RETIRED SUPERINTENDENT OF WICHITA PUBLIC SCHOOLS (KS)
The following transcript has been edited for length and clarity.
Dr. Kishimoto
Hi, Alicia, how are you doing? It’s great to see you. Happy Fourth of July.
Dr. Thompson
Well, thank you very much. I’m enjoying my holiday and it’s raining. But I’m still enjoying. Thank you for having me on this morning.
Dr. Kishimoto
I’m in sunny North Carolina. So a little break from the rain I usually get in Washington, the state of Washington. It’s great to have this time talking to you.
Dr. Thompson
Yes, I’m excited.
Dr. Kishimoto
So, Dr. Alicia Thompson, friend, colleague, someone I respect and really appreciate in terms of the incredible work you’ve done for our nation’s students. You’ve served in Wichita, Kansas, for 25 years, and have really contributed in incredible ways. How has that experience been for you?
Dr. Thompson
It’s been an awesome experience. I’ve been in this district, 31 years. And if you take into consideration I was a student here starting in kindergarten, I’ve been here pretty much my entire life, in the Wichita public schools. So it has been an awesome journey here in the Wichita public schools serving inroles as a paraprofessional teacher, assistant, principal, Principal, teacher leader, coach, all kinds of roles all the way up into the superintendency. So this has been an awesome journey for me.
Dr. Kishimoto
I believe that you told me your superintendency started in 2017. So you served for six years between 2017 and 2023. So just the other day, you stepped down, you retired, you served in incredible ways there.
Dr. Thompson
I did. So it’s really exciting. I’m excited to be able to have had 31 years and then also to be able to transition to other opportunities. So I’m excited about those opportunities as well.
Dr. Kishimoto
I already can hear the questions that people are forming as they’re listening to this conversation, which is 31 years, one district where you also went to school, and where you’ve been a big part of the community. Why make that choice? Why make the choice to stay in one plac? Did ,that happen organically or intentionally?
Dr. Thompson
Actually, it was organically. I had several different opportunities and times where I was wanting to leave. I had no intention to come back home from college, to come here to teach. But organically, that was God’s will and that’s exactly why I ended here. Actually, when I was moving to the superintendency, I applied several different times to different places and was offered two other opportunities. But the district again, was like we need you here. And we did some negotiating, and I was able to stay here as the superintendent. So again, throughout my career, I’ve had several different opportunities and times where I could have left the school district, but organically, and I will say God’s will, I ended up staying here my entire career.
Dr. Kishimoto
Alicia, I can imagine that that has nothing to do with the fact that the job was easier there in Wichita than it would be anywhere else. But there must have been some things that were happening between you and the board, you and your community that made sense for you, where you felt supported. Is that what happened? That there was this trust, there was this support, this opportunity to really lead?
Dr. Thompson
Yes, there was lots of support. And that was the main reason why I decided to stay each time that I wanted to leave. They trusted me. And they saw the skills and the talent that I would be able to bring as an insider to the roles that they connected me with. So that was really the gist of why I stayed. Again, you want to have the relationships, you want to have good trusting relationships, not only with your board, but your community. I think that was important for me as well.
Dr. Kishimoto
Then what does this mean now in terms of how you would answer an up and coming superintendent who says, when I have or if I have the opportunity to stay, should I stay or should I move on to other districts and kind of expand my experiences? How would you help an up-and-coming superintendent to think about all of those options and choices that they have?
Dr. Thompson
I think you have to weigh it all. You should never be closed to leaving and you should never be opposed to staying. But you have to make sure that the conditions in which you go or stay in is one that’s going to be successful not only for you, but also for the district. I always tell people, you have to find a good match. You shouldn’t just go looking for a superintendency and just take any job that is offered to you. You have to weigh all of the things that are going to create a successful opportunity for you, as well as the district. You want your values and the things that you want to accomplish and do to be in alignment with where you work, whether it’s in the district that you’re currently in, or one that you’re looking to go to. So just make sure that it’s a good fit for both parties.
Dr. Kishimoto
One of those conditions certainly is the relationship that a superintendent has with her board. And your hiring board may not necessarily be the board that you retire from. Your board can change over the time of your tenure. And so how do you counsel an up-and- coming superintendent around thinking about that board relationship?
Dr. Thompson
“ I just think relationships are everything, not only just with your board, but with community members, with internal stakeholders, relationships are critical in all areas. ”
Board relationships is key to any superintendency. As a matter of fact, I had three separate configurations of boards, in my short term, here as the superintendent. I do believe that that is one of the most critical roles that you have as a superintendent is those board and superintendent relationships. I also think that it’s kind of like a marriage, you have to work at it, you can’t just go in and say, oh, I have the job and I’m working with you, you have to foster that, you have to spend time with it. There’s going to be ups and downs and things that you don’t get along with. But then you have to make sure that you go back and make those things right. I just think relationships are everything, not only just with your board, but with community members, with internal stakeholders, relationships are critical in all areas. And so as a superintendent moving into this role, you have to know that that is a huge part of your job.
Dr. Kishimoto
Certainly great advice. Boards do change over time, whether it’s a board member that has to step off for whatever reason, or a board member that terms out. You know that terming out means the election of new board members and appointments, or new board members that change conditions sometimes and we have to be ready to carry through that.
Dr. Thompson
Whenever those new board members come in and out, you just can’t automatically just say oh, welcome to our group. There’s a lot of professional learning, there’s a lot of connecting, and those things that have to happen to make sure that you reset that board each time that a new person comes in and out of the relationship. So I think it’s important as new board members come in and out to acclimate them and acclimate the old to the new board members, and just really continue to foster culture with all of the new people that come into the group.
Dr. Kishimoto
We know the superintendency has always been a politicized position and that’s not going to change. But we have this hyper politicization of education these days and certainly, of that role. And so in light of what is now some divisive politics that we are managing nationally, whether it’s book banning, whether it’s conversations about whose histories are included in curriculum, or whether it’s conversations about who can direct a superintendent andbypass the board…
Those kinds of pressures are real today. How do you advise an up-and-coming superintendent around how to think about readiness for this position so that new superintendents aren’t afraid to take on these roles? These are difficult roles, but we need bold leaders, we need equity minded leaders.
Dr. Thompson
One of the things that I have found that has been helpful maneuvering through all of these political issues is to really lean back into your existing policies and allow the procedures that I hope that a school district would have in place to guide. I’ll give you an example. So I had board members that were coming in and they wanted to start banning books from our school districts. Well, we have lots of policies on how you go about doing that. You just can’t come in and say, we want to ban books. So, I think policies and procedures are important in that they are there to help guide and you can lean into those at times for some of these political pieces.
I also think building relationships, when you have a relationship, you can seek to understand what the underlying conditions are for a person or group of people who want to bring in some kind of a issue that may not be something that you’re interested in doing as the superintendent or that might not be helpful to the school district as a whole. So you need to have those relationships.
Also, when you’re thinking about these political spaces, you need to have a group of people that you can dialogue with. I have a group of sister friends that are superintendents that I can call and brainstorm ideas on how to maneuver those waters with different folks, because you’re not alone out there. There’s tons of people that are dealing with the same thing you’re dealing with. But if you have that group of friends around that can help you maneuver those waters, it makes it a lot easier. So, I say lean into your policies, continue to keep those relationships strong with your board members where you can have conversations and seek to understand where they’re coming from. And then just have a group of strong successful women superintendents and men superintendents, whomever, that you can bounce ideas off of and continue to grow and learn from.
Dr. Kishimoto
Dr. Thompson, that’s great advice in terms of having that network of trusted leaders that you can turn to, that you can have on speed dial, that you can get together with. Also to keep ourselves kind of fresh in our thinking, in terms of situations, not every conflict is a bad thing. There’s a great opportunity for us to think differently about what we’re delivering and how we’re delivering it and how we’re engaging the community. And so having that sisterhood or brotherhood network, that are trusted friends, who understand this role is so, so critical.
In light of what’s happening nationally, from politicized situations, to situations that are quite frankly feeling scary in terms of limiting voices, limiting the civil rights of some of our communities and children… even difficult conversations such as the Supreme Court’s recent decision around affirmative action and access in higher education… these are all big issues we’re dealing with right now! Are you feeling hopeful? Or are you feeling worried about the future of education?
Dr. Thompson
Well, of course, we’re all worried about what’s happening and what is taking place. But as I continue to listen and engage in either podcasts, watching news, or reading articles, I believe there is a group of people around this country that are not going to stand for some of the things that are happening. I am hopeful that our young people that I hear rising up, and us who are middle aged as well, are going to be able to stand up and be able to use our voices. And not only our voices, but our ability to be able to vote, and to get out there and get the appropriate folks in places that are going to help lead our nation instead of the folks that we currently have who are leading in the wrong ways, in my opinion. I think we will be able to pull together, to be able to adjust, and make change. So I am definitely concerned, no doubt about it, and very worried about what they’re doing. But I am hopeful that we’re going to rise up and our voices will be heard. And we will make the changes that we need to in order to change the trajectory of where we’re headed.
Dr. Kishimoto
Dr. Alicia Thompson, I join you in your hopefulness. I thank you for sharing a little bit of yourself today with us. And I wish you well in all the future decisions that you’ll be making about where you want to continue to lead and engage. Your voice nationally is so important to us and to our nation’s students.
Dr. Thompson
Thank you very much for your time today.
Dr. Kishimoto
Thank you
