Creed for Iowa's Department of Education

This was in the Iowa School Leader Update that I read today. I found it very interesting . . . 

THE DEPARTMENT’S CREED FOR IOWA … from Jason Glass, Director

Leadership 

Leadership is the confrontation of important problems in creative ways. Real leadership is not a title and it is not con-veyed via formal authority. Rather, it comes from those willing to seize the moments to make things better that pass most of us by every day. Our leaders are throughout this organization and push at the edges of their formal authority, stepping out to confront what needs to be done and enlisting others to join in the effort. 

Innovation 

Innovation happens when people take reasonable risks toward a greater goal and are willing to fail. But just trying and failing does not lead to innovation. We must be dedicated enough to learn, adapt, and try again until we succeed. Fear is the innovation killer. Fear paralyzes our creativity and our ability to function at our best. We must have the courage to risk in spite of our fears. In the long run, failing to grow and adapt is the most significant and persistent threat we face. 

Service 

This department’s highest value is service to others. We hold ourselves accountable to treating all those with whom we interact with dignity, respect, and love. Our paradigm is to build capacity and work with people to help them accomplish more than they could alone. Our role is not to oversee, but rather to be in service of. Real service is neither authoritarian nor enabling - it is empowering. 

The point about leadership leads me to something else I read today in Seth Godin's recent blog on Initiative. "Initiative is taken, not given." Love this! Reminds me of the many times that I begged for forgiveness rather than asked in advance for permission.

So, having said that, achieving a balance of allowing initiative without fear of being micro-managed may be the environment that effective teachers flourish in best.