I’m the Social Studies Department Chair at John Glenn Academy, an inner-city charter high school. The structure of this school is very odd because it is actuality two schools in one building. I have students from another charter high school in my classroom that I also have to teach and I supervise the other school’s Social Studies faculty. This dynamic exists because the owners/charter holders are business partners and run the school as if it was a single entity. To me, this seems odd and possibly unethical, but the State of Arizona does not seem to care. This has been my place of employment for over three years.

So, how do I fit in to this place? I guess the culture of the school is similar to my LSI data because most of my strengths scored highly and my weaknesses were low. I have a strong oppositional streak as does my workplace. Instead of fitting in due to the fact we are similar, I am often at odds with my management because we both fight. Today I got into a friendly argument with my immediate supervisor about a tiny insignificant issue, but both of us needed to win the discussion and get in the last word. We talked about this issue and brought in others to increase our chances at defeating the other and claiming victory. In retrospect neither of us won anything, but I felt better while I was zinging my boss with his own propaganda. Everyone from the maintenance staff to the office assistants are always looking for mistakes and criticizing others behind their backs. Confrontations are rare, but heated and vocal when they do occur.

The culture of my workplace also includes a high level of dependents and conventionalism according to the Circumplex. These areas make a lot of sense because my company really stresses that we should never challenge leadership, that we should follow without question or qualification, check with our superior about everything, accept goals and initiatives without any discussion. The leaders created a strong centralized leadership hub.

The organizational chart is non-existent. The structural organization is not the best due fact that the administrators are employed by both schools, but one owner deals with the operations of the school and the other deals with the financial aspects. This means that one cares about the students and the other about how much money he is making. A charter school is a for-profit enterprise and a public institution at the same time. These men are equal in authority as they both are the boss and owners but each contradicts the other constantly so that nothing gets resolved. Middle management in the past was the duty of three people, now we have one person to fulfill these duties. He is a single man, a retired US Army Lt. Colonel who knows very little about the civilian world and therefore runs the school like its Ft. Bragg. Next, there is an Associate-Superintendent who does more preaching about organizational change and leadership than any real constructive leadership. To give these men credit, they do try to make things better for everyone in the organization but they have no power to make changes. The owners retain all authority and make all policy decisions.

The staff and faculty are always bickering and fighting with the administration which the staff says is autocratic and unsympathetic. I see this as a semi-truthful statement the owners are ambivalent to the teachers and students plight and the middle management has no authority to make any decision so is just as impotent as the rest of the staff.

Furthermore, every time I do get into a conflict or disagreement with my supervisor his comments are always the same. It is almost if he has a script to read from. Conflict in my organization is constant but always is kept quite and subtle. You never know when your called into the management’s presence, or as we call it “the Inquisition,” what the reason is for the visit. Undoubtedly, I hear the statements, “don’t upset the system (rock the boat),” “just go along and be supportive of the status quo,” “the organization has its goals and values and if you can’t follow them maybe you should not be part or this organization” and my favorite is the fatherly chastise about who has the owners ear.

Power and politics are probably the greatest way to achieve at my school, if you say the right things to the right ears. If you conform 110% you will be given raises and promotions. In fact my school has a teacher tardy policy that is very strict, unless you walk in late with one of the “chosen.” I know that sounds petty and overboard but I have experienced it first hand. Last Monday, I was 5 minutes late and was yelled at in front of my students in class for that tardy. On that Thursday, I was 15 minutes late but I walked in at the same time as the gym teacher and nothing was said to either of us about the tardy. At my job, if you are friendly with the owners you are never hassled or given grief. Furthermore you will get the rewards for being “teachers pet.”

So, what is causing the culture of this organization to be so angry? I see these three areas as deficient: Motivation, Turnover and Teamwork. First off you have to have a positive and motivated workforce or productivity and success will lag. Why is motivation an issue at John Glenn? The answer is in my opinion the culture. The system that exists does not foster creativity, new ideas and energy, instead they leadership wants conformity and structure. In this environment the unhappy teacher passes this onto the unhappy students/clients. When a teacher is poorly paid and then told not to be creative and to follow a certain format, it affects the positive nature of many people. This lack of positivism leads to turnover. In the seven weeks that school has been in session this year we have had five teachers quit. From the start of last school year to the end we lost nineteen members of the faculty and staff. I see this as a clear weakness in the organizations leadership program.

Finally, teamwork is discouraged because the owners do not like the teachers to talk to each other. Last year I received a memo from one of the owners implying that teachers should refrain from meeting together and discussing issues involving the school. So, we are not allowed to talk or work together out of fear of teacher dissention. There is a long standing joke at my school that says if three teachers are taking they must be speaking treason and rebellion.

If I was the CEO of my organization and I read this, I would fire the owners and give the leadership duties and responsibilities to the current middle management. Additionally I would put on two other middle managers so that one person is not buried under a mountain of responsibilities. I would restructure the policies and procedures with the input of the employee and create a culture that maintains profitability and creates a positive working environment. If the teacher is not resentful and unmotivated maybe he can push the students to achieve.