• Understanding of Systems of Oppres-
sion and Entitlement.
• Unawareness of the Need to Adapt.
• Resistance to Change.
The WELR participants recognized and
acknowledged the barriers that we propose
to address and overcome.
Systems of Oppression and Entitlement:
The women leaders described themselves as
not being positioned well to qualify for ex-
ecutive leadership positions as opposed to
the entitled, traditional roles of their male
counterparts. Many women reported fol-
lowing a “traditional female route” to in-
clude elementary teacher, elementary prin-
cipal, or curriculum and instruction related
pathways as opposed to athletic coach, high
school principal, district office administrator
in human relations, business or technology,
then on to assistant superintendent and su-
perintendent. Women, in contrast, served as
department or grade level chairs, Teachers
on Special Assignment, district curriculum
or professional development coordinators,
directors of curriculum, assistant superin-
tendent at several districts, and finally, su-
perintendent. The lack of opportunities lim-
ited the ways women were seen as the “fit”
for executive leadership positions. Thus, the
women leaders reported statements by su-
pervisors as,
• “It’s not your time yet.”
• “You need more experience. You are not
proficient with budgets and the political as-
pects of the job yet.”
• “This district isn’t ready for a female as-
sistant superintendent for personnel or busi-
ness yet.”
• “You are not strong enough. You would
be required to stay late and lock up.”
As co-authors and female leaders, may we
be so bold as to suggest that women be given
the keys both figuratively and literally.
Unawareness of a Need to Adapt: This
barrier was filled with stories of lingering
stereotypes, biases, and misinformation,
as well as examples of misconceptions that
women need to spend more time with fam-
ily and that men have more time to work
hard and get the job done are without lack
of evidence. Women leaders shared experi-
ences of having the tissue box moved toward
them during difficult conversations or being
14
Leadership
stereotyped by the way they dressed, their
accent, and even their tears. One partici-
pant shared her comment to her supervisor
following a high-stakes, potentially volatile
community meeting which she chaired. She
had shared her passion for students through
her tears. Her male supervisor cautioned her
that she shouldn’t show her emotions in pub-
lic that way. She responded to him, “Do not
mistake my tears for a sign of weakness. My
ability to emote, feel, and be vulnerable and
share my passion for our students is indeed
my greatest strength.”
Another retreat participant shared that
her supervisor accused her of being “flirty”
because of her accent. The informal, light-
hearted, two-way conversation was clearly
on his terms. Women participants of the
LGBTQ community reported having to
protect their identity to avoid professional
and personal harm. Women leaders of color
spoke of being frequently asked to give
extra time and prove their qualifications.
They also described the depth of their feel-
ings of isolation accompanied by a sense of
pride when they realized they were the “only
woman of color” in the room. Women of
color spoke of being targeted to serve and
lead groups who looked like them, with an
incorrect assumption that they were not
qualified to lead organizations for all. One
participant added, “As I looked around, I
noticed we (WOC) were assigned to be in
charge of equity plans, diversity recruitment
for people of color, newcomers committees,
newly formed Diversity and Equity depart-
ments, and all things diversity.”
Resistance to Change: The glass ceiling
effect was clearly identified as a barrier of
resistance to change. Districts are frequently
identified as reluctant to hire women as su-
perintendents, business leaders, technology
specialists and human resource leaders. The
American Association of School Admin-
istrators (AASA, 2019) show that 23% of
superintendents identify as female. While
women are the strong majority of the teacher
workforce, they are significantly underrepre-
sented in executive leadership roles. Quotes
from the participants retreat included:
“We already have one female high school
principal. Don’t you think we are going too
far if we appointed another female?”
“You are the top candidate, but it’s his turn.”
“The men on the committee would not
look at me when I spoke, or when they
spoke. They only looked at each other. I was
the first female Superintendent. Finally, I
said, ‘I’d like for you to look at me when you
have something to say.’ After that, things
changed for the better.”
Numerous retreat women, white and
women of color, also reported the lack of fe-
male mentoring. Mentors were listed as Joe,
Bob, Randy, Jose, Rich, Jerry. The common-
ality was the majority of mentoring came
from men. We even noticed that sometimes
women reported other women as barriers by
being territorial and competitive with a “pull
up the ladder now, I’m up here” attitude.
Women participants also stated that male
mentors periodically contributed to the bar-
riers by advice such as, “Don’t apply for that.
It’s a male dominated position. We need your
expertise in the position you are currently
holding.” And, “You’re not ready yet. You
need more experience and more education.
You’ll need your doctorate before you think
of applying as assistant superintendent.”
A female assistant principal told one of
our co-authors last year, that her male prin-
cipal told her, “If you want to become a prin-
cipal in this district, you’ll need to start act-
ing more like a man.”
Imagine her disappointment when her self-
appointed mentor spoke those words to her?
Supporting women educational lead-
ers, overcoming the barriers toward equi-
table educational practices requires a sense
of moral purpose. The Guiding Principles
of Cultural Proficiency foster the develop-
ment of a set of core values focused on equity
and inclusion. These values serve as a moral
framework for conducting one’s self and
their school and district in an ethical man-
ner. The Guiding Principles serve as guides
for who we say we are as leaders. These core
values are also the representation of the dis-
trict for serving historically marginalized
groups. (Lindsey, Nuri-Robins, Terrell &
Lindsey, 2019). Clearly, the challenges the
female participants at WELR overcame
and the successes they experienced relied on
their talents and expertise, as well as support
and encouragement from mentors through-
out their careers.