As an assistant principal at Royal Oak Middle School, Alexander Senar has a lot of duties. He oversees certificated and classified staff, as well as organizes the master schedule for the school. But his work doesn’t end there. Senar, a proponent of learner-centered instruction, also oversees the special education program and the Capturing Kids’ Hearts positive behavior program. He has volunteered for the Charter Oak Scholarship Foundation, where he sat in on interviews with high school students who had submitted scholarship applications. “Alex combines a strong knowledge of state educational standards, curriculum and instruction with an effective, interpersonal style,” said Maria Thompson, Charter Oak Unified School District’s director of student services and member of ACSA’s board of directors. What’s your favorite book on leadership? One of my favorite leadership books is “Good to Great” by Jim Collins. Several things really resonated with me. I like how they did case studies of companies that really met specific success criteria. In addition, I like how they focused on getting the right people in your organization on the bus and then tactically putting them in the right seats or positions. These concepts easily translate to education.  What’s your favorite quote about leadership? “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” — Nelson Mandela What are you most proud of accomplishing? This award is clearly the biggest accomplishment of my administrative career. Being awarded the co-admin award means the world to me. I’m honored that colleagues from ACSA would consider me worthy of this accolade. I feel like I’m just a reflection of all the mentors that have coached me up and encouraged me to embrace best practices. Who is someone who inspires you? Geoffrey Canada is one of my idols. He continues to do something that others deemed impossible. He specifically chose to target the poorest parts of Harlem, New York, and created the Harlem Children’s Zone School that promised 100 percent of the students will go to college. This is in the face of the most disadvantaged, lowest socio-economically disadvantaged subgroup of students. He is my idol. What was the best ACSA event you’ve attended? The best ACSA event I’ve attended is Aspiring Principals Academy at UCLA. This opened my eyes to the power of leading a school. It filled me with a lot of hope and excitement for the next step in my career. How has ACSA supported you in your career/current position? ACSA has been pivotal to my growth and confidence as an administrator. I’ve been to four ACSA Academies. These academies did indeed fast track my learning! Also, I was able to hear best practices directly from practitioners in the field. In addition, being involved in ACSA charters has been empowering. Being on the Region 15 board has been an amazing experience. I’m so grateful for the amount of coaching and inspiration I get from all my colleagues.