Max Silverman: Transforming School Systems & Lessons Along the Way

An Imperfect Leader

Book Update!

Imperfect Leaders! My book, An Imperfect Leader: Leadership in (After) Action is available on Amazon.com. If there is no hyperlink to follow, please go to Amazon.com or peterstiepleman.com. You can order it there.

Intro: Hello Imperfect Leaders! A few months ago, I read White Bird by RJ. Palacio. It is such a powerful story, a graphic novel. The story of a Jewish child in France, hidden by a non-Jewish family, during World War II. I HIGHLY recommend it for anyone interested in knowing more about the Holocaust – or is looking for a book to help future generations understand what happened so that it may never happen again. It’s a story about friendship. It’s a story about regrets. It’s a story about courage. It’s a story about standing up against injustice. It’s about dreaming about a better future and doing something about it.

While I was speaking to my guest today, the story popped into my head. My guest describes the shift in how leaders can lead. He talks about the current landscape and how by working closely with others (I was struck by how often he talked about his colleagues by name) – by working with others, great things can happen.

My guest is Max Silverman. He talks about shifting an entire system – transforming it, really. For those who are not familiar with the the organization he leads, the Center for Educational Leadership (CEL) leads national projects to implement new systems to improve leadership effectiveness by supporting the growth of superintendents, principals and teacher leader teams.

Thanks for tuning in.

Bio: Max Silverman is the executive director of the University of Washington's Center for Educational Leadership (CEL) where he provides leadership for improving school systems focused on equitable outcomes for students. Throughout his career, Max has served in a variety of leadership positions including classroom teacher, school principal, district leader, and most recently as deputy director of CEL.

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This episode is brought to you, in part, by the Waters Center for Systems Thinking. The Waters Center helps people understand what systems thinking is and how to incorporate the Habits, tools and concepts of systems thinking into their work and life to achieve desired results. To learn more, go to waterscenterst.org.

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An Imperfect Leader: Leadership in (After) Action is supported by ILAA, LLC, a firm dedicated to supporting aspiring, new, and established leaders. For more information, please find them at www.human-centeredleaders.com.

Music for An Imperfect Leader was written and arranged by Ian Varley.

Sam Falbo created our artwork, a wood-print inspired daruma doll butterfly.

www.peterstiepleman.com