My Philosophy of Educational Administration:

The Leader of All as the Servant of Each

 

          Since I first developed it during my internship in 1982, my philosophy of education has evolved surprisingly little. I noticed that each student learns in her or his own way. This makes it the teacher’s goal to individualize the material so the learner “gets it.”

            Then I was teaching general education English to tenth graders. During this time and the following two years with sophomores and seniors, practicing this philosophy meant working to present lessons various ways. Several intervening years of training adult learners taught me that personalizing education is crucial at all age and ability levels. The related challenge became keeping the delivery fresh enough that those who “got it” three iterations ago gain even more insight from this varied reinforcement.

            In educational administration, remembering that I am indirectly supporting students by directly supporting teachers is key.  I'm a leader in what I can do for teachers, not in what they can do to make my job smoother.  Giving each teacher the support she or he wants and knowing when and what help to give to those who need it but don't ask, is the kind of leadership I am always trying to provide.  This individualization is codified in Special Education, which makes this field a good fit for my philosophy and helps make me a great fit in Special Education Administration.

 

                                                Jeffrey B. Romanczuk

                                                March 8, 2004