Bridging the Generational Divide

By: Dr. Suzette Lovely, ESS Consultant

From bowties and brooches to tennis shoes and tattoos, the canvas of the schoolhouse has changed. And it’s not just students who look and act differently. Teachers, support staff, administrators, and parents have morphed too.  

While there is no set metric to determine where one generation ends and another begins, scholars agree that crystallizing events from adolescence stay with us into adulthood to shape generational attitudes and identity. For example, Baby Boomers viewed their work as a calling, with tenure and job security a valued asset. Such desires served districts well when schools were more insular, standardized, and offered lifetime employment as an unconditional guarantee.

Gen Z and Millennials, on the other hand, are motivated by purpose, flexibility, and rapid career growth. They are reluctant to sacrifice personal time, financial assets, or emotional wellbeing for a job.  One recent study reported that 47% of Gen Z educators anticipate teaching only a few years before moving on to something else.

Complicating matters is the influence of technology, automation, and accessibility on people’s daily expectations. In comparison to other nations, Americans are accustomed to a convenient lifestyle where most necessities and services are readily available. The pursuit of a frictionless journey in our daily encounters underscores the destiny of TK-12 institutions.

Aligning Parent Desires

To align desires, we must recognize the generational DNA of the parents we serve. While Ward and June Cleaver considered it taboo to question authority, contemporary moms and dads see their obligation to their offspring as all encompassing. Baby Boomers (aka Helicopter Parents) protected their children from hardships, yet believed in the moral and civic goals of education. Sometimes helpful and sometimes not, Boomer parents hovered overhead to pave a safer, smoother path for their children than they had growing up.  

Conversely, Gen X parents (aka Stealth Bombers) were skeptical of institutions and had no problem questioning authority. As products of divorce and split households, they acquired significant freedom and independence in their youth. Left alone to hook up the Atari and program the microwave, this generation brought us the Internet Age. As survivors, they were adept at finding workarounds, could penetrate the defensive walls of bureaucracy, and went on a long time without refueling.

Coming of age in the 90’s, Millennial children had packed schedules, a nice chunk of disposable income, and lots of say in family decisions. They typed their first essays on Mac Computers, accessed the Encyclopedia online, and connected with friends on Myspace.  Imaginative play was replaced by scheduled playdates and robust after school activities. Consumerism and internet advertising pushed these digital natives to get older younger. As a result, Millennial parents (AKA Drones) embrace a ‘gentle parenting’ style and nurturing approach over punishment or authoritarian rule. Fueled by social media, Millennials aren’t afraid to make their experiences public. Yet, they also struggle with Mompetition, Dad Guilt, and the pressure to be perfect parents.

Gen Z, the youngest parents in our schools, grew up in more emotionally aware households and came of age during COVID. They are channeling these experiences into raising children who are practical, resilient, and future-ready. As Gen Z experiments with new parenting approaches, they tend to reject the permissiveness of ‘gentle parenting’ in favor of firmer boundaries and defined autonomy.

Millennial and Gen Z parents want schools to provide clear calls to action, high touch interactions, and concise communication. As consumers, they expect education to be a high value service, rather than a civic rite of passage. Underscoring these trends is a demand for transparency, personalization, and a discernible Return on Investment (ROI).

Creating Synergy

With a more diverse, more digital, and more idealistic clientele, education partner engagement has to remain fluid.  Although flexible policies and accommodations may not be feasible in all cases, educational systems and processes can be adjusted to align with generational interests. Understanding the trademarks that nudge organizational culture in one direction or another will spawn alignment and collective action.

Use the Generational Footprint of the Workplace to build cross-age synergy and put your workplace a cut above the rest.

Generational Footprint of the Workplace