The principal鈥檚 job has been called both the most important in a school building and the loneliest, and the stress it places on individuals is illustrated by its rapid turnover rates, especially in high-poverty schools.
School leadership experts say that robust and ongoing training can alleviate those issues and help keep principals on the job, but professional development for school leaders is often bypassed for other pressing needs such as teacher training. And the professional development that many principals do get is of questionable quality.
鈥淢ost [professional development] for principals is not consistent with our best understanding of how learning occurs,鈥� said Joseph F. Murphy, the associate dean at the Peabody College of Education at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn. 鈥淏ut if you can get the content and the structure and delivery right, it can be huge.鈥�
Beverly J. Hutton, a deputy executive director of the National Association of Secondary School Principals, sums it up this way: 鈥淚 would say that there is a shortage of good PD.鈥�
Research has consistently shown that after teachers, principals have the most impact on student achievement when it comes to in-school factors. And though principals鈥� effects on student outcomes may be more indirect than teachers鈥�, their load-bearing role as a school鈥檚 instructional leader and the individual most responsible for fostering a positive climate is getting more attention from researchers, district leaders, and policymakers.
But even with a sharper focus on the needs of the profession, half of new principals quit by the end of their third year on the job, according to a 2014 report from the School Leaders Network.
The same report argues that administrators put too much emphasis on recruiting and preparing principals鈥攁nd tend to neglect their development once they are on the job, especially past the first two years. The study also cites a 2013 report from the National Center for Education Statistics that shows that principals who didn鈥檛 get professional development the previous year were 1.4 times more likely to leave their school than leaders who did receive training.
That turnover in leadership has negative ripple effects on schools, and that churn ultimately means wasted money for districts.
Quantity and Quality
But the importance of principal professional development is often trumped by other issues or ignored altogether, say many in the field.
鈥淚f you go to a conference on education, of the 100 sessions on professional development, 98 might be on teacher PD and maybe one will be on principal PD,鈥� said Heather Anichini, the president and CEO of the Chicago Public Education Fund, which recently started a principal-training program. 鈥淭here鈥檚 just not a lot of attention on it.鈥�
That tendency to overlook school leaders鈥� needs also plays out in academia鈥攚here there is relatively scant research on the needs of principals and what is needed to boost their retention鈥攁s well as in the federal funding arena.
鈥淭here certainly hasn鈥檛 been a lot of federal dollars designated for principal professional development,鈥� said Ms. Hutton of the NASSP. 鈥淭he professional-development money that comes into principals鈥� budgets, they use it on teachers because they know the teachers are right there in front of students.鈥�
Of the $1 billion the federal government sends to districts annually for training programs, 91 percent goes to teachers, leaving 9 percent for principals, according to that same 2014 report from the School Leaders Network.
The NASSP and the National Association for Elementary School Principals are working to change those numbers. The organizations are pushing for the federal government to set aside some Title II funds from the Elementary and Secondary Education Act that are aimed at improving teacher and principal quality, and allocate it specifically for principal development. Congress tipped its hat to the need for more funding for school leader training in the spending measure it approved in December, directing the U.S. Department of Education to tell states to do just that.
And the Education Department under the Obama administration has diverted from previous administrations with some new grant-supported professional-development programs for principals.
鈥楴ot One-Off Experiences鈥�
But even when programs for principal professional development are better financed and more accessible, the quality and relevance of training remains a huge challenge.
Although the specific professional-development needs vary from rookies to veterans, the tenets of good career training remain the same, according to leaders in the field. It should be individualized and rooted in real-world, or real-school, problems.
鈥淛ob-embedded,鈥� said Ms. Hutton. 鈥淓very piece of research we include in our programs has been translated into what does this look like on your job.鈥�
Trainings should also be spread out over a longer period of time鈥攕ay a semester versus a two-day workshop, according to Mr. Murphy.
鈥淕reat PD is not one-off experiences,鈥� he said. 鈥淕ood PD should promote higher-quality instruction and promote more powerful culture and climate in a school.鈥�
It should also promote distributive leadership鈥攐r training teams of people in a school to help handle leadership responsibilities to better balance the load of demands. The perks behind that way of operating are manifold, including preparing staff members for handling school business during the principal鈥檚 absence so he or she can take part in professional-development opportunities, said Mr. Murphy and Ms. Hutton.
Finally, access to peer networks or cohorts is important, allowing principals at every level of experience to have a chance to bounce ideas or problems off colleagues, said Ms. Hutton. Such networks, as well as more structured training programs, can also help battle feelings of isolation鈥攁 major reason principals leave their jobs, according to the NASSP.
First-year principals are especially in need of guidance as they try to apply the theory they鈥檝e learned in certificate or university programs to the realities of the job, leadership experts agree.
鈥淚 think one of the big challenges first-year principals have is setting their priorities and managing their time,鈥� said Mark J. White, the principal at Hintgen Elementary School in LaCrosse, Wis., and the president of the National Association of Elementary School Principals. 鈥淭here鈥檚 all these things coming at you.鈥�
Mentorship programs, Mr. White said, are one of the best ways to start new principals out on the right foot. 鈥淓very school is unique, so it鈥檚 really helpful to have someone that can help you apply what you鈥檝e learned on the job,鈥� he said.
The Minneapolis district has four mentorship programs, including one in which recently retired principals are paired with a newly hired one. The mentors, who are paid, help their charges with everything from budgeting to communications, observing them at work and offering feedback.
Bernadeia H. Johnson, who recently announced she will step down as superintendent in Minneapolis at the end of this month, remembers the mentor who helped her navigate the cultural nuances of her new city when she first arrived. His practical advice to her was how to handle a popular fall holiday.
鈥淗e called me up and said, 鈥楤efore you make this mistake, we don鈥檛 call it Halloween. You can have a fall festival, but don鈥檛 have a Halloween day,鈥� 鈥� she said. 鈥淗e called me up before I got in trouble.鈥�
Minneapolis鈥� mentoring programs also help with recruitment. People want to come work in districts where they will be supported, Ms. Johnson said.
Needs of Veterans
Mentoring programs can also benefit veteran principals who serve as mentors by forcing them to think about what works and what doesn鈥檛, and ultimately, what makes them successful in their position.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 a professional-development experience for them to grow,鈥� said Elisa Calabrese, the chief talent-development officer for the Broward County district in Florida. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no better way to learn about leadership than to mentor someone in leadership.鈥�
Her district has been a finalist three times for the Broad Prize鈥攁n annual award for urban districts that demonstrate improvements in closing achievement gaps鈥攊n part because of its training for principals at all levels of experience, according to Broad officials.
But as important as training is to new school leaders, it shouldn鈥檛 be squeezed into the first few years.
鈥淲e really do need that ongoing professional development all the way throughout our careers,鈥� said Mr. White.
Principals who have already proved themselves as strong leaders are the focus of a new program launched in the fall of 2014 by the Chicago Public Education Fund, a philanthropic venture fund, for a select number of the city鈥檚 principals. The fellowship program was developed using feedback gathered through surveys and interviews with the city鈥檚 principal corps.
鈥淭hey were being engaged as instructional leaders, the [Common Core State Standards] stuff, but they weren鈥檛 necessarily being engaged around leadership generally,鈥� said Ms. Anichini, the fund鈥檚 CEO.
Principals said they wanted better customized training, and more of it.
To meet those needs, the Chicago Fund partnered with Northwestern University鈥檚 School for Education and Social Policy as well as its Kellogg School of Management to offer classes and mentoring to the fellows.
鈥淐orporate America is actually pretty good at this: identifying their best and developing them,鈥� said Ms. Anichini. But, she said, the university is still attentive to the fact that it鈥檚 dealing with a special group of people. In exchange, fellows agree to remain in the Chicago district for at least three years. The program has 20 participants this session, including Barbara Kargas, the principal of Goethe Elementary School.
鈥淟earning how to lead when you have many built-in challenges is something that you need leadership and guidance to do,鈥� said Ms. Kargas. 鈥淚 wish that it was something that was going to be ongoing until I retired.鈥�
