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00:00:17 --> 00:00:23 Grundmeyer Leader Services, where together we are transforming education, one leader at a time.
00:00:23 --> 00:00:27 Now, get ready to amplify your day with your morning boost.
00:00:31 --> 00:00:34 Hello, everybody. Welcome back to your morning boost. Today,
00:00:34 --> 00:00:39 we're delivering some more actionable leadership insights, just like we do every single day.
00:00:39 --> 00:00:43 I want to extend a warm welcome back also to our returning special guest,
00:00:44 --> 00:00:47 Shannon Watson, founder and executive director of Majority in the Middle.
00:00:48 --> 00:00:51 Shannon, again, thank you for taking the time to lend your expertise to all
00:00:51 --> 00:00:53 of our school leaders out there listening to our show.
00:00:54 --> 00:00:58 Today, we're going to build on this discussion of internal staff conflict and
00:00:58 --> 00:01:00 kind of pivot to the public area.
00:01:00 --> 00:01:04 So we're going to focus a little bit on that highly sensitive work of communication,
00:01:05 --> 00:01:06 especially in a polarized meeting.
00:01:07 --> 00:01:11 I'm going to try to explore some, I don't know, ways to manage some emotionally
00:01:11 --> 00:01:13 charged school board, community gatherings,
00:01:13 --> 00:01:19 all of the parts where we have that opportunity to really make a good step forward
00:01:19 --> 00:01:21 and to show our leadership within that community, which is all a big part of
00:01:21 --> 00:01:22 our job. That's for sure.
00:01:30 --> 00:01:35 Shannon, here's our question for today. School boards and community meetings
00:01:35 --> 00:01:39 are often flash points for extreme polarization and toxic rhetoric.
00:01:40 --> 00:01:46 What specific communication techniques should a leader use to actively de-escalate
00:01:46 --> 00:01:51 these settings and ensure that all voices feel heard without granting power
00:01:51 --> 00:01:53 or validation to the destructive behavior?
00:01:55 --> 00:01:58 Good question. So I have
00:01:58 --> 00:02:01 worked in government affairs for a long time and
00:02:01 --> 00:02:05 i got to learn some of these techniques from a
00:02:05 --> 00:02:08 woman who was the president of the city council
00:02:08 --> 00:02:12 in saint paul for several years and she also her professional background before
00:02:12 --> 00:02:18 she ran for office was that she was a mediator and so she ran great meetings
00:02:18 --> 00:02:25 i bet yeah and so one of the things that she would do is she would set the expectations from the start.
00:02:26 --> 00:02:30 And she would couch that around fairness. She would explain to everyone how
00:02:30 --> 00:02:33 things were going to work, how it was going to go.
00:02:33 --> 00:02:37 And so it was, you know, you have two minutes or three minutes,
00:02:38 --> 00:02:39 whatever. Everybody has three minutes.
00:02:39 --> 00:02:42 And, you know, these are the kind of comments, you know, like,
00:02:43 --> 00:02:47 to get the city council, people couldn't come up and ask questions of that,
00:02:47 --> 00:02:48 you know, the council wouldn't respond.
00:02:48 --> 00:02:52 And so, like, letting the people know that ahead of time, that,
00:02:52 --> 00:02:53 We're here to take your comments.
00:02:53 --> 00:02:57 We can't get into discussion. That's not the way that we do it.
00:02:57 --> 00:03:02 So if you do have a question, there's a different route to submit that if you're looking for an answer.
00:03:02 --> 00:03:05 And just sort of getting everybody on the same page.
00:03:05 --> 00:03:10 And then if there are community standards, like we're not using profanity.
00:03:10 --> 00:03:15 Sometimes school boards have the benefit of They're often students in the room
00:03:15 --> 00:03:18 at school boards More often than there are students in the room At like city
00:03:18 --> 00:03:25 council or county commission So sometimes reminding people that They are setting the standard for.
00:03:26 --> 00:03:31 You know, developing minds. And, you know, it's, let's be the adults, that kind of thing.
00:03:31 --> 00:03:35 So, so setting those expectations up front and making sure that everybody understands
00:03:35 --> 00:03:39 and then asking, do you have any questions about how this is going to go?
00:03:39 --> 00:03:44 And allowing people to add and make sure, so just make sure everybody is on the same page.
00:03:45 --> 00:03:48 The second thing, and this sort of goes along with setting those expectations
00:03:48 --> 00:03:53 is making it clear that audience reactions are not appropriate.
00:03:53 --> 00:03:56 So applauding or booing or shouting or
00:03:56 --> 00:03:59 signage or whatever those are not
00:03:59 --> 00:04:02 those are not allowed that's that's for
00:04:02 --> 00:04:06 everybody's enjoyment of the meeting and safety and all of those things and
00:04:06 --> 00:04:11 then look you know sort of set the expectation that the audience itself like
00:04:11 --> 00:04:16 you all are participants in the meeting and it is both your right and your responsibility
00:04:16 --> 00:04:20 to help us support those, you know, community standards,
00:04:20 --> 00:04:22 because then you empower the audience.
00:04:22 --> 00:04:26 It used to be that, and this was something that was alarming to me during COVID,
00:04:27 --> 00:04:31 you know, it used to be that people who were really wound up would come up and
00:04:31 --> 00:04:36 they would say sort of outlandish things, or they would get very angry at the council members.
00:04:36 --> 00:04:41 And most of the time, what would happen is the few people in the audience would
00:04:41 --> 00:04:46 sort of murmur behind their hands and be like, oh, that's that's not okay during
00:04:46 --> 00:04:49 covid those things started being applauded yeah.
00:04:50 --> 00:04:55 And so, you know, really getting the audience to set the expectation and,
00:04:55 --> 00:05:00 you know, sort of self-govern and expecting them to do that is helpful.
00:05:00 --> 00:05:05 And then the third thing, I think, it just is a structural thing,
00:05:05 --> 00:05:09 is if it was, you know, we're having a hearing and these people are for and
00:05:09 --> 00:05:10 these people are against,
00:05:10 --> 00:05:15 alternating those people at the podium,
00:05:15 --> 00:05:18 you know, giving them the, you get two minutes for the, you know,
00:05:18 --> 00:05:20 people opposed and two minutes people for.
00:05:20 --> 00:05:23 And then the two minutes for a pose and the two minutes for.
00:05:23 --> 00:05:29 And that helps keep the rhetoric from escalating because it keeps the other
00:05:29 --> 00:05:31 people from sort of winding each other up.
00:05:32 --> 00:05:36 It does more of a roller coaster, which it sounds insane that a roller coaster
00:05:36 --> 00:05:39 should be what you're aiming for.
00:05:39 --> 00:05:44 But of course, when you're talking about de-escalating, you need to bring it down.
00:05:44 --> 00:05:48 Temperature's going to go up, bring it back down. Temperature up, bring it back down.
00:05:48 --> 00:05:52 So I think those are some of the things that can help just from a structural
00:05:52 --> 00:05:54 standpoint in keeping things under control.
00:05:56 --> 00:06:01 Hi, I'm Dr. Lisa Hill, a longtime educator of nearly 40 years as a teacher,
00:06:01 --> 00:06:03 counselor, professor, and vice principal.
00:06:03 --> 00:06:07 And I've seen just about everything public schools can throw at you.
00:06:07 --> 00:06:12 And now I'm sharing my tales on my comedy podcast, Vice Principal Unofficed.
00:06:12 --> 00:06:17 It's where school leadership meets laugh-out-loud stories from underwear-required
00:06:17 --> 00:06:21 parent-teacher conferences, yes, really, to staff lounge confessions and more
00:06:21 --> 00:06:25 you won't believe. I'm telling it all with humor and a whole lot of heart.
00:06:25 --> 00:06:30 I also tackle the serious stuff, too, like what schools really need to change
00:06:30 --> 00:06:33 and those behind-the-scenes moments no one talks about.
00:06:33 --> 00:06:36 So if you're ready to laugh, learn, and maybe even cry a little,
00:06:36 --> 00:06:41 but mostly laugh, join me and my 90-year-old mom, my unofficial co-host,
00:06:42 --> 00:06:43 on Vice Principal Unofficed.
00:06:44 --> 00:06:50 New episodes drop bi-weekly on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcast fix.
00:06:50 --> 00:06:53 Trust me, this is one detention you'll actually look forward to.
00:06:54 --> 00:06:58 I think this is a good reminder. This isn't something that we do every day.
00:06:58 --> 00:07:03 That also means that our crew in the audience, if you want to call it them,
00:07:03 --> 00:07:04 they don't do this every day either.
00:07:05 --> 00:07:08 Right. Take it, like you said, taking that time to really establish what the
00:07:08 --> 00:07:13 expectations are, teach people how this should work, how we can be civil together.
00:07:13 --> 00:07:17 We can talk through what the, you know, what the issues are.
00:07:17 --> 00:07:21 But I do, I like that idea. I think we do need to be very cognizant of the fact
00:07:21 --> 00:07:23 that they don't know what they're doing either at this point in time.
00:07:24 --> 00:07:25 This is new for everybody.
00:07:25 --> 00:07:29 Right. And then the, you know, sticking with those rules.
00:07:30 --> 00:07:34 So, you know, I watched her cut off a lot of people who were going over there
00:07:34 --> 00:07:37 two minutes. But, you know, very gently, thank you for your comments.
00:07:37 --> 00:07:40 And then the other thing that she did, which I thought was fabulous, was...
00:07:41 --> 00:07:46 Thank you for your testimony. Thank you for your comments. It wasn't the same
00:07:46 --> 00:07:48 language every time, but it was the same tone every time.
00:07:48 --> 00:07:54 You had no idea where she stood on a lot of these issues based on how she approached
00:07:54 --> 00:07:57 the people who were coming to give public testimony.
00:07:57 --> 00:08:01 She was just as warm to the people she agreed with as the ones she disagreed with. Yeah.
00:08:01 --> 00:08:04 Well, that's a good reminder, too. In moments like this, we want to be the eye
00:08:04 --> 00:08:07 of the storm because, remember, that's the calmest place in the big storm.
00:08:08 --> 00:08:10 So, be the eye in that moment.
00:08:10 --> 00:08:13 There you go. Oh, that's awesome. That's awesome, Shannon. I appreciate this
00:08:13 --> 00:08:17 one. Again, it's just great, great advice for our school leaders.
00:08:17 --> 00:08:21 Even little bits of this are going to help us in those times that can be stressful,
00:08:22 --> 00:08:26 but yet very important when it comes to how we work as a society and how that
00:08:26 --> 00:08:31 civil process works, even within our schools. So thank you very much for those
00:08:31 --> 00:08:32 words of encouragement today.
00:08:32 --> 00:08:36 Thank you, Boosters, for joining us again. We'll be back again tomorrow as we
00:08:36 --> 00:08:39 get closer to wrapping up this week with Shannon Watson.
00:08:39 --> 00:08:42 So again, thank you for listening. We will talk with you again tomorrow.
00:08:54 --> 00:09:00 And broaden impact. Your Morning Boost is an AWB education production brought
00:09:00 --> 00:09:03 to you with the generous support of Grundmeyer Leader Services.
00:09:04 --> 00:09:08 Join us again tomorrow for more. Until then, keep boosting your impact.