"The standards of professional practice for county superintendents establish the superintendent as the chief instructional leader and executive officer of the school system who works in collaboration with the county board of education to ensure that all elements of system operations come together to advance student learning. This requires a leader absolutely dedicated to student academic achievement and well-being who can create fiscally responsible systems and processes that improve the quality of learning in each school.  Today's superintendents must understand the broad national and global economic/social context to which schools must respond but must work within the context of the local community to address these issues in a coherent and viable strategic direction for the school system.  The overall direction of the system must ultimately be realized within each school and classroom; the progress made by each school can be profoundly influenced by the quality of district operations, fiscal management, support, culture and systems of accountability.   Thus, the superintendent must not only ensure that district systems and processes are of the highest quality but that they are differentiated and orchestrated to address each school's improvement needs.  Within this context, the superintendent must establish clear goals and benchmarks of accountability while supporting the work of collaborative teams to find the best ways of improving professional practice within each school.  The work of a county superintendent is multifaceted and relies on both technical knowledge and interpersonal skill.  However, by forming stakeholder coalitions and staff communities of professional practice, the superintendent, working with the county board, can be the necessary transformational change agent able to influence the progress and success of student in each school."

W. Va. Code R. § 126-165-4 - Standards of Professional Practice for County Superintendents