Setting a course

One thing Dr. Sheila Phillips has learned during her first year as Vestavia Hills superintendent is what happens when a community makes a commitment.

“I learned at a deeper level the commitment to our work and students by our entire community — our administrators, teachers, parents, and community as a whole,” she said. “As a new superintendent, I’ve also learned a great deal about my ability to handle my responsibility as an advocate for students and the school system and the opportunities that have come to speak on our behalf.” 

In May 2014, the Vestavia Hills Board of Education named Phillips as its new superintendent. She has had an eventful first year, having been involved in a variety of initiatives including Help the Hills, an effort between the school system and the community to educate students on alcohol and drug addiction.

“I think the greatest challenge I have faced is making certain that every day I have gone about my work and I’ve made decisions in a manner that has kept focus on our students, teaching and learning, and setting a course that will ensure collectively that we are providing the very best education possible for our children,” she said.

She is no stranger to the area, having been with the Vestavia Hills school system since 2010, serving as assistant principal of the high school until she was appointed the system’s assistant superintendent in May 2012. 

During a May Board of Education meeting, Phillips gave her end of the year superintendent report. Her goals for the Vestavia Hills school system included focusing on continuous improvement and creating a unified learning community through relationships and partnerships.

“I am most excited about putting our plans into action and highlighting the successes of our students and teachers,” Phillips said. “Due to the hard work of so many, our students and teachers are leaders in our state and nation. It is an absolute honor to be able to support the incredible work done daily in and out of the classroom.”  

A big part of Phillips’ first year was continuing the strategic planning process, an overarching plan for the school system designed by various committees of educators. 

“We have recently approved our new mission statement and strategic plan,” she said. “Everything we do will be framed within the context of our mission and strategies developed by our community. The work we have done will chart the course for all decisions we make for the next 3-5 years to make certain our students are ‘learning without limits.’” 

Others are taking positive notice of Phillip’s leadership. The Board of Education discussed Phillips’ performance during her first year as superintendent at their June 11 meeting. She was evaluated using a tool from the Alabama Association of School Boards, which got feedback from the school board members, administrators and community stakeholders. This was the first year AASB provided this tool, and it was used as an evaluation for a handful of other superintendents this year.

Phillips was ranked above average in the evaluation, and AASB director of leadership development Susan Salter said Phillips’ evaluation was the highest of all the superintendent evaluations this year.

“The ratings from the board members averaged a 4.6. The board was very pleased with Sheila’s performance,” Salter said.

The board members ranked Phillips on a scale of 1 to 5 based on her performance as CEO of the school board, educational leadership of the schools, personnel management, community relations, management of pupil personnel services, professional development and leadership, technology management and financial management.

Phillips is excited about what lies ahead for the school system.

“Extraordinary things are happening in our schools,” Phillips said. “I am humbled to be a part of it.”