Survey compared ALAS’ leadership academy members to corporate leaders nationwide
A recent survey of the Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents (ALAS) Superintendent and Principal Leadership Academies found high levels of empathy – a trait that has been identified as one of the most important skills for leaders.
The survey, conducted by Indigo, compared the scores of the ALAS group with the average scores of those in the corporate world. The ALAS group scored higher in the areas of empathy, leadership, being a “social motivator,” self-confidence, and others. This news came out during the ALAS 18th Annual National Summit, which took place Oct. 7-9, 2021.
“I’ve always known that my colleagues at ALAS are amazing leaders,” said ALAS Executive Director Dr. Maria Armstrong. “This survey data shows some of the reasons why. Empathy is an incredibly important trait, especially in education. The fact that our members demonstrate their ability to be compassionate leaders for their schools and districts is why the leadership pipeline is so important now.”
Indigo provides behavior and personality assessments for teachers, administrators and students, as well as those in the corporate world. The surveys support school administrators in understanding their teams, teachers in understanding their students, and students in understanding themselves so they can decide what kind of career to pursue.
Indigo partners with ALAS to support leadership development for members of ALAS’ Superintendent and Principal Leadership Academies. Among the findings:
● Empathy: 77.8% of the ALAS group scored higher than the corporate average
● Leadership: 73.1% of ALAS group scored higher than the corporate average
● Social (Service) Motivator: 75.9% of the ALAS group scored higher than the corporate average
● Self Confidence: 85.2% of the ALAS group have high confidence in themselves
● Integrative Ability: 88.0% of the ALAS group have high integrative skills
● Sense of Belonging: 89.8% of ALAS group have high sense of belonging
● The ALAS group was more skilled in 74% of the 23 Indigo Assessment professional skills measured.
Empathy is an important trait for leaders because it helps combat stress and burnout and contributes to a positive workplace experience for employees and teams, according to a recent article on Forbes.com.
“This survey data shows that ALAS is training and attracting highly skilled leaders who care deeply about making sure people feel seen and valued (Empathy) and helping others (Social). They feel deeply connected to their work and create environments where others also feel they belong (Sense of Belonging),” said Sheri Smith, founder and CEO of Indigo. “This meaningful work contributes to high levels of self-confidence and the ability to bring together many pieces of information to solve complex social problems (Integrative Ability). Basically ALAS leaders are rock stars who we want leading our schools and districts!”
Indigo uses a validated multi-factor assessment combining four sciences to measure behaviors, motivators, social emotional perceptions (acumen), and professional skills. Each assessment analyzes over 150 separate data factors. The assessment is used extensively in the corporate world and also serves education.
For more about Indigo, visit indigoedco.com.
For more information about ALAS, visit alasedu.org.
The American Consortium for Equity in Education, publisher of the "Equity & Access" journal, celebrates and connects the educators, associations, community partners and industry leaders who are working to solve problems and create a more equitable environment for historically underserved pre K-12 students throughout the United States.
