Thank You for Your Leadership: The Power of Distributed Leadership in a Digital Conversion Model

Thank you for Your Leadership is a unique look toward getting leaders at all levels to work, interact, examine impact, and learn from implementation. In it the author shows how the digital conversion initiative at the Mooresville Graded School District (MGSD) has worked successfully through integration with pedagogy and by interlocking leaders throughout the system. Through his experience as a principal, dean, and superintendent, Dr. Edwards has observed leadership in schools, school systems, grade levels, departments, classrooms, communities, and organizations, and has noted the impact leaders have had on the culture of each group. In this new book Dr. Edwards discusses a practical new view of leadership he calls “second-order leadership” that integrates leadership into every aspect of district life, from hiring procedures to student and parent leadership.

Dr. Edwards clarifies the concept of distributed leadership with insights into cultural conditions, alignment with the vision, and leadership pathways that have fostered leadership throughout his district. He also outlines practical strategies to help other districts spread leadership more broadly and improve teaching and learning to the benefit of students.

Dr. Mark Edwards has served as a public school superintendent for over twenty years, in Henrico County and Danville, Virginia, and since 2007 in the Mooresville Graded School District in North Carolina, where he has led a widely recognized digital conversion initiative.

Dr. Edwards graduated from the University of Tennessee and received his doctoral degree from Vanderbilt University. He has served as a teacher, coach, principal, and college dean and as the vice president of Harcourt Assessment. He comes from a family of educators and is a tireless advocate for public education.

Dr. Edwards was named Virginia Superintendent of the Year in 2001, North Carolina Superintendent of the Year in 2012, and AASA National Superintendent of the Year in 2013. He has also been recognized as the 1998 Virginia Superintendent of the Year by the Virginia Library Association, the 2000 Virginia Superintendent of the Year by the Virginia Music Association, and the 2014 North Carolina Superintendent of the Year by the North Carolina Art Association. Other awards include the 2003 Harold McGraw Prize in Education, the 2014 North Carolina Forum Jay Robinson Leadership award, and the 2014 North Carolina Order of the Long Leaf Pine.

Dr. Edwards currently serves as the chairman of the League of Innovative Schools advisory board and as president of the North Carolina Superintendents’ Association. He is considered an expert on North Carolina antique art pottery, loves cheering on his son Luke’s sports teams, and is an enthusiastic fan of music of all kinds.