Bob Sonju is the Director of K–12 Learning in Washington School
District in Southern Utah.
In this first part of the interview, we discuss the
following:
A little about Bob’s history and what he learned to help him
become prepared for being a transformative principal.
Bob focuses on making sure all students are doing their best,
not just particular subgroups.
What prepared Bob to be a principal: being a coach and a
special education teacher.
What barriers prevent a school from being ready for
change.
Three fundamentals that are needed to change:
Why do we exist
Describing a perfect school
What are we going to do to make sure we get there!
Conversations about structural change take time and informal
and formal conversations with teachers, students, parents, and
other stakeholders.
All the voices have to be in the room!
Establishment of norms are critical for the success of our
school, and while we want to hear everyone’s concerns, we will move
forward with the will of the group.
The norms for Bob’s schools.
The need for “critical friends”.
How he deals with the fact of hearing that he is doing
something wrong.
One of the best interview questions: “Anticipate a mistake you
are going to make, and how you will resolve that!”