Women in Education: Executive Director of KIPP Massachusetts Nikki Barnes Shares Her Vision for Driving Change in Public Education
“I think that when women win, they are whole. They are winning when they can display their definition of womanhood in a way that is authentic to them. They are winning when they have access to power and resources to become whatever they want to become. And they then clear the path for the next generation” Meet today’s woman dreamer, Nikki Barnes. Nikki is an inspiring leader in the education space with the mission to better the education system and improve diversity & inclusion efforts in schools for young students. A dedicated educator, Nikki shares her journey as Executive Director of KIPP Massachusetts, the role of parents and family on encouraging women in their educational journeys, and how she thinks about women and girls empowerment in the education sector. Let's dive into her story. And if you prefer an audio version, check out the podcast version!
Podcast Version
Editorial Version
Tell us your story. So as we know, you're a visionary leader with a passion for public education. So tell us more about this journey and what inspired you.
First of all, I'm very honored to be featured here. I am inspired by my mother and my ancestors. They are truly my inspiration. I am a descendant of enslaved Africans from Chapel Hill, Durham, North Carolina, and Norfolk, Virginia. My mother and father attended segregated schools and learned from used textbooks that were discarded by the white schools. They always knew education was key and that you had to fight for it. I was blessed to have really powerful black female elementary school teachers, and I loved school. I knew, and I knew early on that I wanted to be a teacher. And I also knew early on that integration did not fix everything. I knew that, even after the march in Washington, that we still had the same segregation and racism living within our school buildings.
But I had hope. I had a vision for how schools could look from the young age of 18 years old. And so I went to college to teach. I came back to my hometown as a teacher. I taught for about 12 years. And in those 12 years, I've really worked to be a great teacher, a warm and demanding teacher who integrated what was in my heart and in my mind. And in those years, I learned that teaching is rocket science and brain surgery at the same time on someone's hopes and dreams, and that it is one of the most complex, multi-dimensional bodies of work that anyone can engage in.
I then realized I wanted to lead other teachers, and I found my way to a KIPP school, a charter school that was mission driven, which spoke to my sense of justice that I gained from my parents. And now I find myself in one of the most historical states in our country in Massachusetts leading KIPP Academy to ensure that our children have what they need to be on a path to a fulfilled in life. And all of that goes all the way back to my ancestors and to my mother and the lesson they taught me that knowledge is power. I knew that. And KIPP actually stands for the Knowledge is Power program. And my mom’s words still inspire me today.
2. It’s amazing how it all started from your family and how your family background had a huge influence on your life's work and your mission. You've worked with many students and families from all different backgrounds. What are some of the key learnings you've had and how education can empower young women in particular? And is there anything that schools and families can do to really empower young women to pursue things like stem?
Education is historically a female-led space. Years ago, the norm was that the majority of teachers were female, and the principal or superintendent in general was a man. And of course, we do now have female leaders, uh, principals, superintendents, and academic leaders. But I do want to point out that public education has historically been a female-led and female-driven career path.
I don’t think we as a country have ever done education fully right. Education has never really been given what it should be, the understanding and the respect even to this day. So what I've learned is that education is education, but it's also political. There is no education without politics. And so the role that women have played is that we've had to hold almost a double consciousness that we often talk about in terms of being people of color.
Women have had to be smart, strong, demure, strategic and becoming. We've had to do all that. And I've learned that women are powerful and wise, and we probably should be running more organizations, more countries, by the way because we are some of the most powerful people I know. So that is the first thing I want for women in this role and in education. In terms of how do we get more of our women, our young ladies who identify as women into stem and/or into the the arts and businesses? One of the first things we do at KIPP is we have a model of family engagement called co-authorship. And it means we share power with families because the family role in education is significant.
3. Could you elaborate on that? How does the family role influence education?
Families should have a voice and oftentimes decision making rights. And when families don't have the decision making rights and they don't like the decision that we've made, we engage in conflict, we engage in disagreement. At KIPP, we see the disagreement as an example, or as proof that we are doing the right thing because we are not pacifying each other. We're not walking around an issue. We are addressing it head on.
So bringing this back to the previous question on girls in STEM. This means that for our students who identify as girls, how do they get into stem? We have strong relationships with their families. We ensure that they see STEM teachers who are women. We ensure that there are teachers and leaders that relate to them. We also honor the voice of the women in their families. We have lots of town halls to encourage the collaboration. Finally, we don't prescribe what it means to be a woman. We have women who wear pearls and a silk blouse and a blue jacket. We might have some women who are wearing sneakers and a button down shirt. We don't prescribe what that looks like. We ensure that our young women have the opportunity to become whoever they want to become. And that they see various examples of women every day that they come to school. And when we walk in partnership with their parents, their parents have a voice. Sometimes they have a vote. And we engage in conflict in a constructive way. This is key to our approach.
4. That's amazing. Often just seeing people that look like you and have similar backgrounds to you in a teaching role or kind of being a role model is such a big part of influencing your career and the decisions you make after school. We would like to learn more about your journey in leadership. How would you describe your leadership style in three words?
I would say Servant, direct, and gatherer. To elaborate further,
I'll start with a gatherer. One of my heroes is Harriet Tubman. Harriet Tubman was in a way a gatherer of people. She would sing at the edge of a plantation. And folks would know. She gathered them together and she let them know that we are about to go on a journey. You know where we're headed. I know how to get there. Sometimes I'm going to tell you to do things that are strange. I'm gonna tell you to go back south and we're gonna make a turn and go left. You may not trust me, but I need you to trust me. And she gathered people together for the cause. That's what I do. I'm able to share with people a compelling vision and get them invested and gather them along, starting with students and teachers, and eventually full schools.
After I gather them, I have to decide what role am I gonna play. This is where the servant or director piece comes in. I can gather the team we need, but that doesn't mean I should always be in front. Sometimes I'm along the side encouraging people to go on and I have somebody else leading from the front. Sometimes I'm the middle of the gathered group listening to people and figuring out how they're feeling, because that gives me the information I need to figure out the next steps. Sometimes I'm the wind in their back. And that connects me to the servant part of being a servant leader. I find out from my folks, what do you need in order for us to move to the next stage in order for us to meet our mission? I'm also direct, I say it like it is. I say what I need to say. And I do that with love. I think that being direct builds trust, and it makes people feel seen. I love my folks, if you work for me, I love you. I'm trying to make sure I create a place where you thrive.
5. At Women who win, we're really focused on highlighting women that are focusing on driving representation and equality in different sectors. And you being in the education sector, how are you aiming to address DEI at KIPP?
First of all, it starts with me. It starts with me being on my own DEI journey, unpacking my own prejudices and personal biases. Me thinking back on how I was raised. I was born in Norfolk Community Hospital in 1969 because that was the hospital that I could have been born in as a black child. My mom's doctor was black. I could not have been born at the other hospital. I think that reflecting on the impact that my race has had on where I live, how I went to church, who was in my immediate circle, allows me to do things like unpack internalized racism that I've internalized. It allows me to address my own race. I'm a lighter brown person. I have not had to navigate the world as a very dark-skinned woman. That is a different experience. So first it starts with me.
It starts with me recognizing in some cases my privilege, my education, the fact that I have health insurance, the fact that I am able bodied, and the fact that I am Christian and heterosexual. I think the most important thing is that I let my team know I'm on this journey as well. And so if it starts with me, the leader, then it includes everybody in my organization saying, “Let me have my own individual journey. Because as long as we're all on the journey, then we can come together and say, now as an organization, where are we living out our anti-racist and inclusive vision and mission? And where are we not?” It opens the door for us to have those conversations that people are really uncomfortable with having. So I would tell you, moving beyond myself, that DEI is both the anchor and the umbrella and the pillars and walls around everything that we do.
6. Our platform is called Women Who Win, what does that phrase mean to you when you hear it? Is there a woman in your life that you admire?
I think that when women win, they are whole. They are winning when they can display their definition of womanhood in a way that is authentic to them. They are winning when they have access to power and resources to become whatever they want to become. And in doing so, they clear that path for the next generation of women behind them.
When women win, the country wins, when women win, families are stronger, when women win. communities are tighter and are more cohesive. When women win, the way we share resources. It is fairer. It's more equitable.
I don't claim to have the definition of what it means to be a woman. I do not. I have my own definition of what it means to be a woman. And as a woman, I am a very powerful person. I also have the capacity to have fear, trepidation, shame, be unnerved, and need a hug.
7. Is there an empowered “winning woman” in your life that you admire?
The person who does that the most for me right now is my daughter. She will be 30 years old in September. She is a fourth grade teacher at KIPP Boston. This is her seventh year. And every day she walks into that classroom, she teaches with her head and her heart. She studies her craft, and she internalizes her lessons. She goes around and looks at the kids' work and tries to unpack any misconceptions. She does all of that with 20 some kids from different backgrounds and different needs. She is the woman I admire in my life right now. My daughter Adriana Barnes.
8. How do you find her work-life balance? What are your hobbies? How do you relax? How do you unwind?
I choose my hobbies. The way I relax is aligned to the stressor that I'm feeling. So if I'm feeling overwhelmed by a long to-do list, I pause that to-do list for about an hour. It allows me to do something else that I like, and gives me the break that I need. And then I go back to my work.
When I am stuck and I can't come up with a vision, I listen to music and I sing and I dance. I also like to relax by the ocean. I like to sit on a beach chair in front of the ocean and just listen for a while and let the ocean speak to me. Sometimes I like to bake, I am trying to really get excellent at biscuits, which I'm a southern woman, and that's something we all know how to do.
I manage my time by narrowing down what's most important for me to do today, this week, this month, this quarter of the year. I manage my time by delegating. I don't have to own it all. And I'm learning that it's never a failure, there is always a lesson. I didn't come up with that. That comes from the author of Emergent Strategy. So I'm always reading, I'm always reading a book about how to be a better leader, along with a romance novel too of course :)
When we think about balance, I give myself the grace to be human and I celebrate every small win, every single small win because the little wins add up to bigger wins. And I make sure I get enough sleep, I don't play with my sleep schedule. Routine is key.