How the Personal Qualities of Great Leaders Transform Organizations

Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Mary E. Streshly is a longtime educational administrator who previously consulted with the San Bruno Park School District. Mary E. Streshly’s late father William was also an academic leader, and he co-edited the research-based book “From Good Schools to Great Schools: What Their Principals Do Well.”

At the outset of the book, the editors discuss the seminal research work of Jim Collins, along with a team of University of Colorado graduate students, into corporate best practices. A particular focus was on how already-viable organizations moved to the next level of profit-defined success, and sustained the gains achieved.

What “great” companies shared was strong, dynamic leadership in the form of CEOs defined as “level 5 executives.” Paradoxically, these individuals combined professional will with personal humility, as they expertly navigated complex market dynamics and motivated those at all levels of the organization.

Looking at principals instead of CEOs but through a similar lens, the editors found that the ability to build lasting relationships was paramount. Exuding a culture of discipline, the level 5 principal confronts challenges and “brutal facts” head on, and builds consensus before taking action. Persistent in selecting exactly the right hires for the organization, this type of principal places the school above personal ambitions. Critically, he or she assigns credit for success to others, while taking blame personally for all failures and disappointments.

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The Role of HR Management in Education Quality and Student Outcomes

A San Francisco State University alumna with a doctor of philosophy in educational leadership, Mary E. Streshly serves as the senior advisor and acting executive director of Oakland Military Institute College Preparatory Academy in Oakland, California. In this role, Mary Streshly pursues improvements in academic outcomes through efforts like overseeing student-services initiatives and mentoring human resources staff.

Human resources (HR) management plays a critical role in education quality and student outcomes. In educational organizations, HR management leverages activities pertaining to staff procurement, development, welfare, and relationships to achieve the school’s educational goals and optimize educator performance. As such, the actions and responsibilities of school HR personnel impact education delivery and results in various ways.

For example, one of the key roles of HR management in education is attracting qualified staff and recruiting educators with the necessary teaching skills and credentials. Human resources represent the cornerstone of any educational system’s execution. In order for students to understand and retain lesson content, schools need competent teachers who can effectively interpret and implement school policies and curriculums. Moreover, research indicates a positive correlation between student achievement and the performance of teachers and principals.

This connection reflects another direct influence of HR management on education quality: aligning professional growth with student results. HR-led performance appraisals and professional development enable teachers to their identify strengths and weaknesses and become better educators. For example, HR teams can organize workshops or training programs that further knowledge in a particular subject area or assist with adapting teaching styles. Adapting instruction is especially important for accommodating diverse learning needs among students.

Moreover, HR management efforts involving staff maintenance and relations translate to a more a conducive environment for teaching and learning. Issues like safety concerns, discord among staff, and poor communication regarding school policy changes can interfere with staff productivity and education delivery. By addressing such circumstances, HR management allows educators to focus on teaching and serving students. It can also benefit learning outcomes by helping students feel safe and supported. Feeling unsafe has negative correlations with student learning.

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The Role of Curriculum Mapping in Boosting Student Learning

Mary E. Streshly has over 30 years of experience in the education sector as an administrator and teacher. In July 2022, Mary Streshly became the executive director of educational services at the San Mateo County Office of Education in California’s San Mateo-Foster City School District. Her responsibilities include leading initiatives like curriculum mapping, which serves as a vital tool for boosting student learning.

Curriculum mapping is a process for educators to assess curriculums and inform future instruction by tracking content already taught, teaching practices employed, and essential subjects not yet covered. In the course of curriculum mapping, information such as learning objectives, teaching methods, and the textbooks and videos used is recorded throughout each term.

Term-end review and analysis of curriculum maps allows educators to identify and eliminate redundancies and gaps in the curriculum. In addition to facilitating more effective curriculums, this helps teachers ensure that what they teach aligns with benchmarks for desired learning outcomes. For example, comparing outcomes and content covered with national and state standards enables them to ascertain if students’ knowledges and skillsets meet levels necessary for academic success.

Similarly, curriculum mapping provides educators with an instrument for instilling consistency and fostering better learning progression. By examining methods and languages that teachers in prior grades used, educators can create curriculums that build on students’ previous knowledge and employ formats already familiar to them. This is important because it helps improve instructional coherence across grade levels.

Curriculum maps can also enhance the quality of instruction. They contain detailed information on how learning outcomes were achieved, and teachers can also add notes to their curriculum map each year regarding how they accommodated various student needs within their lesson plans. At the end of each term, educators can leverage this data to assess their approach. This way, teachers can understand what methods of teaching work and which ones do not.

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