School BUSRide spoke with David Schuler, executive director of AASA, the School Superintendents Association.
AASA’s mission extends to all aspects of educational leadership, including safety, cybersecurity, and school nutrition, and is articulated through advocacy and legislative efforts that focus on expanding opportunities for every student.
Schuler’s work reflects AASA’s mission through professional development such as academies and cohorts focused on developing the next generation of educational leaders, resources to expand support to rural school districts, and leading future-driven initiatives that harness the power of today’s innovations such as AI to create what’s next in public education.
AASA is a successful national membership association. What role do organizations like yours and NAPT, among others, need to play in a time of transition and increasing challenges to our members’ professions and livelihoods?
In times of transition and increasing challenges, organizations like AASA and NAPT play a critical role in supporting members through advocacy, professional development and community building. AASA is the leading voice for our members and for public education and district leadership on Capitol Hill, and we work to influence policies that impact education at every level, ensuring that the needs of school leaders and students are prioritized. As challenges evolve, whether they are related to funding, staffing or access, our role is to provide resources, guidance and platforms for collaboration, allowing members to share best practices and learn from one another. We must also be proactive in anticipating future trends and helping our members adapt, offering innovative solutions and ensuring they remain equipped to navigate an ever-changing landscape. Together, we strengthen the profession and amplify our collective influence – we ensure that our roles remain sustainable and effective in meeting the needs of school communities.
I’ve been involved with AASA for more than 20 years and know that being a school system leader is without a doubt one of the best jobs in the country. It’s also one of the most challenging, but leaders stay in these positions because they care about why we’re committed to this important work – serving our country by educating, nurturing and inspiring our nation’s youngest minds. We are dedicated to putting students first and helping to shape, prepare, and guide the next generation, and in achieving our mission of advocating for equitable access for all students to the highest quality public education.
How important is it that professionals, especially in education, take time to engage in advocacy activities at the various levels of government? How would you advise our members to get involved?
Public education is without a doubt a public good. It’s the backbone of our democracy, our society and every single community whether rural, urban or suburban. We have the privilege of preparing America’s K-12 students for bright futures they cannot yet even imagine. It’s an incredible opportunity and responsibility. Our children deserve nothing less than our absolute best, and that includes leadership that puts the needs of every student, in every community, first.
So, as educators and school leaders, it’s crucial that we engage in advocacy activities at all levels of government to ensure that each voice is heard. Advocacy plays a pivotal role in shaping policy decisions that directly affect the resources, support and opportunities available to our schools. Whether it’s at the local, state or federal level, our input helps inform lawmakers about the realities of running public schools and the needs of our students. It’s important for our members to get involved and stay informed about current issues, build relationships with lawmakers and take every opportunity to share insights and data that reflect the challenges and successes within their districts. Advocacy doesn’t necessarily require grand gestures – it can begin with a phone call, a meeting or a well-crafted letter that speaks to the needs of the children we serve. Every voice matters and together, we drive meaningful change.
NAPT, like AASA, offers our members a range of professional development activities and opportunities. How do we ensure the relevancy of those offerings and what thoughts would you share on how we entice members to take full advantage of those offerings?
AASA is the nation’s premier association for school system leaders, and we are committed to the professional development and growth of our members. This includes more than 40 different cohorts, summits and academies throughout the year as well as the National Education Conference (NCE) which is taking place in New Orleans in March this year. During this conference we share the latest strategies and best practices to ready students to function and be successful in our ever-changing world.
To ensure that professional development offerings, including the annual conference, remain future-driven and relevant, it’s essential that we continually engage with our members and understand their evolving needs and challenges. Regular surveys, focus groups and feedback help us tailor content that addresses both current issues and long-term trends. We leverage new technologies to provide flexible, on-demand learning opportunities that can be accessed anytime, anywhere, but we also never lose sight of the immense value of frequent in-person opportunities to build community, share ideas and offer peer support and coaching. There’s something for every leader no matter what level of professional development is needed – we offer our aspiring academies for leaders looking to take the leap to superintendent, certification for mid-career superintendents, summits for sharpening your toolkit such as our upcoming AI Super Summit, and everything in between. By aligning these offerings with career growth goals and demonstrating the direct impact on student outcomes, we make professional development an essential investment, not just an opportunity.
What advice do you have for superintendents struggling with staff shortages, especially school bus drivers and other non-instructional staff?
For superintendents grappling with staff shortages, especially for critical roles like school bus drivers, it’s important to take a multifaceted approach. This includes focusing on recruitment strategies such as offering competitive pay, benefits, and working conditions that directly align with what employees in these roles want and value. Building partnerships with local universities, trade schools, and workforce development organizations can also create a talent pipeline for new hires. Retaining existing staff is equally important, so fostering a positive work culture, offering professional development, and being responsive to their needs can reduce turnover. In some cases, alternative staffing models or greater reliance on technology might provide short-term solutions, in addition to simultaneously addressing systemic workforce issues that require long-term planning and close collaboration with policymakers.
We recently held our annual event at the National Press Club for the four finalists of our National Superintendent of the Year Award. I was so impressed with the candidates, and the ways they’re solving staffing shortages in their communities – Florida, Alabama, Illinois and Arkansas. They had such unique perspectives for looking at and addressing these types of challenges. Each offered concrete solutions for how to solve staffing issues – so learning from others is also key.
What are the big challenges we face in the next couple of years?
We asked our members this exact question earlier this year and they identified that their biggest challenges were around combating chronic absenteeism, deepening and widening the talent pipeline to address teacher shortages and staff retention, and addressing the youth mental health crisis. Evolving technology and digital equity will also require attention to ensure that all students have access to the specialized tools and skill development training they need. Schools will have to adapt to new policies while navigating funding shifts and maintaining stability in leadership and district operations.
A brighter tomorrow for public education requires all of us to work together and remain adaptable and responsive to needs as they arise – we have an amazing nationwide community of educational leaders and it’s important for us to partner and collaborate to solve these challenges because our students, school communities, economy and country deserve it.
What are the big opportunities that are presenting themselves?
This is the work I’m the most excited about – there are endless opportunities for schools to innovate and transform. Our duty, at the end of the day, as K-12 school leaders is to provide every child in every community with the skills they need to succeed in real-life, in the real-world. We can’t lose sight of that, or the fact that “success” looks different for every child, and for every community – whether that means enlisting in the military, enrolling in college to obtain a two- or four-year degree, entering the workforce or starting a business. It’s equally important for students to learn and gain experiences in developing their essential skills that will prepare them for life… and work. Skills like critical thinking, problem solving, collaborating, resiliency and empathy are crucial. We want to graduate good citizens as well as good students. The future of our economy and country depends on it.
One of the benefits of NAPT’s affiliation with AASA for
lobbying services has been our increased exposure to other organizations with similar interests. As we prepare for the many transitions and changes in our nation’s capital, how important is it that we continue or strengthen those alliances and collaborations?
As we navigate the shifting political and policy landscape in Washington, strengthening alliances with organizations that share similar interests is more important than ever. Collaboration amplifies our voice and influence, enabling us to advocate more effectively for the needs of our members and the students they serve. In a time of rapid change, partnerships with organizations like NAPT, AASA and others can provide additional expertise, resources and credibility for all of our aligned efforts. These alliances ensure that our advocacy and outreach is not only more impactful but also more comprehensive, addressing the full range of issues facing public education today.
We know the Supreme Court will hear arguments this month on a case that could upend the E-Rate program. NAPT is very appreciative of AASA’s advocacy for E-Rate. What’s at stake, and how is AASA engaging?
AASA has so appreciated the close collaboration with NAPT in recent years. We know NAPT can sometimes do a double-take as they engage in advocacy on issues that aren’t directly tied to buses, including IDEA funding and E-Rate. But when we take the time to educate – which is what advocacy is at its core – people come to understand that NAPT cares about IDEA because your members are responsible for the transportation of all students, including those with disabilities and who are medically fragile.
NAPT cares about E-Rate because many schools rely on their internet connection to stay connected to their bus drivers and monitor their fleets as students are in transit. On the Supreme Court case – AASA co-chairs the EdLiNC coalition. NAPT is a member, and EdLINC represents the full beneficiary community of the E-Rate program – schools and libraries. We worked with our EdLiNC co-chair to retain a white shoe law firm to file our amicus brief in the Consumers Research V. FCC case. AASA coordinated the creation of a single data collection that was used by more than a dozen national organizations for real-time grassroots information and stories about how E-Rate is being used in schools and libraries, what it means to district and library budgets, what it would look like to have the E-Rate program go away and how district budgets would be impacted (in terms of other programming priorities and offerings) in making up for the elimination of the E-Rate support. Those stories were used in the amicus brief and will also be central to our Hill advocacy. We wanted the Supreme Court to hear the case, and at the same time we are not confident they will uphold the program. So, we are also employing a Hill-based effort. If the court won’t save E-Rate and the underlying Universal Service Program, then Congress can, and must. We’ll use the same set of stories and anecdotes for our multi-pronged outreach to the Hill, to raise both awareness and understanding of E-Rate and USF, and to inform the policy path forward for Congress to protect and preserve the program. Our advocacy resources will be shared with the EdLiNC coalition and will be available to NAPT.
What thoughts would you share in terms of the future of our schools? Are you positive and hopeful…or worried and concerned?
I am absolutely positive and hopeful! There’s no way you could have my job, serving exceptional school leaders from every corner of this country – rural, urban and suburban, and NOT be wildly optimistic about the future of public education.
With the right collaboration, advocacy, and focus on future-driven leadership and future-ready schools, together, we can create a learning environment where all students have the opportunity to succeed on whichever path they choose.