The Loneliness of the Long Distance
Change Leader
By Rosabeth Moss Kanter
© Copyright 2005 by Rosabeth Moss Kanter
rkanter@hbs.edu.

We all prefer win-win situations. But when making big improvements in systems that are broken, leaders face tough, sometimes painful decisions. In the politicized world of public schools, they can find themselves pitted against entrenched interests. Principals might have to tell long-time teachers that they're not doing the job against today's standards. They might have to remove their friends.

If you're one of those leaders guiding sweeping reforms, you know that you have to do a great deal of this alone.

You can - and should - surround yourself with supportive colleagues (at home, if not at work). You can - and should - get the backing of bosses above you (top administrators, or if you are at the top, then the board or the public or the media). But ultimately, you are the one who has to face tough issues.
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Promising Approaches: Partnering to Promote Pre-K
By Sara Watson Program Officer,
State Policy and Education,
The Pew Charitable Trusts

"Leadership involves planting trees under which you may never sit..." -- so began Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm, a panelist at the Governors' Forum on Quality Preschool in December 2004, sponsored by The Pew Charitable Trusts and other key funders. The Governors' Forum, as well as upcoming national conferences bringing together state legislators, business leaders, advocates, economists, and education experts, are examples of the many activities conducted under the Trusts' initiative to advance the quality of and access to voluntary pre-kindergarten for all of America's three- and four-year-olds.
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Leading to Change with the Change Toolkit
By H. 'Bud' Meyers, Associate Professor at the University of Vermont and former Deputy Commissioner of Education for Vermont

Federal legislation known as the No Child Left Behind Act, signed by President Bush in 2002, has signaled the need for change in America's schools. This law has forced educators, government leaders and parents to acknowledge the serious gaps that have existed for decades in the performance of students from widely different backgrounds. These gaps, coupled with global economic challenges, have made "business as usual" a non-viable alternative for education leaders. Change towards more effective schools with more effective principals and more supportive communities has become a gathering movement across the country.
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Change Toolkit Tool of the Month
By Heidi Kraemer, Change Toolkit Project Manager and IBM Corporate Community Relations manager

Leadership for Change
Leaders of successful change efforts are successful at balancing what Rosabeth Moss Kanter calls "Bold Strokes" and "Long Marches." A 'bold stroke' is a decisive action of a powerful individual - a principal, senior administrator, or superintendent. However bold strokes are not enough to make lasting change. They must be combined with the 'long march' of involvement, actions and commitment by many people over a sustained period of time. The Leadership for Change tool in the Change Toolkit will help you understand how to combine bold strokes and long marches to make lasting change. You can also check out the three action tools, "Exerting Positive Influence," "When to Take Action," and "Does My Passion Match my Aspiration for Change?"

How do I find this tool?
1. Log in to the Change Toolkit website .
2. Move your mouse to 'Get Tools' and click on 'Change Fundamentals.'
3. Click on 'Leadership for Change.'
4. Click on the 'Background' or the 'Action tool' tab.

Leadership pulse check
A monthly poll of the readership of the Education Leadership Newsletter

This Month's Poll:
AOL users, please click here to complete and submit your survey. If you are using Microsoft Outlook, you MUST open the message to complete the survey.

Am I leading on my own? In my current leadership role, I:

• Am well supported by my supervisor.
  
• Have a strong network of team mates to support my change initiative.
  
• Feel like I am largely accomplishing the change on my own.
  
• Think there is room to improve all of our roles.
  
• Think the leadership throughout my organization could be strengthened.
  
• Other ______________________________

	33%	Ability to see the big picture
	28%	Ability to implement change effectively
	20%	Ability to inspire peers and be a team player
	8%	Job competency
	11%	Others