Dr. Leonard Seawood

Michigan Nightlight: What is one concrete thing that could be done to improve the environment for social sector work in Michigan?
Benton Harbor Area Schools Superintendent Dr. Leonard Seawood: The most important thing is to have a more equitable distribution of resources to all of the communities in Michigan. Some communities have more resources based on student funding formula and the community's tax base. Wealthier areas with a stronger tax base can utilize better and more resources than economically depressed areas can, and that makes it very difficult to educate children in those areas.
 
Wealthier communities lure better teachers because they can pay higher salaries, they have better technology, better

Wealthier areas with a stronger tax base can utilize better and more resources than economically depressed areas can, and that makes it very difficult to educate children in those areas.

teaching and learning materials, better infrastructures, better everything. We need a better way to distribute resources than we do now. Equity would help us to raise the bar for all students.
 
How do you know that you are making progress?
I consider myself a facilitator – an orchestra leader in this environment – because I clearly understand how serious this job is, in terms of educating children in this community. How do I know that we are making progress? Here’s an analogy: think about education as you would about manufacturing cars. You develop a compelling vision, and you know what the car should look like at the end of the line, but along the way, you have to know each step that it takes to get there.
 
When you see everyone around you begin to embrace that concept in terms of education, to embrace all of the small indicators along the way to a successful ending, you know you are making progress. You know that you’re helping people to understand what it takes to give a child a good education.
 
What are you most proud of?
This district is in the middle of a major transformation that began in 2010; it had been in decline for 20 years. We had high dropout rates, low graduation rates, low parental engagement rates, and low college-going rates among our students. Now, for the first time in many years, we have a balanced budget. We have created a learning environment of family engagement and important new learning strategies. We have also developed a smart tutoring program, too. All of our students from first grade to eighth grade get a one-on-one tutor to help them along.
 
I am proud that we have right-sized our schools and turned them into strong learning academies.
 
What does being a leader mean to you?
Being a leader means that you have to be able to build appropriate relationships with all of your stakeholders, and by stakeholders I mean educators, parents, students, local businesses, community-based organizations, and local government entities.
 
A leader has to make difficult decisions for the good of the entire organization. I’ve been the Superintendent here for 28 months, and only six months into my job, I was already closing schools; right-sizing our schools meant downsizing faculty and staff based on our district’s student population. As a leader, I knew that those decisions had to be made in the best

No one is too young or too old to learn. It's probably the most basic, fundamental thing that we do as humans. Learning is the key to absolutely everything.

interest of our children. But they were very, very hard decisions to make.
 
What is your dream for kids?
I want to help make sure that all kids are equipped to make the best life decisions, that when students graduate, they should be in the position to make the choice between going to college or a career. My dream is that we are able to give all of our graduates the ability to make these choices themselves instead of relying on us to make them.
 
Reflecting on your career, what would you say was your greatest professional learning experience?
I have worked in all three sectors of education. I have worked in the K-12 environment, at the community level, and at the university level. I’ve worked in early childhood education and adult education.
 
Because I have walked the whole process during my career, I have a unique perspective. This might sound like a cliché, but learning really is life-long. I know it because I have lived it. No one is too young or too old to learn. It’s probably the most basic, fundamental thing that we do as humans. Learning is the key to absolutely everything.