AIR President Sol Pelavin Addresses School District Superintendents at Gathering Hosted by College of Education at Ohio State
Columbus, Oh. - Sol H. Pelavin, President and CEO of the American Institutes for Research (AIR), on Wednesday, July 26 delivered an address on instilling confidence and trust within organizations and the public during the 23rd annual meeting of the National Academy of Superintendents, hosted by the College of Education at Ohio State University.
The National Academy of Superintendents was established in 1983 and is dedicated to providing school district superintendents with the knowledge they need to deal with the demands they face. The theme of this year's four-day conference is: Leadership Challenge: Building Trust and Confidence.
Pelavin, noting that two-thirds of employees say they don't trust their bosses, cited both research data and personal experience as he discussed how successful leaders build trust with their staff and the public.
"We live in an era of diminished public trust and confidence in leaders and institutions at every level, from Congress to the state house to the local school board, Pelavin said in remarks prepared for delivery to conference participants."
"We will never reduce the public's cynicism about our leaders and about public institutions including the schools unless we find ways to rebuild respect for our core institutions. And that means restoring trust and confidence in our school systems and in the people who direct them," Pelavin said.
Pelavin, a former high school mathematics teacher, told the superintendents, "I attribute much of AIR's success to learning and applying lessons about trust and confidence." He advised the school leaders to: be honest with everyone; treat everyone with respect; treat promises seriously and don't over promise; and invest the time to build teamwork.
Pelavin became president and chief executive officer of AIR in 2001, after serving as executive vice president and chief operating officer since 1994 when the firm he founded, Pelavin Associates, merged with AIR. Under his leadership, AIR has grown from several hundred employees to a staff of more than 1,300. Revenues for the current fiscal year are expected to exceed $250 million, a tenfold increase since the 1994 merger.
Pelavin holds advanced degrees from the University of Chicago and Stanford University. He taught high school mathematics in suburban Chicago before starting his career in research.
About AIR
Established in 1946, with headquarters in Washington, D.C., the American Institutes for Research (AIR) is a nonpartisan not-for-profit organization that conducts behavioral and social science research on important social issues and delivers technical assistance both domestically and internationally in the areas of health, education, and workforce productivity.