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As the nation addresses the recom- mendations in the Institute of Medi- cine and National Research Council’s report, Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth through Age 8: A Unifying Foundation,1 leadership is emerging as

an important component for increasing workforce capacity in early childhood education. Because program leaders are included with other individuals considered to be ‘lead educators,’ a clear understanding of their foundational knowledge and competencies is neces- sary for successful implementation. Yet, early childhood leadership is a multi- faceted and nuanced concept that is often clouded by inconsistent standards and policies across an array of program settings.

The McCormick Center for Early Child- hood Leadership at National Louis University developed Whole Leader- ship, a clarifying conceptual framework to help address this need. It encom- passes a broad view of program leader- ship — evidenced in many areas and collapsed into three domains: leader- ship essentials, administrative leader- ship, and pedagogical leadership.

Leadership essentials include foun- dational skills in reflective practice, communication, and relationship building — critical for all facets of leader ship and often expressed in leader ship styles and dispositions.

Administrative leadership involves maximizing team capacity to develop and sustain an early childhood orga- nization with both operational and

strategic leadership functions. Program leaders also assume leadership roles beyond their own organizations through advocacy and connecting with their communities.

Pedagogical leadership addresses the complexity of teaching and learning in settings that serve young children, birth through third grade.

Developing the Whole Leadership Framework

The Whole Leadership Framework was developed through an itera- tive process by engaging individuals across the country in several ways. Thought leaders at the McCormick Center worked for more than a year to examine the domains of early childhood program leadership and compare their findings to multiple existing standards and structures. They also authored a series of blog posts on the topic — published from February through May of 2016 — intended to solicit responses from the field. Eighty-two individual comments were received that explored various aspects of Whole Leadership and informed the development of the framework. Additional feedback was solicited at the 2016 Leadership Connec- tions™ conference from key national stakeholders serving on the McCormick Center’s Advisory Board and from

Michael B. Abel, Ph.D. is the Director of Research and Evaluation at the McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership at National Louis University where he designs and implements original research studies regarding

administrative practice in early childhood programs. In addition to his work at the McCormick Center, he has experience as a researcher, college instructor, institute operations manager, child care center director, and elementary school administrator. He holds an Interdisciplinary Ph.D. in Educational Leadership Policy and Foundations, an M.A. in Educational Administration, and an M.A. in Early Childhood Education.

Teri N. Talan, Ed.D., J.D., is the Michael W. Louis Chair of the McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership and Professor of Early Childhood Education at National Louis University in Wheeling, Illinois. She promotes action by state and national

policymakers on early childhood leadership, workforce development, and program administration issues. She holds a law degree from Northwestern University as well as an Ed.D. in Adult and Continuing Education and an M.Ed. in Early Childhood Leadership and Advocacy from National Louis University.

Marie Masterson, Ph.D., is the Director of Quality Assessment at the McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership at National Louis University and former professor of early childhood education. She is a national speaker, child behavior

expert, researcher, and author. She is an educational consultant to state departments of education, schools, child care centers, and social-service and parenting organizations. Dr. Masterson is a Fulbright specialist and former early childhood specialist for the Virginia Department of Education.

WHOLE LEADERSHIP:

A Framework for Early Childhood Programs

by Mike Abel, Teri Talan, and Marie Masterson

Copyright © Exchange Press, Inc. All rights reserved. A single copy of these materials may be

reprinted for noncommercial personal use only. Visit us at www.ChildCareExchange.com or

call (800) 221-2864.

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Start and Early Head Start grantees, and military child care programs. Public and private elementary schools, serving Pre-kindergarten through 3rd grade children, may have leadership roles located at the district or regional levels. The framework is useful when consid- ering the formal and informal leader- ship structures or roles in each of these settings.

Leadership Essentials

Leadership essentials include the personal skills and attributes on which administrative and pedagogical leader- ships are built. The competencies influence and motivate all other areas of leadership vision and practice. Leader- ship essentials are embodied by the leader as necessary anchors for success.

participants in a featured conference session, video interviews, and written responses to a survey. This important feedback provided a deep and rich exploration of the concepts that led to the Whole Leadership Framework presented in this article.

Whole Leadership Framework

The Whole Leadership Framework is designed to clarify our understanding about leadership in early childhood education at the program level. Drawing from Kagan and Bowman’s seminal work, Leadership in Early Care and Educa- tion,2 the framework highlights three primary domains: leadership essen- tials, administrative leadership, and pedagogical leadership. It is important to note that there is overlap between

each of these domains, reflecting an interdependent relationship. Few leader- ship roles and functions are mutually exclusive. Rather, leadership exercised in one domain impacts and/or requires reciprocal leadership in the other domains.

The Whole Leadership Framework can be applied to early childhood programs serving young children in a variety of settings: centers, schools, and homes. Early childhood centers include: Head Start, Early Head Start, state-funded Pre-K, as well as for-profit, non-profit, public, private, employer-sponsored, and college-affiliated child care programs. Multi-site organizations have leadership structures with oversight of more than one site. These entities include: corporate child care programs, multi-site Head

ADMINISTRATIVE LEADERSHIP Coordinating work and mobilizing people to ensure the organization remains stable and continues to grow.

▪ Operational leadership: Hiring and supporting staff, overseeing budgets, and fostering positive workplace climates

▪ Strategic leadership: Goal setting and guiding future program direction

▪ Advocacy leadership: Acting as an ambassador for the needs of children,

families, and programs

▪ Community leadership: Collaborating with organizations within the local community on behalf of the children and families served

LEADERSHIP ESSENTIALS Foundational competencies and individual qualities necessary for leading people that are expressed in personal leadership styles and dispositions. Leadership essentials are often developed through reflective practice.

▪ Self-efficacy ▪ Empathy ▪ Creativity ▪ Authenticity

▪ Humility ▪ Transparency ▪ Adaptability ▪ Learner

Personal Attributes:

Whole Leadership Framework FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAMS (BIRTH TO AGE 8)

PEDAGOGICAL LEADERSHIP Leading the art and science of teaching with an emphasis on educator dispositions and high quality interactions with children. This includes ensuring fidelity to curricular philosophy, assessing children’s development and learning, using data for evaluation, and optimizing learning environments.

▪ Instructional leadership: Supporting classroom teachers in implementing curriculum

▪ Family engagement: Promoting partnerships with families and fostering family leadership

WHOLE LEADERSHIP is an inter-dependent relationship that exists

between leadership domains. A balanced perspective

is necessary when performing administrative

functions.

TOOLS FOR PEDAGOGICAL LEADERSHIP

▪ Knowledge of evidence-based pedagogy ▪ Knowledge of assessment methodology ▪ Knowledge of adult learning ▪ Coaching and mentoring skills ▪ Ability to apply child development theory and

research ▪ Technical credibility ▪ Family focus

TOOLS FOR ADMINISTRATIVE LEADERSHIP

▪ Ability to plan strategically ▪ Expertise in systems development ▪ Financial and legal knowledge and skills ▪ Awareness of organizational climate ▪ Public relations and marketing expertise ▪ Entrepreneurial focus ▪ Ability to interpret data ▪ Ability to advocate on behalf of young children,

their families, and the profession

▪ Ability to create organizational culture built on norms of continuing quality improvement

▪ Ability to build community partnerships to ensure Pre-K – 3rd learning continuum

TOOLS FOR LEADERSHIP ESSENTIALS

▪ Awareness of self and others ▪ Knowledge of the profession ▪ Communication and team-building skills ▪ Cultural competence

▪ Ethical conduct and morality ▪ Intentionality ▪ Ability to motivate people

24 EARLY CHILDHOOD LEADERSHIP www.ChildCareExchange.com EXCHANGE JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2017

ence within an organization as well as expand that influence outward to impact the full early childhood system. The core values and dynamics of interpersonal vitality are indeed leadership essentials needed by all leaders.

Administrative Leadership

Administrative leadership is about setting goals, orchestrating work, and mobilizing people to sustain an early childhood organization. Effective administrative leaders establish systems for consistent implementation of program operations to meet the needs of children, families, and staff. There are at least two important aspects of adminis- trative leadership: operational leader- ship and strategic leadership.

Operational leadership is accomplished through critical functions such as hiring, evaluating, and supporting teaching

They include the foundational compe- tencies necessary for leading people that are expressed in personal leadership styles and dispositions.

Leadership essentials create the fertile and healthy environment that results in a greater degree of collaboration, efficacy, creativity, and ethical commit- ment for everyone involved, including the leader. In this way, leadership is a shared responsibility and depends on mutual engagement and commitment within the context of trust and commu- nication. Thus, both administrative and pedagogical leaderships can be maxi- mized.

The Whole Leadership Framework is anchored by the personal knowledge, skills, and dispositions that foster increasing strength and capacity of everyone in the organization. The vital core dispositions flow from authentic relationships and mutual vulner- ability that promote shared empathy and collegiality. Because leadership requires mutual interdependence and influence, it is encompassed within the context of ongoing reflective practice and is strengthened through mutually beneficial dialog among an organiza- tion’s members. With these foundational competencies, leaders will be able to maximize their leadership influ-

staff; developing budgets aligned with program goals and needs; and maintaining a positive organizational culture and climate.

Strategic leadership involves guiding the direction of an early childhood organiza- tion with the future in mind. Strategic leaders clarify mission and values, inspire staff to pursue a shared vision, and ensure that program goals and outcomes are attained.

Strategic leadership is not just internally focused. Administrative leaders need to communicate and align their program services with those of other community organizations serving young children and families. Advocacy is another essential aspect of strategic leadership. Effective administrative leaders are future oriented; they engage in advocacy because they want to have influence on the external conditions (professional standards, regu- lations, and government policies) that impact young children, families, and early childhood programs.

Administrative and pedagogical lead- ership are separate but connected. For example, the most qualified, skilled teachers will not be effective teaching young children if the organizational condi- tions in which they work (e.g. supervisor support, opportunities for professional growth, shared decision-making, collegi- ality, rewards and recognition, role clarity,

TOOLS FOR

PEDAGOGICAL LEADERSHIP

• Knowledge of evidence-based pedagogy

• Knowledge of assessment methodology

• Knowledge of adult learning • Coaching and mentoring skills • Ability to apply child development

theory and research • Technical credibility

• Family focus

TOOLS FOR

ADMINISTRATIVE LEADERSHIP

• Ability to plan strategically • Expertise in systems

development • Financial and legal

knowledge and skills • Awareness of organizational cli-

mate • Public relations and

marketing expertise • Entrepreneurial focus • Ability to interpret data • Ability to advocate on behalf

of young children, their families, and the profession

• Ability to create organizational culture built on norms of continuing quality improvement

• Ability to build community partnerships to ensure Pre-K – 3rd learning continuum

TOOLS FOR

LEADERSHIP ESSENTIALS

• Awareness of self and others • Knowledge of the profession • Communication and team-

building skills • Cultural competence • Ethical conduct and morality • Intentionality • Ability to motivate people

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task orientation, innovativeness, and physical environment) are not adequately supportive. Administrative leadership ensures the organizational conditions in which teachers and other staff can do their best work so that children and families thrive.

Pedagogical Leadership

Leadership exercised to improve the art and science of teaching is found in the pedagogical domain. Our conception of teaching is a broad interpretation — span- ning the birth to third grade continuum — that includes activities to optimize child development and learning. Peda- gogical leadership attends to educator dispositions and high-quality interactions with children. Activities of individuals exercising pedagogical leadership include ensuring fidelity to curricular philosophy, assessing children’s development and learning, using data for evaluation, and optimizing learning environments.

Pedagogical leadership includes instruc- tional leadership — supporting classroom teachers in implementing curriculum, but we differentiate pedagogical leadership as a broader term that embodies activi- ties that occur in early childhood settings that some individuals may not associate with instruction. For example, some educators may not consider encouraging infant teachers to talk with babies during diapering routines as part of instruction. Therefore, we choose pedagogical leader- ship as a broader, more inclusive term.

Effective pedagogical leadership requires promoting partnerships with families — essential to children’s learning and growth. Depending on the setting and organizational structure, pedagogical leadership in early childhood programs may also foster family engagement.

Tools for Whole Leadership

The Whole Leadership Framework includes key competencies for performing

within each domain. Many personal characteristics could have been included as tools, but we chose to select attributes, knowledge, and skills that can be improved through professional development. This focus on application is useful as leaders consider their own skill set and as systems leaders work to improve leadership capacity in our field. As with the primary graphic representation of the framework, there is considerable overlap of competen- cies across domains. To varying degrees, knowledge and skills necessary for effec- tive administrative leadership have appli- cability for pedagogical leadership and vice versa. The tools for leadership essentials are foundational for the other domains.

The Whole Leadership Framework is adaptive,3 in that certain organizational characteristics or personal traits may be more highly valued or better suited to meet primary needs at any given time or for specific situations. We believe that all early childhood leaders should have compe- tency in leadership essentials and basic knowledge and skills in both the peda- gogical and administrative domains — a balanced leadership perspective. However, depending on the early childhood setting, leadership may be distributed to multiple individuals. A distributed perspective to leadership recognizes that persons in posi- tions of authority choose to share certain leadership functions with others in the organization, both in formal and informal roles.4, 5 Shared leadership draws upon the collective competence or efficacy of various persons in an organization like administra- tors, coordinators, teacher leaders, parents, owners, board members, and community leaders, resulting in collective leadership capacity. Collective leadership efficacy can improve teaching practice and workplace climate.6, 7

Implications for the Use of The Whole Leadership Framework

We believe the Whole Leadership Frame- work can serve as a useful tool for early childhood systems leaders, higher educa-

tion administrators, training and technical assistance developers, policymakers, and other individuals seeking to improve early childhood leadership and increase capacity of the workforce. We also believe the framework will be useful for indi- viduals working in schools and organiza- tions serving children birth through third grade to help them place leadership func- tions and competencies in an organized context. Most of all, we hope that it will establish a common language about early childhood organizational leadership as a lever to increase the quality of early child- hood programs and to advance the field in support of young children and families.

Endnotes

1 Institute of Medicine (U.S.) & National Research Council (U.S.) (2015). Transforming the workforce for children birth through age 8: A unifying foundation. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.

2 Kagan, S. L., & Bowman, B. T. (Eds.). (1997). Leadership in early care and education. Washington, DC: NAEYC.

3 Heifetz, R., Grashow, A., & Linsky, M. (2009). The practice of adaptive leadership: Tools and tactics for changing your organization and the world. Boston: Harvard Business School.

4 Spillane, J. P., & Healey, K. (2010). Conceptu- alizing school leadership and management from a distributed perspective: An exploration of some study operations and measures. The Elementary School Journal 3(2), 253–281.

5 Talan, T. (2010). Distributed leadership: Some- thing new or something borrowed? Exchange, 193, 8–10.

6 Bloom, P. J., & Abel, M. B. (2015). Expanding the lens — Leadership as an organizational asset. Young Children, 70(2), 8–13.

7 Louis, K. S., Leithwood, K., Wahlstrom, K. L., & Anderson, S. E. (2010). Collective leadership effects on teachers and students — Learning from leadership. The Wallace Foundation. Retrieved: www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge- center/Pages/1_1-collective-leadership- learning-from-leadership.aspx

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