 Ensures the fiscal management of the District by the Secretary-Treasurer is in accordance with the terms or conditions of any funding received by the Board under the School Act or any other applicable Act or regulation.
3.2 Ensures the District operates in a fiscally responsible manner, including adherence to recognized accounting procedures.
4. Personnel
4.1 Has overall authority and responsibility for all personnel-related matters, except those matters precluded by legislation, collective agreements or Board policy.
4.2 Promotes at all times a high standard of collaborative professional leadership, effective human relationships and a spirit of educational innovation and advancement throughout the District.
4.3 Provides leadership in the supervision and evaluation of administrators, teachers, and other staff, with the intent of improving performance.
4.4 Establishes organizational roles for staff and arranges the employment of staff necessary to conduct the affairs of the District.
5. Policy/Administrative Procedures
5.1 Provides leadership in the planning, development, implementation and evaluation of Board policies.
5.2 Develops, maintains and communicates Administrative Procedures that are consistent with Board and provincial policies, regulations and procedures.
6. Superintendent/Board Relations
6.1 Establishes and maintains positive, professional working relations with the Board.
6.2 Respects and honours the Board’s role and responsibilities and facilitates the implementation of that role as defined in Board policy.
6.3 Keeps the Board informed of all District matters, especially controversial and/or highly sensitive issues, in a timely and appropriate manner.
6.4 Demonstrates mutual respect and support, which is conveyed to the staff and community, including Indigenous communities and First Nations on whose traditional territories our schools operate.
7. Strategic Planning and Reporting
7.1 Leads the Strategic Planning process including the development of District goals, budget, facilities and transportation plans.
7.2 Implements plans as approved.
7.3 Involves the Board appropriately (opportunity for Board establishment of strategic priorities and key results early in the process; final Board approval).
7.4 Reports regularly on results achieved.
8. Organizational Management
8.1 Demonstrates effective organization skills resulting in District compliance with all legal, Ministerial and Board mandates and timelines.
8.2 Builds an organizational structure and promotes a District culture which facilitates positive results, effectively handles emergencies and deals with crisis situations in a team-oriented, collaborative and cohesive fashion.
9. Communications and Community Relations
9.1 Takes action to ensure open, transparent, positive internal and external communications are developed and maintained.
9.2 Ensures that parents and students have a high level of satisfaction with the services provided and the responsiveness of the District.
9.3 Maintains effective relationships within the system and the community served by the system, including Indigenous communities and First Nations on whose traditional territories our schools operate.
9.4 Acts as, or designates, the head of the organization for the purposes of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FOIP) Act.
9.5 In consultation with the Board Chair, serves as a spokesperson for the District for the media and public in order to keep the District’s messages consistent and accurate.
9.6 Acts as an advocate for the District and for public education.
10. Leadership Practices
10.1 Practices leadership in a manner that is viewed positively and has the support of those with whom s/he works most directly in carrying out the directives of the Board and the Minister.
10.2 Develops and maintains positive and effective relationships with provincial and municipal government departments, external agencies and provincial organizations.
10.3 Ensures that meaningful collaboration arises from relationships built on trust, honesty and respect.
Legal Reference: Sections 15, 16, 16.1, 19, 22, 24, 26, 65, 69, 71, 74, 79.3, 85, 87 School Act Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act
School Regulation 265/89
APPENDIX A -BOARD EVALUATION OF THE SUPERINTENDENT
The Board Evaluation of the Superintendent is a three-step process developed mutually between the Board and the Superintendent.
Annual Review Plan – Development and Process
1. The Board of Education and Superintendent agree that the BCSSA “Spirit of Leadership” document and other district planning and goal setting documents will form the basis of the Superintendent’s Annual Review. Additional information, such as District and Ministry data will be used in the evaluation process.
a. During the current year, the Board and the Superintendent agree to evaluate selected Leadership Competencies from the BCSSA Spirit of Leadership document. These Leadership Competencies will have been determined the previous year. The review process will maintain a continuous evaluation cycle through all six leadership competencies within the Spirit of Leadership document. The Board or the Superintendent may agree to focus on certain areas of practice in any given year.
b. The Board Chair and Superintendent retain a copy of the Review Plan to bring forward during the agreed upon dates (October).
c. During the third year of the four-year term of office, the Board will include other information from interviews or surveys with key senior staff and education partners as agreed upon by both the Board and Superintendent. The Board and Superintendent may choose to utilize the expertise of a consultant(s) or human resources staff for interview planning and/or survey design.
2. The Board and Superintendent agree on the dates to be added to the Annual Board Work Plan and which District and Ministry data will be presented and discussed (October, February).
3. Implementation of the Review
a. The Board Chair and Superintendent incorporate the review plan into the Board calendar and the Board Chair maintains a summary from each session along with any material provided by the Superintendent.
b. The October and February sessions will provide the Superintendent and Board opportunities to review District and Ministry data, and discuss student outcomes and how the data relates to targets and goals set out in the Board Framework for Enhancing Student Learning (FESL) or other appropriate documents (examples: vision, FESL, strategic plan).
c. In May, the Superintendent provides the Board with a review and self- assessment of the previous meetings and provides an in-depth analysis of the selected Leadership Competencies, current professional learning and a discussion of priorities for future growth. The Superintendent and the Board will have an opportunity to share with one another what seems to be working well, where there have been challenges and plan joint priorities of focus for the future.
d. Also in the May discussion, the Board and Superintendent should take the opportunity to plan and agreed upon, in writing, the selected Leadership Competencies and District and Ministry data for the subsequent review period to sustain a continuous evaluation cycle. In the event there is no agreement, the Board may proceed with a performance review related to the goals and objectives established by the Board and to the duties assigned to the Superintendent.
e. At the conclusion of the May evaluation session, the Board Chair will provide a summary report to the Superintendent and the Board which:
1. Provides feedback to guide the direction of the Superintendent and support growth in their role.
2. Helps the Board to identify if they are meeting their responsibility to effectively lead the district and track progress on goals.
3. Provides an opportunity for clear communication between Board and Superintendent about priorities in the context of the district vision, strategic plan, FESL goals, budgeting and staffing processes etc.
4. Satisfies the PSEC compensation guidelines to ensure public sector compensation decisions are based on merit and performance expectations.
Revised: June 2024
Policy 12