Karen superintendents can often become the focus of community and parental dissatisfaction, having to navigate both school board policy and community concerns while trying to connect with students, teachers, and staff.
As lawnmower parents, Karens strive to remove any obstacles or hardships from their children’s paths towards success. Furthermore, they may intervene and “solve” discipline issues so they won’t face consequences later on.
How do you deal with them?
Karens are parents who expect special privileges and services for their children from school officials, often by making false allegations of mistreatment by school administrators or lying directly about it. Karens often claim false victimhood or make up lies about it to get what they want out of the situation; any obstacles, hardships or perceived adversities that stand in the way of their kids’ success in education or self-esteem will simply be erased! They tend to blame others — such as teachers and administrators — rather than taking responsibility for their own actions and taking full responsibility themselves.
Karen parents’ disruptive and inconsiderate actions can have far-reaching negative repercussions for schools and teachers. By teaching students and other families that squeaking gets results, their behavior undermines teachers and fosters an environment of mistrust; as well as contributing to teacher burnout leading to resignations from teaching profession.
School systems that deal with Karens must carefully consider all their options and the most efficient means of handling the situation at hand, taking steps such as placating Karen parents rather than engaging in lengthy legal battles with them. Some superintendents have even had to pay extra for security to prevent themselves becoming targets for parental ire and community criticism.
No surprise here; many educators find themselves overwhelmed by the demands of school administration in Karen environments. Although this is not solely responsible for teacher turnover, it certainly plays a substantial role. A recent study concluded that 50% of newly employed teachers depart within their first five years teaching!
Though educators do their best, it can sometimes be challenging to maintain positive relationships with Karen parents. This can result in frustration, resentment and anger on both sides of the table; when this grows too far it could lead to lack of trust and breakdown of communication which in turn leaves students and other educators unaware about important decisions concerning their education – something which could easily spiral out of control and cause public outcry.
Do you ask for help?
Parents from Karen families can present school leaders with an uphill battle when it comes to managing demands from them. Karen parents typically believe their children are unique and should receive privileges not available elsewhere, often complaining when their grades don’t measure up to what they expect or when teachers don’t listen when valid concerns are voiced; when ignored or rejected by administration.
Unfortunately, administrators often believe Karen parents, or feel compelled to placate them out of self-preservation and self-interest. Perhaps they fear Karens will block their advancement or simply see placating them as the easiest and quickest solution to a complex situation.
Administrators also owe many other responsibilities beyond teaching students, including managing district union contracts and working with community stakeholders to ensure financial security for staff and students at their schools. Furthermore, administrators must oversee district policies and procedures as well as be conversant in state laws pertaining to education standards and laws.
These additional tasks may become a source of distraction when trying to focus on classroom instruction and student outcomes, and may become an additional source of stress and burnout for superintendents who are new to the job. Furthermore, this extra workload may make them feel less confident in their decision-making ability and cause their confidence to diminish further.
Even with these challenges, some superintendents manage to thrive in their roles as educators. Others struggle with the polarization that exists in education and have even quit altogether due to an unpleasant work environment, low pay, long hours and constant additions to workloads; many even find other career options, especially considering dealing with Karen parents a large factor of teacher turnover.
Do you talk to the teacher?
Answering this question depends entirely upon the school system in question. Some administrators favor believing Karen parents, while others view placating them as the key to career advancement. Administrators who feel overwhelmed by bureaucracy may find allowing Karens to run wild as an easier way of fulfilling their administrative responsibilities.
Karens typically believe their children are special and deserve privileges and services that other students don’t. When their child fails, or receives less-than-ideal grades or consequences or placement recommendations from teachers, Karens become highly defensive and blame the teacher.
Some superintendents can easily manage these challenges and establish positive relationships that support their sense of success in their role, but other, particularly new superintendents, may feel overwhelmed by the demands and expectations of their role and find themselves unable to maintain positive relations with both teachers and students alike.
New superintendents are charged with managing student enrollment, teacher evaluations, budgetary issues, as well as navigating the many complexities of the coronavirus pandemic. They must work to ensure schools reopen with sufficient resources and staff members as soon as possible after being closed due to coronavirus outbreak. Furthermore, they are expected to address local resident concerns as well as revise district policies put in place during pandemic outbreak.
Many superintendents find their responsibilities daunting and may become so overburdened with them that they become disengaged with the mission that initially drew them into this profession. Unfortunately, this often results in their being removed from their post.
Renegade superintendents may arise for various reasons, but most often stem from an inability to communicate effectively with internal and external stakeholders. It’s therefore vital for school leaders to listen carefully when their teachers provide feedback regarding problems in our education system and take measures accordingly to address them.
Do you ignore them?
Superintendents are forced to adapt quickly when faced with widespread and unprecedented school closures, adjusting their roles in schools accordingly. Many have had to shift away from physical spaces teaching students in physical ways toward virtual learning opportunities in every way possible for virtual students; including providing meals to hungry children, providing computers and connections for home education, and meeting the needs of homeless and displaced students.
Superintendents often face difficulty when managing Karen parents. A Karen parent is defined as any individual who aggressively pursues success for their child while refusing to accept any obstacles, hardships or perceived adversities along the way. These people tend to blame teachers, staff and others when their child experiences less-than-ideal grades, consequences or results; and often exaggerate or lie about how they were wronged or mistreated by authority figures.
Karen parents can be difficult for teachers and administrators alike. Believing that “the squeaky wheel gets the grease” and that “the nanny state” always knows best, some administrators may feel pressured into appeasing Karen parents – which could cause them to lose sight of their goals and responsibilities while teaching children that aggressive pushiness will get results.
EAB’s 2023 Voice of the Superintendent Survey shows that superintendents can often become overburdened and stressed out due to having to deal with various people and perspectives, from board members, parents and media critics, or students themselves. Superintendents must find ways to remain positive while still upholding professionalism when engaging in their daily work duties.
COVID Karens provide an example of this. While their main priority is making sure their children get vaccinated, they seem unaware that their actions may endanger other students and teachers by pushing for more vaccine to be given than necessary. Furthermore, they seem unwilling to understand that not everyone agrees with them and they must accommodate differences of opinion where necessary.
