While this strategy has its advantages, it can also be a hindrance, as each of us carries strengthsand weaknesses. Fulfilling federal and state education laws so that their schools are safe and equitable. Coached 5th -8th . I'm at a central office job now. Typically, an assistant principal must hold at least a master's degree along with state specific certification. Phone: 209-933-7065 2121. GrayHerman 1 min. Cassandra Washington is a Chicago-based educator. If you like teaching and training, go for a coordinator job over a subject. Do you know how many coordinator jobs there really are in a district? Our district has 30 schools and 34000 students. U.S. Department of Education. ", Responsibilities of an Assistant Principal, Common Characteristics of Assistant Principals. The assistant principal oversees the day-to-day running of a school. Supervise instructional and non-instructional staff. Andrew Houlihan, the superintendent of the Union County schools in North Carolina, led the development of a high-dosage tutoring strategy to combat student learning loss. Working with faculty, assistant principals make suggestions, listen, and share experiences encouraging teacher improvement and motivation within classrooms. you get a chance to work closely with at-risk kids/families. The assistant principalship is one of the most misunderstood and pivotal roles in our schools. An assistant principal, also known as a vice principal, is an education administrator responsible for facilitating the day-to-day requirements of their school. I wish you the best with your career. As with teachers, the higher the grade level, the more concentrated the knowledge base. Average base salary Data source tooltip for average base salary. Cassandra promotes her book, Teach and Take Time for You: Strategies and Tips to Reduce Stress and Burnout. This can stretch your time and yourself if youre not willing to take feedback and grow where you are weak. dealing with parent issues. Next, I did not expect the amount of politics and pressure from outside sources. Each assistant principalship carries a different set of expectations and challenges. I have had various experiences with people who support and help and those who are trying to blame and move up on others hard work. I was an AP before becoming a principal at a different school. These five issues beat me down and pushed me out of the profession. Goldring and colleagues note, however, that recent data indicate APs responsibilities, in some cases, are becoming more instructionally-focused, possibly because more detailed teacher evaluation requirements that may lead principals to share those duties with their APs. Goldring, R., & Taie, S. (2018). Should I stay or go? Tue., March 21, 2023, 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. At the end of the week, check your percentages to make sure you are fulfilling your goals. The median expected annual salary of a principal is over $100,000, while the median expected annual salary for a teacher is under $60,000. The Occupational Employment Statistics reported these annual mean wages for 2016: The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 6 percent growth in jobs for principals in the decade from 2016to 2024. Being a principled assistant principal would be difficult. Whether a school is in a rural, urban, or suburban area, issues of violence, drugs, homelessness, joblessness, and mental health issues make teaching and learning more difficult. Community. Interesting, thank you! Cassandra Washington graduated from Rockford University with a B.A. I had to close teaching and aide positions, including shutting down the school library. Assistant principals may often be the "voice of the school" in daily operations. Assistant principals often have to deal with heated situations between students, parents, and teachers. community relations. The brutal truth was that I did not have balance. PRINCIPAL, K-8 SCHOOL. We worked through it together and formed a special bond. Occasionally a few helpful colleagues shared or donated used materials or resources. It is easy to be drawn to imitate those we admire. When the master schedule is developed, observe the process and ask how the schedule is designed to balance needs. Discover how to create a learning environment where all students feel valued and supported, and how to accelerate learning for English learners and students of color. I was a principal of senior secondary school and above mentioned experiences were the reason for me to leave principalship .Now i am working as a teacher in some other country without any stress. One is who gets into the pipeline. During budget season, ask to review the budget and discuss how priorities were set and allocated. Manage student behavioral issues including those in the cafeteria along with those referred by teachers and bus drivers. Use your opportunities in classrooms and hallways to ask for perspective and guidance. They may be assigned a specific grade level or group. They need to ensure the safety of students, as well as fulfillment of federal and state student and teacher performance guidelines. Check out our being an assistant principal is easy selection for the very best in unique or custom, handmade pieces from our digital shops. Not a Single State Meets the Bar, How One School's Mentorship Program Paid Off Big in Academic Gains, What Superintendents Are Saying About Staff Shortages, The Right MTSS Platform Should Empower Educators, Improving Indoor Air Quality = Keeping Students + Staff in School, Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff, Big Goals, Small Start: Building MTSS to Scale, How Culturally Responsive Leadership Leads to Student Success, Every School Has Bias. Typically, mid-size to large schools employ more than one assistant principal. The assistant principalship is one of the most misunderstood and pivotal roles in our schools. A second reason principals leave is the lack of funding and resources. Much of the instructional and academic and school improvement priorities are delegated to department chairs, who are then under the supervision of the assistant principal. The never-ending demands are based on demographics, socio-economics, politics, and more. I have been a principal for 5 years, two very different schools. Secondary trauma becomes a reality for many educators, including myself. But the research is nascent, Rubin said. Learning Policy Institute. Added >> File Ready To Use (Word By Layer Svg Files with Cricut supported) - 1 PNG File > (300 Dpi Background transparent) . [Opinion] School Choice is More Than Just Choosing a School, Let the Pandemic be the Mother of Innovation in Schools. Lets explore five reasons why I and other principals leave their school. When funding is minimal, a principal cannot purchase sufficient amounts of materials, technology hardware, or software or provide extracurricular activities. (Students of color comprised 34 percent of the enrollment in the six states that were included in this specific study that was part of the larger review.). Thank you for sharing your story have learned a lot as a principal. The desire to be active and visible. Create a free account to save your favorite articles, follow important topics, sign up for email newsletters, and more. Its a way different skill set than teaching, however. Still, most students attend schools with only one AP, and schools with higher enrollment of students of color were more likely to have APs than those with higher percentages of white students. That is what I told myself whenever I would apply for other jobs or fill out the retirement papers. Kelly, Melissa. This content is provided by our sponsor. Unless it's a moral issue, then the ultimate decisions are up to the principal. The stress of knowing I could be fired at any moment if my job stepped on anyone elses toes was hard. Is the Assistant Principal the Most Overlooked, Undervalued Person at School? So I have been looking into a coordinator job as well. Get the latest education news delivered to your inbox daily. Most assistant principals start their careers as teachers. You get good stories and I think the energy from running a building is exciting. While many people see the assistant principals as the disciplinary arm of the administrative staff, their main goal should be to help students achieve to their greatest potential. Hi, thank you for sharing! The goal of r/Education is to provide a community in which educational stakeholders can participate in meaningful, reflective, and thought-provoking discourse about educational policy, research, technology, and politics. Learn how your comment data is processed. But in particular for principals who have spent some years "on the ground" in the classroom and know the realities, but now have to navigate political minefields to appease bosses with little/no classroom experience. In a seven-year period, our budget lost approximately $1.3 million. Theres limited empirical evidence that having worked as an AP leads to better school outcomes or effectiveness as a principal. Its unclear whether the assistant principals role is a career goal itself or a stepping-stone to the principalship. One common role is to support the principal, which can look different in every setting. Equity audits to identify barriers can help districts address this issue, as well as examining data on who has access to mentoring and who is selected to pursue leadership roles, Rubin said. International Leadership of Texas. Plus very high expectations from home and community. If youre a teacher who aspires to be an assistant principal, youre in good company. Managing the responsibilities can become daunting, especially when pop-up items such as discipline can take large portions of your time. The pro side of being a principal though, is that you have a much bigger influence on the school, and have more opportunities to influence students' educational experience. In high-poverty schools, the turnover rate was 21 percent. Throughout history, physical objects have been used to represent Resources for teachers, parents, and students to help deal with stress and changes during the pandemic, Discover the importance of social-emotional learning and activities to promote empathy in the classroom, Best practices for resiliency and self-care for teachers, Strategies and tools to implement the trauma-informed approach in classrooms and schools, Cultivating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Resources to help build an equitable classroom environment where diversity and inclusion is appreciated, Learn the best ways of adapting technology to be useful in your classroom environment, Strategies, tips, and teaching concepts to help teachers succeed in the classroom, Insightful content to help you design the ultimate curriculum for on-campus and online teaching, The best ways to implement self-care and resilience that are relevant to teachers, Helpful content addressing the needs of higher education professionals for online teaching, The latest trends and challenges in education, Read the latest published articles on Resilient Educator, By