The Superintendent Interview

The Superintendent Interview

Dr. Timothy Chargois

Superintendent of The Beaumont Independent School District

Friday, September 7, 2012

12:00 p.m.

 

                I had the great pleasure and opportunity to interview Dr. Timothy Chargois, Superintendent of the Beaumont Independent School District. Even though he is new to the powition, I felt from our conversation that he had a wealth of knowledge and it was as if it was not his first week in the position. As we spoke before the actual interview, Dr. Chargois talked about his vision for the district and what he wanted to accomplish. He wants to rebuild the cohesiveness of the district that was once there so that we can focus on educating children.

                There were several answers to questions that stood out to me. The following is a list of 5 questions and answers during the meeting on yesterday:

 

1.       How will you work as a Superintendent to develop a shared vision? Everyone has to realize that whatever your decision is, make sure you base it on what is best for the students. At the beginning of each school year, you develop your mission and decide on goals to accomplish the mission. Developing a mission and goals is not the work of one man. It is a team effort. Each school then develops missions and goals for their campus that are in line with the district’s vision. In this case, you build from the top down. Finally, vision has to be communicated effectively so that everyone understands what the vision is.

 

2.       What are the positive aspects of being in a leadership position, like Superintendent? One positive aspect of being a Superintendent is developing a vision, sharing that vision, and realization of the vision. A vision is not just on paper. The Superintendent wants their vision to come to life.

 

3.       What are the negative or difficult aspects of being in a leadership position? One is dispelling rumors in the media. Rumors get started based on miscommunication. People take miscommunication and run with it. You have to be proactive and relay the correct information to the public so that they know what the facts are. Having to deal with tragedy is another difficult aspect of any leadership position. Dealing with life’s challenges such as the death of a staff member or student is not easy for anyone. Then having to offer words of encouragement at the ceremony is not an easy either.

 

4.       How does a Superintendent approach the management of everything from budgets to technology applications? Any decision that is made is to be made with students in mind. As a new Superintendent, there were several cabinet positions to fill due to promotions or resignations. Filling positions can be difficult Those positions were filled with knowledgeable and competent people. A mission is not accomplished with just one person. It takes a team of people with a shared vision to assist in maintaining all aspects of the district. A superintendent does not have all the answers and cannot do it alone.

 

5.       How does a Superintendent build a good working relationship with the Board? Good communication is key to any successful relationship. As long as we have the same vision in mind and working towards realization of the vision together, we will have a good relationship. There will be times that we will not agree with everyone’s actions or have varying opinions about certain issues, but there is a way to approach each issue and a proper way to communicate what you have to say. Once the line of communication is open, we can work towards doing what is right for the district.

 

 

At the end of the interview, I left with the message that will assist me in any position in education. That message is whatever decision is made; make sure that it is based on students in mind.