What is an Instructional Leader?

 

Dr. Nancy Coogan

A school administrator, Dr. Nancy Coogan leverages over two decades of experience helping scholars reach their full potential. Although she most recently served as the superintendent of the Tukwila School District, Dr. Nancy Coogan also has executive experience in the Seattle Public Schools, the Mukilteo School District, and the Everett Public Schools.

An author and researcher as well, Dr. Coogan developed a dissertation while pursuing her Ed.D titled, “Resiliency: An Action Research Study with Two High School Principals.” The dissertation explores the presence of reliability and resilience in two high school principals, how the challenges they faced affected student outcomes, and the emergence of instructional leadership as a primary approach of school principals today.

Instructional leadership focuses on improving practices within the classroom as a means to strengthen overall student outcomes. This is accomplished by providing support to teachers and encouraging professional and intellectual growth. Instructional leaders also foster a collaborative work environment that allows others to provide ideas and input for improvement. FInally, they work to improve school culture in order to address student learning barriers and inequities.

Characteristics of a High Reliability Organization

 

Dr. Nancy Coogan

Dr. Nancy Coogan is an experienced school administrator who holds an Ed.D in educational leadership from Washington State University. Also an author and researcher, Dr. Nancy Coogan enjoys studying topics that include mindfulness, innovative school district practices, and high reliability organizations (HROs).

HROs include a range of entities that share a strong history of safety in spite of high levels of risk associated with their business model. For example, healthcare providers, power plants, and air traffic controllers are all exposed to a high risk for catastrophic events. In terms of schools, catastrophes occur when the education system fails and students do not reach their full potential.

In spite of these risks, HROs share several characteristics that help limit failures. In addition to prioritizing safety and performance measures, HROs communicate shared goals across their organizations. They also foster a culture of reliability and empowerment, which allows lower-level staff to act with more authority and make informed decisions.

Moreover, HROs take the opportunity to learn from any accidents that may occur and implement changes based on their findings. Finally, operational redundancy and technology play roles as well, as they can contribute to a safer and more stable organization.