Summer: The Strategic Bridge for School Leaders

For school system leaders, the “summer break” is a bit of a misnomer. While the hallways may be quieter, the mental load of leadership does not disappear. Despite leaders not “taking the summer off,” this season does offer a vital opportunity to step off the treadmill of daily operations and engage in the deep work of restoration and personal strategy.

Effective leaders use the summer months as a strategic bridge—connecting the lessons of the past school year with a proactive vision for the one to come. They do their future selves a favor and use the change in tempo to set up systems to help them be effective for when the pace steps up.

Prioritize Restoration and Rejuvenation

Before diving into plans, systems or schedules, the first priority for any leader should be rest. You cannot lead your students and staff effectively from a place of burnout. Restoration is not a luxury; it is a professional commitment to your staff and students. Here are some ways we’ve seen leaders create space for rest during the summer months:

• Set clear “off-campus” times where you are unreachable for non-emergencies.
• Use this time to read, travel, or engage in hobbies.
• By taking your own rest seriously, you give your team permission to do the same, which is essential for long-term sustainability.

Reflect on the Year that has Passed

Summer provides the space needed to look at the previous year objectively. While reflection on the year that has passed and planning for the future year begins much earlier than the summer, the quiet of the summer months provides a chance for reflection focused on the leader’s own personal systems. 

Consider these questions for your reflection:

• What were the 1–2 biggest successes in my leadership this year?
• What were the most significant challenges or areas where my leadership could have been stronger?
• What personal systems worked well in my leadership this year? What are ways I could improve?

Personal Effectiveness: Setting Your Own Routines

Most system leaders know that planning for a successful school year launch begins long before summer hits. And, the slower pace of summer provides time to affirm the personal systems you will use to maintain balance and focus given your broader strategy. This includes creating schedules; routines; templates; and other systems that will help you balance the work when staff and students return in the fall. 

For example, using the summer months to create your personal schedule can help you protect the sacred time you need to drive instructional improvement. A leader’s schedule should protect “sacred” times for:

• Teacher Observations and Support: Proactively blocking time before the year starts.
• Intellectual Preparation (IP) Time: Ensuring you are as prepared as the teachers you support.
• One-on-One Check-ins: Establishing a regular cadence for direct reports.
• Strategic White Space: Time reserved for response to data and troubleshooting.

By balancing restoration with personal strategy, you ensure that when the doors open in the fall, you aren’t just starting another year—you are leading a more effective, energized, and focused school. Our work coaching school system leaders often focuses on this balance of ensuring a strong strategy for your school with being able to execute on that strategy given strong personal systems. Are you interested in learning more about how we can support you with this balance? Reach out to Jess.