Mentoring for new district office leaders: mentorships aren't just for principals and teachers. Districts with formal mentoring programs have an advantage in attracting, inducting, nurturing and retaining good leaders.

In literature, mentorship has its roots in an ancient concept believed to , have received its name from Homer's Greek epic, "The Odyssey." Three thousand years ago Odysseus chose his wise and trusted friend, Mentor, to guide and protect his son, Telemachus, when Odysseus went off to fight the Trojan War. Mentor raised the boy until Odysseus returned 21 years later.

Since that time, historians have documented many mentor relationships. For example, Thomas A. Scott was a mentor to Andrew Carnegie; Franz Boas was a mentor to Margaret Mead, and Benjamin E. Mays was a mentor to Martin Luther King Jr. (Pence, 1989).

No mentor relationship today, whether in business, art, science or education, can take on the personal and long-term aspects of that original mythical experience between Mentor and Telemachus. Yet, the benefits that can accrue to a novice studying with a master are still recognized throughout the literature.

Researchers have defined mentoring in various ways. For example, Merriam (1987) suggests that mentoring "leads us along the journey of our lives." Mentors "embody our hopes, cast a light on the way ahead, interpret arcane signs, warn us of lurking dangers."

Dodgson (1986) depicts a mentor as a "trusted and experienced counselor who influenced the career development of an associate in a warm, caring and helping relationship."

King (1986) described a mentor as a "teacher, coach, role model, trainer, opener of doors, protector, sponsor, developer of talent."

Recently, mentoring has increasingly become used throughout professional fields such as medical, educational, counseling and private business.

The Association of California School Administrators published a 2001 report that stated within the next seven years, approximately 45 percent of current school administrators in the state of California are anticipated to retire as part of the baby boomer generation bubble. ACSA warns that this mass exodus of current administrators at both site and district offices will leave huge areas of administrator "gaps" (EdCal, 2003).

There seems to be a critical three-fold need to develop formalized mentoring programs for district office administrators--first, as a means of staff recruitment. Current mentoring programs need to be expanded as well, in order to address these gaps and fill vacancies left by retiring district office administrators. Finally, there needs to be a research-based method of helping newly appointed district office administrators meet the immediate, intense and demanding challenges they face upon assuming one of these critical district-level positions.

A closer examination of the educational research associated with mentoring within the last 15 years yields a great deal of information on beginning teachers. Within the last 10 years there has been a relatively large body of research focused on mentoring beginning principals.

What the literature has not revealed to any significant degree is mentoring for newly appointed district office administrators--individuals who are generally former principals, who, for a variety of reasons, assume district-level administrative roles. These roles carry an extremely broad range of responsibilities and challenges associated with the increasingly complex nature of our current state and federal economy, recent legislation and interpretations of laws, and public expectations for accountability for student achievement.

The Commission on Teacher Credentialing has recently worked with ACSA and other stakeholder groups to revise the requirements of the former Tier 2 program for obtaining professional clear administrative credentials by stressing the importance of coaching and mentoring at the district and university levels.

A district office administrator's first two or three years often present challenges, confrontational situations and dilemmas for which even the experienced principal or other site level administrator cannot adequately be prepared. As "green" district level HR administrators, we rely heavily on conversations and consultations with veteran district office administrators, the district's legal counsel and other people we instinctively seek out through what is sometimes a very limited network of colleagues.

Beginning district office administrators can obtain valuable on-the-job training through formalized mentor arrangements. An individualized and specialized mentoring program can enhance traditional staff development programs and can save time and resources for the district in the long run.

Below are some helpful mentoring guidelines for school districts to follow when hiring new district office administrators, or promoting site administrators from within.

1. Select an appropriate mentor: The new district office administrator needs to become involved with an experienced mentor who will act as a guide and possesses the necessary skill sets and prior experience within the field (i.e., curriculum and instruction, human resources, business, special education). A recently retired professional who is familiar with current challenges within the mentee's area of expertise, who has had experience mentoring administrators and with whom the mentee feels comfortable would be effective.

2. Develop a specific mentoring plan: The mentor and mentee together develop a plan based upon the immediate demands, requirements and issues facing the mentee, and the long-range challenges and visions of the board, superintendent and district stakeholders. A three-year developmental plan with needed resources and evidence of achieving the goals and objectives of the plan is recommended in order to achieve and sustain the mentee's purpose and role within the district organization.

3. Be willing to commit district time and resources: Governing boards need to be educated regarding the critical role district office administrators play; support for new district office administrators comes from the top down.

4. Accommodate the learning curve: Assistance for staff development, learning opportunities and one-on-one mentoring/coaching is necessary for the new administrator to start to feel secure and somewhat confident in carrying forth the many challenges of the job. A mentor is a catalyst for identifying and assisting the mentee in carrying this forward.

5. Encourage, promote and sustain the mentee's personal and professional resilience: There are lasting, long-term results when time and resources are expended in order to equip the mentee with specific skill sets, strategies and resources associated with the integral aspects of "being" (professional, social, physical, mental and spiritual). The mentor can help the mentee to develop a personal and career development plan that strategically guides the mentee through the next several years of professional and personal integration and growth.

6. Develop a network of colleagues: The superintendent, mentor and fellow district office administrators and colleagues can together assemble a list of individuals to contact in order to broker certain information and resources regarding various dimensions of the mentee's professional area. Opportunities for the mentee to develop this network enhance the on-the-job training that is critical during the first three years of district office administrative service.

7. Pay attention to the acculturation of the mentee: The trained mentor can work with the district to assemble the critical and appropriate materials he or she will need access to upon starting the assignment. The mentee needs to know where to look and how to access valuable information, data and other resources to deal with the myriad challenging situations that come up all at once during the first several months on the job.

8. Transcend the survival mode and move the mentee toward the transformational mode: All too often we thrust the new district office administrator into his or her role with an unintentional "sink or swim" mentality. The neophyte administrator is given the security system code number, the key to the door and an e-mail account. The mentee can effectively contribute to the advancement of the district and the clients it serves only if there is a way to survive the daily challenges of the job; to transform the old ways of thinking, learned values and accepted paradigms into currently recognized ways of thinking and managing change. The experienced mentor acting within a specifically developed plan can be a catalyst for this change.

Expanding formal mentorships

Mentoring has become an increasingly recognized form of training, guiding and supporting newly hired executives in private business and other arenas. Mentoring in most school districts seems to be limited to new principals. Since district office administrators play such an important role in today's complex public school realm, districts are urged to consider developing and/or expanding mentor programs to administrators who move from the site to the district office as well as newly hired district office administrators.

Districts that develop formal mentoring programs for not only beginning principals but also for newly hired district office administrators will have the edge on recruiting the increasing number of* quality individuals needed to fill all of the anticipated administrative vacancies. Mentoring programs can also enhance a district's retention rate of individuals in key roles.

Districts that act as Ulysses did 3,000 years ago will have an advantage in attracting, inducting, nurturing and retaining valuable administrators who will be able to survive the challenges and demands of 21st century public education and make transformations for the future.

References

Association of California School Administrators. (March 10, 2003). "DOPs help put administrative standards into practice." EdCal.

Hudson, Frederic M. (1996). The handbook of coaching--a resource guide to effective coaching with individuals and organizations. Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara: California.

Pence, L. Jean. (March 1989). "Mentorship programs for aspiring and new administrators." Oregon, School Study Council Bulletin.

Merriam, S. (February 1987). "Mentoring in higher education: what we want to know now." Review of higher education.

Dodgson, J. (January 1986). "Do women in education need mentors?" Education Canada.

King, R. (February 1986). "Women mentors as leaders." Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco.

L. Jeffrey Lovell is an adjunct professor in the Tier 1, Tier 2 and Doctoral Educational Leadership Programs at Saint Mary's College in Moraga and is a professional mentor consultant to school districts around the state.