K12 leaders who build strong relationships inside and outside their school buildings can more confidently lead their districts through inevitable periods of adversity, Superintendent Bill Runey contends.
“If you build a culture of positivity, then when negativity happens it’s like tossing a marble into the ocean,” Runey says on the latest episode of District Administration’s “A Good Lesson” podcast. The episode is titled “A Leadership Team That’s Built Differently.”
“If you don’t have a culture of positivity, it’s like dropping a bowling ball into a bathtub.”
While students, staff and families are key stakeholders, superintendents also have to connect with community members who do not have children in the schools. They are voters who can impact spending decisions, notes Runey, who was named one of DA‘s 2026 Leaders of Distinction.
A Good Lesson: The podcast spotlights field-tested leadership through one important lesson. Superintendents and other leaders discuss how the idea formed, how it was put into action and how it improved outcomes for students and staff. Every episode ends with a “Pop Quiz.”
When Runey took the helm of the Dighton-Rehoboth Regional School District in Massachusetts in 2022, he had a rare opportunity to reshape the system. Fourteen of the district’s 17 building administrators were new to their roles, he tells “A Good Lesson” hosts Amy Dujon and Dr. Quintin Shepherd.
“We had an opportunity to reinvent the district,” Runey says. “Some people saw that as instability. I saw it as an opportunity to seize the moment.”
He encouraged his new team to prioritize culture over all other initiatives. “The culture we build will sustain initiatives we need to put in to make the district move the needle,” he recalls telling the district’s administrators.
Runey had to contend with declining enrollment, make steep budget and staffing cuts, and repair relationships with the district’s labor unions. He wanted a leadership team that was visible, accessible and communicative—all in the name of transparency.
“We didn’t take the emotion out—I tried to make sure that people understand that I knew that when we cut program or staff members, it’s going ot hurt,” he continues.
Four years later, enrollment is up, and Dighton-Rehoboth offers a comprehensive high school with advanced placement courses and an early-college. The district’s career and technical education program is expanding.
“The narrative of the district has gone from negative to much more positive,” Runey concludes.
You can listen to the full podcast below:
