When you’re held to a different standard, defy expectations
Female leaders in K12 are held to a different standard, which sometimes forces female leaders to hold themselves to a higher standard, Superintendent Zandra Jo Galván acknowledges. Her answer: flip the switch, defy expectations.
“It’s never crowded when you go the extra mile,” Galván, superintendent of California’s Salinas Union High School District, tells host Amy Dujon on the latest episode of DA’s “A Good Lesson” podcast. “If you’re going to hold me to a different standard, or expect something different out of a woman, let me show others what’s possible.”
Aspiring female leaders often wait longer to apply for promotions, and are asked more questions and given more responsibilities once they become superintendents, Galván attests. “We have what it takes, yet we wait a long time to make sure everything is just right,” she adds.
Galván says she feels a responsibility to perform at the highest level to set an example and pave the way for the next generation of female education leaders. She urges those emerging leaders to spend time inside and outside their comfort zones; both places offer important lessons.
She also recommends setting core values as non-negotiables while advancing professionally.
“The two most important days in our lives are the day you were born and the day you discover why,” she contends. “When you figure out your gifts, you start using them for good and making sure that what you do is what you’re all about.”
Sources of inspiration abound for aspiring superintendents, she notes. “If you admire a superintendent, go on the YouTube channel of their board meetings, and watch them in action,” she counsels. “Go to conferences, and join spaces where you can be around people that you think are smarter than you.”
Galván is part of theDA Leadership Institute’s upcoming Leadhership Network for Women conference, which takes place and in September and will cover many of the issues discussed in on “A Good Lesson”.
“First and foremost, know who you are—lead with kindness, and uplift people,” she concludes. “Be confident in who you are and what you love, so that’s what you lean into and find things that match.”
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