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Running head: DIRECT LOG WEEK THREE

Lindsay Gigous
DIRECT Log Week Three
Drexel University
EDUC 829: Superintendent Internship: Budget and Finance
January 24, 2016

Describe
I finally started to feel as though I had some luck this semester, as Dr. Sanville and his
assistant have set up a meeting with me for Monday, January 25th to meet me and decide if this
mentor and mentee relationship is a good fit. I will admit that I am a little nervous about the
wording that he chose and the fact that there is potential that he will not think this is a good fit
and will not serve as my mentor, so I have continued to be in communication with the program
director this week, seeking advice on other possible connections. I also reached out to another
superintendent in the Delaware area, who told me that she was flattered and would have an
answer to me about whether or not she could take on the time commitment by the end of the
week. I will be contacting her on Sunday if I have not heard back from her yet. Another fear of
mine is that my meeting with Dr. Sanville on Monday may be canceled due to the blizzard. His
assistant did mention in her responses to me that I should check the closure lists for the district
for Monday. If that happens, I will again need to set up another meeting with him. I am very
nervous about completing the 100 necessary hours for this semester because of this impending
weather situation on top of my delay to find a mentor.
Identify
The Drexel competencies that I feel are most relevant to this situation are written communication
and oral communication, as I have had to clearly state what expectations are demanded of a
mentor to these potential mentors as well as communicate with those that are helping me to seek
a mentor.
Reflect

Overall, I know that although this situation has been very stressful, I have handled it in
the best way possible and communicated with all parties in a clear, positive, and understanding
manner. By clearly stating what my needs were from a mentor in my initial email
communication, I was giving them all of the information that they needed to make an informed
decision. The three superintendents that I did hear back from seemed to appreciate that and used
it to help them in their decision making process. One of them told me that he did not have
enough time to devote to a second mentee, which I respect, as I would not want to overburden
him or feel as though I was not a priority. Another wanted to meet with me personally to
determine if we would be a good fit, and although I am nervous about this, I know that it is also a
good decision to ensure that this relationship is mutually valuable for both of us. The third let me
know that she needed some time to think about the time commitment, and I appreciated that as
well, as I would hope that I would be her priority as well. I learned that I did really appreciate the
prompt return of emails and phone calls from all three parties, and although I will admit that it
was not always as quick as I would have liked, I know that the oral and written communication
was clear and respectful, which means that it was effective, the exit skill that I am seeking to
learn.
Evaluate
In looking at this situation that I encountered in the first three weeks of the course, asking
myself why questions, such as why I was not hearing back from anyone that I contacted, left me
with reasons that actually calmed my stress levels and allowed me to handle this situation in a
calm, professional manner. I realized that schedules were the main reason that my issue of
needing to hear back from a school official was of little importance on other peoples schedules. I
had to be clear in my communication, so I made sure that I was calm when drafting all email

communication and prompt in returning emails as well as phone calls. If I wanted to make any
headway in becoming a priority, I would have to advocate for myself. That is why I chose to
contact my instructor, program director, and field placement coordinator at Drexel in order to
make sure that others were aware of my situation and to see if they could help me because of
their status as instructors compared to my status as a student. I believe that the reason why I am
struggling is because I am no longer in a district, and I do believe that this means that this
internship will hold great value for me as a student because I will be navigating through a
landscape that I have not yet had experience in. I am looking forward to this opportunity and
cannot wait to begin.
Connect
Reading through the ISSLC standards helped me to understand why I was not getting
immediate communication with the school officials that I contacted. In their duties, they need to
put student needs first, and my request does not fit into that category. Standard 4 addresses
collaboration with faculty and community members and responding to diverse community
interests and needs, and my request fits into this community member collaboration, as I reside in
the immediate areas of many of the schools. As school leaders, they need to be focused first and
foremost on their students, but also look to the future, and helping to provide insight to students
in doctoral programs that are potential school leaders in their districts is part of that job
requirement. I hope to be able to help others in the same mentor capacity when I become a
school leader, as I feel that would be a beneficial move for the district that I will serve. A
properly trained school official will only increase the strength of the district, and by helping
others to gain experience in this, I will be actually doing something for the students.

Toward New Actions

My next steps in this situation to keep it effective as it has been are to keep in prompt,
clear communication with all of the parties that I am contacting. I know that I will need to be
especially attuned to the weather this weekend as it may become an obstacle to meeting and
determine how to communicate a rescheduled meeting if my Monday meeting gets cancelled. I
will need to reconnect with Dr. Gehrt to see what her response is in a polite, yet assertive way,
since she promised me an answer by the end of the week. If both Dr. Sanville and Dr. Gehrt
agree to take me on as their mentee, I will be left to make a decision about which school district I
feel is the better fit for me, and this may be a difficult decision. I will need to then look at the
information about each school district and each superintendent to see which relationship will be
more beneficial for me, and I will be honest in saying that I believe Dr. Gehrt, as a female
superintendent, might be a great direction for me to go in so that I can gain a female perspective
in the profession. This experience has already taught me a lot about effective communication and
professional courtesy, and I appreciate all of the superintendents that I contacted that have gotten
back to me, with a positive or a negative answer. I will use this in my future career by extending
the same respect to others, regardless of position or relationship to me. Despite the fact that I do
not yet have an official mentor, I do seem to have learned from these area superintendents
already.
Hours Log
1/18/16 (2 hours)
Emailed Dr. Sanville and assistant to set up meeting time
Emailed with program director
Phone call with field placement coordinator

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1/20/16 (2 hours)
Completed class readings
Completed discussion board post
Emailed additional superintendent for possible meeting
11/22/16 (2 hours)
Completed DIRECT log
Total Hours Completed This Week: 6
Total Hours Completed This Semester: 20/100