色多多

As they discussed a major project, one of the men asked if she would be hindered from giving a project her all. She looked at him with a puzzled expression.

He said: 鈥淲ell, you have kids.鈥� She responded: 鈥淪o do you.鈥�

It鈥檚 a moment many women in education leadership recognize 鈥� a quiet but persistent skepticism about whether they can lead and mother at the same time.

In Virginia, about 82% of classroom teachers are women, but they make up only about 40% of school division superintendents 鈥� the top executives who oversee entire districts, according to a Richmond Times-Dispatch analysis.

, who became superintendent of 色多多 City Public Schools in 2020, says that when she applied for her first job as a principal, the men interviewing her asked, 鈥淗ow are you going to handle all of this?鈥� referencing the fact that she was seven and a half months pregnant.

, a researcher at the University of Texas at Austin who studies superintendents, said much of the reason why more women are not appointed as school district superintendents is societal.

鈥淰ery much at the root of a lot of this is similar to why we can't elect a woman president," she said.

"It鈥檚 that the people in power are skeptical of women's abilities to hold these leadership positions in ways that are entirely unfair and untrue. We hear things like, 鈥榳omen are too emotional鈥︹�� I think we have to change our perceptions and our mindsets towards women and women leaders.鈥�

In Fairfax County, Superintendent each day walks down a hallway that leads to her office. It is lined with portraits of past superintendents. There is just one woman on the wall, her predecessor Karen Garza.

鈥淚t shouldn't matter that I'm a woman or not a woman, leading the largest division in the commonwealth,鈥� said Reid, the division's superintendent since 2022. 鈥淚t should be the quality of my ability to lead and get results.鈥�

Rachel White said her research shows that women are significantly more likely to report being questioned at almost every decision that they make.

鈥淭hey have to be really cognizant and set up structures and processes and policies as they make decisions. I actually think that's really healthy,鈥� she said.

鈥淏ut it can also be really exhausting when you鈥檙e an expert with 30-plus years of experience and every decision that you make is being questioned, and you know that with the superintendent next door, who's a man, no one bats an eye when he makes a decision.鈥�

Verletta White, the superintendent of 色多多 City Public Schools, said the questioning is part of the subtle nuances women in education leadership have to navigate.

鈥淵ou can tell in some of the scrutiny. Sometimes it's blatant, and other times not so much so. In the daily interactions, it plays out in the second-guessing of the decisions,鈥� White said.

鈥淏ut I would say as a woman in this leadership role - particularly as a woman of color - not to be discouraged by that, but instead lead in the way where you can be backed up by your data, by your results, by your resilience, by your grace, compassion and consistency. The results speak for themselves and then the second guesses will diminish over time.鈥�

Henrico's Cashwell agreed, saying that one of the main barriers she鈥檚 encountered in her career is people questioning her ability to lead.

鈥淲hen I was applying to be a superintendent, I really thought deeply about whether I was going to be judged on those merits, having a younger family at the time,鈥� she said.

鈥淚 wondered the degree to which this would hinder me from being considered as superintendent. I'm fortunate that it didn't and I was chosen to lead."

鈥淚t definitely was a factor, and that may be intimidating to many women who think, 鈥極h, let me wait until later in my career to pursue the superintendency.鈥� 鈥�

Many women do.

Research shows that across the U.S., women are more likely to become superintendents聽later in their career, are significantly more likely to have a doctorate degree compared with their male counterparts and they usually have more experience.

In Virginia, however, 85% of male superintendents have PhDs while 74% of female superintendents have PhDs, according to a Richmond Times-Dispatch analysis.

Rebecca Walters, the superintendent of Lexington Public Schools, said she has not faced what she sees as structural barriers to the superintendency, but she has noticed that men move up through the ranks faster.

鈥淢ore men go into education, teach for a few years and then decide, well, my next step is to be a principal, and then, my next step is to be an assistant superintendent or director, and then my next step is to be a superintendent,鈥� Walters said. 鈥淚t seems like that's a pretty clear trajectory for men, probably a little more than women.鈥�

Walters said she needed that tap on the shoulder to move up that her early mentors offered.

Larger national gap

Despite the gender disparity among Virginia鈥檚 school superintendents, the gap between men and women superintendents is larger nationwide. Across the U.S., only about 29% of school district superintendents are women, according to research from , compared with about 40% in Virginia.

鈥淲e are proud that Virginia is above the national average,鈥� said Scott Brabrand, executive director of the Virginia Association of School Superintendents. 鈥淲e will continue our efforts to expand and strengthen the superintendent pipeline as our students need the very best teachers, principals and superintendents.鈥�

In addition to women being less likely to make it to the top, they鈥檙e also more likely to leave the position in a contentious or politicized context, research shows.

鈥淲e have this broader societal issue right now where once women get into the position, we scrutinize them much heavier, and that has led to women superintendents being pushed out of the position or voluntarily leaving the position because they feel unsafe, they feel unwell, and they're not able to focus on the work of educating kids, because they're wrapped up in a lot of other sort of political debates,鈥� Rachel White said.

鈥淲e have to think about how we're treating women superintendents when they get into the position鈥� That's incumbent upon communities to change how they're behaving towards women superintendents and treat them with more respect.鈥�

Verletta White, the 色多多 City Public Schools superintendent, said the light 鈥渟hines a little bit brighter鈥� on women superintendents compared with their male counterparts.

鈥淭hat means that we have to be steadfast,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e have to be certain with our resolve, you do have to lead with courage. And I think you have to know that going in, that the light will be on you, and you have to stand in that moment and work with your team and be sure in your service.

鈥淵ou have to stay connected to your why, to your purpose," she said. "For me, I stay connected to my faith, and that's what gets me up in the morning to know that I'm in this to serve children.

"I'm going to continue to fight the good fight for children.鈥�