This reflective calendar and planning journal helps new and veteran superintendents address day-to-day concerns while keeping student achievement in perspective throughout the year.

Preface
Acknowledgments
About the Authors
1. Welcome to the Superintendency
Introduction
About the Book
From Us
2. July and August: Reflecting and Getting Ready for the New Year
Organizing and Preparing for the Year
Taking Care of Yourself and Your Family
Ensuring Schools Are Ready to Open
Reviewing Board Policies
Focusing on the Year Ahead
Speaking From Experience
3. September and October: Starting Smoothly and Settling In
Opening Year Communication
Staff Evaluation
School Board Elections
Showing Up
Speaking From Experience
4. November and December: Checking In and Celebrating Progress
Solidifying Board Relationships
Building Positive Board Communication
Monitoring the Current Budget
Monitoring Programs and Student Achievement Data
Assessing Facility Needs
Speaking From Experience
5. January and February: Taking Stock and Planning for Next Year
Developing a Long-Range Plan
Budget Forecasting for the Next Year
Reviewing the Curriculum and Establishing Goals
Communicating New Focus Areas and Priorities
Sharing the State of the District
Speaking From Experience
6. March and April: Staying Focused and Facing Challenges
Budget Planning
Planning for Facility Upgrades
Targeting Personnel Actions
Monitoring Curriculum, Instruction, and Student Testing Plans
Planning Board and Leadership Team Workshops and Retreats
Advances
Begin Evaluation of Administrative Staff
Speaking From Experience
7. May and June: Wrapping Up and Celebrating
Budget Adoption
Reviewing New Staff Hiring
Superintendent Evaluation
Debriefing With Board Members
Scheduling Attendance at Year-End Events for You and the Board Members
Planning Time for Handling Difficult Issues
Finalizing Summer Activities
Finalizing Plans for Next Year¿s Pre-Opening Activities
Reviewing the District Media and Communication Plan
Completing Summative Evaluations of the People Who Report to You
Preparing the Internal Meeting Calendar for Board and Senior Staff
Speaking From Experience
8. The Routine and Expected
Planning, Leading, and Attending to Meetings
Monitoring for Accountability
Establishing Relationships and Building Community
Building Internal Leadership Capacity
Speaking From Experience
9. Crises, the Unexpected, Caveats, and Musings
The Unexpected
But Then, There Are the Wonderful Things
A Word About You
Resource A: School Site Inspection
Resource B: Site Readiness Inspection Sheet
Resource C: Summary of School Inspections
Resource D: Key Actions Checklist
Resource E: Custodian School Inspection Sheet
Resource F: Playground Inspections
Resource G: Portable Building Inspections
Resource H: Human Resource Annual Calendar
Resource I: Meeting Schedule
Resource J: Administrator Evaluation Form
Resource K: Administrator Evaluation Process
Resource L: Budget Guidelines
Resource M: Budget Calendar
Resource N: Planned Priorities
Resource O: Organization Chart
Resource P: Information for Board Members
Resource Q: School District Responsibility Chart
Bibliography
Index

Gloria L. Johnston has devoted over 40 years to a career in education. She currently coaches, mentors, and provides professional development for principals, central office administrators, superintendents, and school boards. The focus of her work is on systemic strategies that lead to improving student achievement and closing the achievement gap. Her years of service in PreK-12 education included serving as a teacher, principal, central office administrator, and 12 years as a superintendent of schools. She worked in urban, suburban, and rural school districts in Illinois, California, and Caracas, Venezuela. Most recently, she served as dean of the School of Education at National University, headquartered in San Diego, California.

Throughout her career, Johnston has been an invited speaker at state and national professional conferences, served on state and national educational and research committees, and has been awarded major professional development grants. She is coauthor of two books, Eight at the Top: A View Inside Public Education, a collection of stories about the work of school district superintendents, and Effective Superintendent-School Board Practices: Strategies for Developing and Maintaining Good Relationships With Your Board, a practical, experience-based look at the most important role the superintendent has in leading a school district.

Johnston earned her PhD in public policy analysis from the University of Illinois at Chicago and her MS in bilingual/bicultural education and BS in humanities (magna cum laude) from Northern Illinois University.