A Dish Best Served Warm

Becoming a Warm Demander by Shane Safir
Educational Leadership, Volume 76, Issue 6, March 1, 2019

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This article applies Lisa Delpit's concept of the "warm demander" to the work of educational leaders. Equity is not just important within a classroom, Shane Safir argues; it must be seen in all aspects of a school, including interactions between administration and faculty. By adopting a framework focused around believing in the potential of each faculty member, trusting one's team, maintaining high, yet achievable expectations for all colleagues, and encouraging learning from failure, a school leader can create a stronger culture and better address the common, yet difficult problems faced in independent schools. Safir recalls a personal experience of a time when a student of color was switched out of her class because she was "not positioned to serve [him] well." In playing the scene out again, but instead having her principal take a more equitable approach to the situation, Safir lays out a better model for administrators to demonstrate equity in leadership when issues arrive. First, leaders must ask faculty to look at problems through the lens of the school's values and multiple perspectives. In doing so, the school leader sets the stage for deeply listening to the faculty and affirming them as they enunciate the concern in clearer, meaningful terms. From there, the warm demander can more effectively "call somebody in and up to their fullest potential" rather than "[calling] them out." By exercising the steps outlined in this article, school leaders can better model and cultivate an equitable spirit in all aspects of school life.