CHAPTER
1
Be Visible and Approachable
school principal’s actions in multiple contexts throughout the school matter significantly, no matter how effective a leader this person is from behind a desk. When I took on the role of instructional coach at a new school, I knew that my actions and the extent of my actions—not to mention any inaction—mattered too. Both principals and instructional coaches have an influence on school culture. All behaviors, both the formal behaviors within a structured context, such as while presenting at an assembly, meeting for an evaluation, or coaching a session, and the informal ones, such as walking to and from class, attending a meeting, an impromptu office visit from a colleague, or one of those everyday moments when conversations may or may not happen—all of these behaviors matter for those in instructional leadership positions. As an instructional coach at a new school, what advice did I receive from Mr. Jones, my new principal? “Be visible,” he said. “Make sure they see you!” Despite his own advice to be visible, teachers referred to Mr. Jones as “the invisible principal” even when he was visible because he often seemed distracted—meaning, even actions can betray a lack of interest. People can tell when a leader simply does not care. However, I discovered that Mr. Jones was actually a terrific listener in one-to-one conversations, and I learned many things from him. However, I also observed patterns of behavior that were counterproductive and the basis for why faculty and staff referred to him as “the invisible principal.” He had solid relationships with a few employees, but he hardly stepped out of his office. And when he did leave his office to interact with staff, if someone had a complaint, he would consistently ask them to send him an email with at least three solutions to offer about whatever issue they wanted to discuss. Cringeworthy, right? Mr. Jones’s simply being visible at lunch and telling teachers to email him when they had solutions did not create a foundation of trust. Mr. Jones had a tendency to do a lap around the lunchroom, scrolling through his phone as he walked. He was not present. Staff members often brought concerns to his attention, and in return, he gave a lack of attention to what they were saying. Being visible is different from being present and approachable, and simply telling a teacher to “email me with solutions” not only was 9
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