Opinion

Jim Kiser: Turnaround in TUSD

Roger Pfeuffer has been interim superintendent of the Tucson Unified School District only 4 1/2 months, but already he has restored a sense of hope and energy to teachers and administrators. It is a turnaround that bodes well for the district and its students, the kind of 180-degree change in morale that students of management and leadership should study. Now, the district's governing board should consider extending Pfeuffer's contract at least one more year. A frequent misperception is that Pfeuffer would reject such a move. But there is little doubt, if the board were to offer an extension - or even perhaps a permanent job - Pfeuffer would accept it. Pfeuffer's impact could not have been predicted when he took over in late April as a temporary replacement for former Superintendent Stan Paz, whose administration so severely imploded that the board paid him $176,220 to just go away. In that situation, many interim superintendents would be happy to be no more than a seat-warmer. But Pfeuffer quickly started making changes - in tone, personnel and administrative structure. Of the five administrators Paz considered his Cabinet, only two remain at TUSD, and only one of those, chief business officer Judith Knight, remains in a Cabinet-level role. To be his second-in-command, Pfeuffer brought back Patti Lopez, who had left for the Amphi district. That move wins widespread approval. Pfeuffer also made a key change to the top administrative structure. Paz eliminated the jobs of the area superintendents and placed all the district's 100-plus principals under one person. That left the principals feeling unsupported and left one person, the senior academic officer for leadership, with an impossible supervisory task. Pfeuffer undid that mistake by appointing three "principal supervisors." While the title is not "area superintendent," the function is similar. More important is the way Pfeuffer treats people. He has restored trust by consulting with teachers, administrators and parents. Pfeuffer's effect on morale has been "incredibly positive," says Karen McMaster, the TUSD coach for shared decision-making process. Governing Board member Mary Belle McCorkle speaks of Pfeuffer's "listening, listening to people who have been affected by the changes." McCorkle sums up the change from Paz to Pfeuffer: "It was as if there were a huge rain cloud, but now the sun is shining." Business leaders who serve on the district's Blue Ribbon Committee applaud Pfeuffer's leadership. Pfeuffer is described as "a healer" by Rick Myers, president of the Southern Arizona Leadership Council. Venture capitalist Larry Aldrich praises Pfeuffer as "a great guy, a super honest guy." Undoubtedly, problems will arise. "Somewhere along the line the honeymoon will end," says Deborah Summers, principal at Utterback Middle School and president of Educational Leaders Inc., a professional association for TUSD administrators. "But when it does, we'll all know the decisions have not been made in a vacuum, and all the stakeholders have been heard." With such immediate success, some people feel the Governing Board should name Pfeuffer superintendent. McCorkle is one of those. But she and others I talked with believed Pfeuffer would not accept a longer-term job. It was Summers who proposed an attractive compromise: Extend Pfeuffer's interim contract another year. Give him two full years, not just one, to continue turning the district around. That also would allow the new board member (or members) being elected in November to be more smoothly integrated before undertaking the search for a new superintendent. And it is likely that a stable district would be more attractive to top-notch superintendent candidates, who might be wary of the recent turmoil. But the belief Pfeuffer would reject a more-permanent job appears to be based on a misunderstanding. Pfeuffer never said he would stay only temporarily, as some believe. What he did say - he has said it consistently - is that he would stay in the job until the Governing Board replaced him or decided he should leave. "I would certainly consider it," Pfeuffer replied when I asked whether he would accept an extension. "The longer I'm in this job, I do realize an organization kind of craves a sense of continuity." When no offer is on the table, that is as close to "yes" as you can get. Pfeuffer did express some concerns. He believes any decision should be made not by the current board, but by the board that will be in place after the November election. He does not want anybody to pressure the board on his behalf. And he doesn't want it to appear he is seeking the job, because he isn't. My suggestion is this: If there are TUSD employees or parents who want to keep Pfeuffer around, even if just for another year, they should quickly let the Governing Board know. From what I've been told, teachers and administrators would be receptive, and I imagine Governing Board members would be, too. From his comments to me, I am convinced Pfeuffer would not turn it down. It would be one of those clichéd "win-wins": The right man in the right job at the right time. The big winners would be the district's employees and students.