Leadership Matters January 2014

(Continued from page 5)

 E veryone included & valued It’s more than a catchy acronym.

“We relate everything we do back to that vision. When everyone understands the big picture and has ownership in it, it makes the little changes easier,” Stewart said. “Hiring a really good team of people with strengths that complement each other also is a big part of the puzzle.” In her acceptance remarks at the Joint Annual Conference in late November, Stewart said of her administrative team: “You remind me of the trail mix with the popcorn and M & Ms. They are very different, but together they work. We are all very different, but each of us brings our own skills to the table, and together we work.” Longtime Benton School Board President Mark D. Minor credited Stewart for the leadership she has brought to the school district. “When many other schools are decreasing class offerings for students, Benton has provided more opportunities for student educational development,” Minor wrote in his letter of nomination for Stewart. “The introduction of READ 180 has met specific special education needs. Quality professional development, differentiated instruction and the Understanding by Design approach, to name a few, have kept Benton’s teaching staff ahead of the curve. “These successes are, of course, impossible without the cooperation of teachers, staff, the Board of Education and the community. Bringing these stakeholders together to get things done for our kids may, in fact, be the greatest feather of all for Kelly Stewart,” Minor added. “Her tireless efforts have sure made a difference in our school.” Located in deep Southern Illinois, the Benton district serves some 600 high school students, with 49 percent of them being categorized as low-income as opposed to 38 percent five years ago. Despite that trend – which normally results in lower academic performance – the percentage of students meeting or exceeding standards in the Prairie State Achievement Exam has risen from 44 to 50 percent in the past three years. Dr. Brent Clark, executive director of IASA, praised Stewart as “an educator who has dedicated her professional career to the vision of IASA, which is ‘Maximum Educational Success for All Students.’ Her work in the Benton district is a testament to that and she is most deserving of this honor.” So much for being a college “dropout.” Stewart not only returned to Southern Illinois University to get her Bachelor’s Degree, Master’s Degree and Ph.D., but she also was in the inaugural class of the IASA

Getting to know the Illinois Superintendent of the Year

School for Advanced Leadership (ISAL), one of 23 superintendents to complete the rigorous two-year cohort. Tony Frontier, an associate professor at Cardinal Stritch University in Milwaukee and one of the lead instructors for ISAL, may have captured what makes Kelly Stewart such an effective leader when he said, “Every time I’ve been in a room with Kelly it is obvious to me that her compelling interest is not to be the best person in the group, but to be the best person for the group.” Most encouraging thing about public education: Over the past few years I have seen teachers begin to collaborate more than they have in the past. I am of the opinion that given our current challenges, we need to work smarter not harder and collaboration is the key. Name: Dr. Kelly D. Stewart School district: Benton Consolidated High School District #103 One thing you would like people to know about your school district: We are never satisfied, we constantly strive to improve our instructional practices and means to provide learning opportunities for our students. IASA Region: Egyptian Years as IASA Member: 13 Years as educator: 30 High school: Benton Consolidated High School Colleges or Universities: BS, MS, Ph.D. Southern Illinois University Family: My nephews are spoiled by me enough to claim them as mine -- Alex 28, John 25, Landon 20, and Braxton 5. Favorite hobby: Crossword puzzles/ reading mysteries Favorite movie: Rear Window Favorite book: Anything by Patricia Cornwell or James Patterson Favorite musical artist: Bob Seger One thing people probably would be surprised to know about you: That the actor John Malkovich played football for my dad and is a family friend. Biggest concern about public education: While I support all of the current reform efforts, the timeline for implementation is way too fast and adding a great deal of stress to teachers. Couple that with having to work more years to reach full retirement, leads me to fear two things: teachers will burn out and that potential good teachers will steer clear of the profession.

6