Book: C

Section: General School Administration

Title: Evaluation of the Superintendent

Code: CBI-R

Status: Active

Adopted: February 6, 1984

Last Revised: June 22, 2026

---

 

Evaluation of the Superintendent

The primary purposes for evaluating the Superintendent are to provide strong leadership and management for the school district, to strengthen the working relationship and communication between the Portland Board of Public Education (“the Board”) and Superintendent, and to assist the Board in judging the effectiveness of the Superintendent’s performance. 

Guidelines

1. The Board will evaluate the Superintendent on a schedule determined by the Board. 
2. The evaluation instrument, criteria, and schedule will be made available to the Superintendent in advance of the evaluation process. The Superintendent shall also conduct a self-evaluation in advance of the formal evaluation by the Board. 
3. Board members will be asked to submit individual written evaluations to the Committee Chair, using the Superintendent Evaluation Tool included below.
4. Staff members reporting directly to the Superintendent will be given an opportunity to submit written evaluative materials to the Committee Chair. 
5. The Committee Chair will draft an evaluation summarizing Board member evaluations submitted and incorporate the content of staff evaluations submitted.
6. The Board will meet with the Superintendent in Executive Session to review the evaluation, including relevant issues that may not be specifically included on the evaluation form. The Superintendent will be provided with a copy of the written evaluation before the conversation. The Superintendent will have an opportunity to provide feedback to the Board regarding their evaluation, the job responsibilities of the Superintendent, and their working relationship with the Board.  Specific matters related to the terms of the Superintendent’s contract may be discussed at this meeting or in a subsequent meeting. 
7. The Board may, but is not required to, conduct a meeting in Executive Session to review the evaluation form prior to a meeting with the Superintendent. 
8. The Board will use the Superintendent’s evaluation and the Board’s priorities and goals to establish performance goals for the Superintendent. The next evaluation will include the Board’s assessment of the Superintendent’s progress toward these performance goals. The Board may also refer to progress measurements from the District’s Strategic Plan in order to assess the Superintendent’s progress toward the goals of the District.  

 

Superintendent Evaluation Tool

Portland Public Schools Superintendent Evaluation Standards

Standard 1: Vision, Mission, and Core Values

The superintendent will develop, advocate for, and enact a shared mission, vision, and core values of high-quality education and academic success and well-being of each student. 

Standard 2: Ethics and Cultural Norms

The superintendent will act ethically and according to professional norms to promote each student’s academic success and well-being. 

Standard 3: Equity and Cultural Responsiveness

The superintendent will be vigilant in supporting each and every student’s path to achieving high standards and rooting out systemic and ongoing inequities.

Standard 4: Curriculum Instruction and Assessment

The superintendent will develop and support intellectually rigorous and coherent systems of curriculum, instruction, and assessment to promote each student’s academic success and well-being. 

Standard 5: Community of Care and Support for Students

The superintendent will cultivate an inclusive, caring, and supportive school community that promotes the academic success and well-being of each student. 

Standard 6: Meaningful Engagement of Families and Community  

The superintendent will engage families and the community in a meaningful, reciprocal and mutually beneficial way to promote each student’s academic success and well-being. 

Standard 7: Collective Efficacy for Results

The superintendent will foster a professional community in the district and strive to develop the professional capacity and practice to increase collective efficacy toward meeting the district’s goals. 

Standard 8: Operations and Management

The superintendent will manage school operations and resources to promote each student’s academic success and well-being. 

Standard 9: Policy and Governance

The superintendent will develop healthy working relationships with the Board and enlist their support for organizational goals through identifying, prioritizing, and following policies and governance procedures that maximize high-quality education for every student. 

 

Performance Level Definitions: 

• Highly effective: The evidence suggests that the standard is fully met, and that the superintendent understands what would be needed to further elevate the work under that standard.
• Effective: The evidence suggests that the standard is being met and/or progress is being made toward the standard. 
• Developing: The superintendent understands the standard and has limited evidence that they are enacting the standard in practice and there is limited evidence of progress toward the standard. 
• Ineffective: No evidence that the superintendent understands, or evidence that they have only a minimal understanding of, the standard and no progress has been made toward the standard in this evaluation period.