Normative communicative behavior for school superintendents appears to have evolved as a set of role-related and context-dependent skills. The efficacy of this situational perspective, however, is questionable in relation to current conditions in society and public schools. The superintendency has evolved through four traditional conceptualizations: superintendent as a teacher of teachers, as manager, as statesman, or as applied social scientist. Experience arising from the current school reform movement demonstrates that relationship-enhancing communication rather than top-down dicta are necessary for advancing educational agendas. National standards documents governing the training and qualifications of school superintendents do allude to communication competence, but provide inadequate foundation or elaboration. In particular, movement toward improving superintendent communication competence is attenuated by three deficiencies: (1) the failure to define competency in relation to this position, (2) the absence of curricular guidelines for achieving competency, and (3) the absence of criteria for assessing competency. Current theory and research provide avenues for elevating the value placed on communication in professional preparation for school superintendents.
