Admin Interview: Jane Smith.
ANSWER
Interview Date & Time: September 25, 2023, at 10:00 AM
Interviewee: Jane Smith, Department Chair of Special Education Skills
Organization: Lincoln Park High School, New Jersey
Mode of Interview: In-Person
Introduction: We have the privilege of interviewing Jane Smith, the Department Chair of Special Education Skills at Lincoln Park High School in New Jersey. Jane has a wealth of experience in the field of special education and has transitioned from a non-administrative role to her current position. This interview will delve into Jane’s background, her approach to administration, her motivation, and the challenges she faces within her organization.
Administrator’s Background: Jane, could you please start by telling us a bit about your educational background and your journey in the human services field? How long have you been in the field, and what led you to pursue a career in special education?
Moving Up the Administration Ladder: Many individuals aspire to become administrators in their respective fields. Could you share your experience in moving from your initial non-administrative role to your current position? What was the transition like, and were there any specific challenges you faced along the way?
Administrator’s Theory of Administration: In your role as Department Chair, you likely have a unique approach to administration and organization. Could you share your general theory of administration and how it guides your work in the Special Education Skills department at Lincoln Park High School?
Handling All the Tasks: As an administrator, you have a wide range of responsibilities, from internal organizational matters to representing the school externally. How do you prioritize tasks, and have these priorities evolved since you first began your career in administration? Are there specific categories of tasks that you find particularly challenging?
Motivation and Joy in the Work: What aspects of your work are personally important to you, and what motivates you to come to the office every day? Where do you find joy in your role as Department Chair of Special Education Skills?
Administrator’s Professional Growth: Professional growth is crucial for career development. How do you plan to accomplish your professional goals in the next 12 months, and how do you continue to grow in your role as an administrator?
Organization’s Greatest Challenge: What would you identify as the most significant challenge facing Lincoln Park High School’s Special Education Skills department, and what strategies are you implementing to overcome or ameliorate this challenge? Are there any specific data-driven approaches you use to measure improvements?
Organization’s Change Efforts: Could you tell us about some of the improvements you’ve attempted within your organization? Which ones have been successful, and which have not? Do you have any insights into why certain efforts have yielded positive results while others haven’t?
Social Justice, Diversity, and Inclusion Accomplishments: Promoting social justice, diversity, and inclusion is a vital aspect of many organizations. What accomplishments or initiatives have you undertaken to improve the representation and inclusion of marginalized or under-represented clients and staff within your department?
Advice for New Graduates: For recent graduates aspiring to enter the field of human service administration, what one piece of advice would you give them based on your own experiences and successes?
What You’ve Learned: Finally, as you reflect on your journey and experiences, how do they align with the principles and concepts discussed in the course materials and literature related to human service administration? What key takeaways can you share with our audience, considering what’s outlined in the course materials and other sources?
We appreciate your time and insights, Jane. Your experiences and knowledge will undoubtedly provide valuable insights for our management consulting paper.
QUESTION
Description
Please create an interview for a special education skills department chair at Lincoln Park High School in New Jersey.
Interview Questions
What’s your name? What is your educational background? How long have you been in the human services field? an administrator?
How were you recruited into your first administrative job? Did you need direct practice experience? Why or why not?
- What was your path to your current job? What was the transition from non-administrator to administrator like (if you had a non-administrative job)? What was difficult about the transition, if anything?
- What is your administrative and organizational theory (that is, your general approach) to administration? How does it guide your work?
Given the multitude of tasks you face, from internal organizational matters to being the outward face of your agency to the world at large, how do you prioritize among them? which are the categories of tasks which are hardest for you? Has this changed since you first began your nonprofit leadership career? What have you learned along the way about handling the demand of the position?
- One element that gets less coverage in the literature is why people continue in the nonprofit executive jobs they Could you identify the aspects of your work that are important to you that keep you coming to the office every day? Where do you feel joy in your work?
What would you like to accomplish professionally in the next 12 months? How do you keep growing in your work?
- What is your organization’s largest challenge? How are you trying to overcome or ameliorate it? What data are you using to understand and then measure improvements, if any?
- What aspects of your organization have you tried to improve? Which have been successful? Which have not? What thoughts do you have about why some of your efforts have worked and some have not?
- What are some of your best accomplishments in regard to issues of improving social justice, diversity, and or inclusion of marginalized or under-represented clients and staff?
- What one piece of advice could you give a new human service administration graduate getting started?
- You must include the interview date & time, name & title of interviewee, name of organization, and mode of interview (phone, in-person).
- Points to include:
- Introduction briefly describing the assignment and the administrator’s agency.
Administrator’s background
Moving up the administration ladder from first to current job
Administrator’s theory of administration and how it guides their work
Handling all the tasks!
Motivation and Joy in the workk
Administrator’s professional growth
Organization’s greatest challenge and how planning on improving? USE THIS TO SET UP THE MANAGEMENT CONSULTING PAPER!
Organization’s Change efforts
Social Justice, diversity, and inclusion accomplishments?
Advice for new graduate
What you learned and how it reflects what’s in the book and elsewhere in course materials