District highlights aspiring-administrators program to grow teacher leaders

The Laconia School Board heard a presentation on the district's "aspiring administrators" program that pairs teachers and staff with current administrators for guided learning, shadowing and book-study sessions.

Jen Saltac, the district's student services administrator, said the program began with outreach in the fall and has been using Brene Brown's Dare to Lead as a conversation starter to explore vulnerability, difficult conversations and empathy as leadership skills. Saltac described the program as a chance for staff to see whether formal leadership roles suit them before moving into training on budgets, school law and formal administrative duties.

Two program participants, Heather Ryan and Caitlin Friend Rushin, described experiences that included interviewing administrators, shadowing building leaders and attending evening events with an administrative lens. "I was really excited that we're reading a Brene Brown book because I love her work," Caitlin Friend Rushin said, adding that the program helped participants "engage in meaningful conversations" and see how building leaders work together.

At Pleasant Street School, the participants said they created "circles of support" so every staff member has a contact person for simple tasks and peer support; they said the effort is strengthening building-level collaboration. Board members asked about next steps and whether the program will move to a phase 2 with additional coursework; presenters said the first stage is intended to let staff assess interest and that the district is considering whether to continue in-house or partner with higher-education institutions for further training.

Presenters told the board the program is ongoing, with two sessions remaining in the school year, and that there is not a single defined end point; the group described the work as "version 1" of a longer initiative to build leadership capacity across the district.