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.
