Preparing Effective Principals to Transform Schools

by Sara Vitaska

Effective principals are crucial to successful school reform and raising student achievement education experts said Friday, April 25, 2008 at the National Conference of State Legislatures' Spring Forum in Washington, D.C. 

Research shows that school leadership is second only to teacher quality in its impact on student achievement, especially in high-needs schools. And, there are virtually no documented instances of troubled schools being turned around without intervention by a powerful leader. State legislators can help create better school leaders by strengthening principal programs in their state, enacting policies like standards, licensing, internships, mentoring and ongoing support to improve training programs, and providing funding.

More than ever, states need to improve their preparation programs to ensure today's principals have the skills, knowledge and support required to turn around low-performing schools. Senior Program Officer for The Wallace Foundation Jody Spiro (2:26) said that improving principal preparation is cost-effective. Spiro also recommended four key "policy levers" (1:10) state legislators can put in place to improve principal preparation.

Kentucky Professional Education Standards Board Executive Director Phillip Rogers and Fort Wayne Community Schools Superintendent Wendy Robinson discuss what they think is the state role in strengthening leadership to (5:54) raise student achievement and close the achievement gap.  Luis Torres, (:59) Principal at Public School 55 in the Bronx said he needs mentoring support from the state to be an effective principal.

Kentucky and Ft. Wayne Community Schools have defined (4:52) effective leadership.

Listen (4:37) to the panelists discuss how principal certification and assessment help improve principals training programs and the quality of the candidate pool. Kentucky has created a teacher leader program and has put in a place a more selective application process. Fort Wayne Community Schools has a built strong relationships with their universities. Principal Luis Torres is a graduate of the nationally renowned New York City Leadership Academy. Click here to listen to his experience (4:42). 

Dr. Phillip Rogers and Dr. Robinson discuss how they are preparing effective principals, including a robust internship component. Listen (5:15) to what Kentucky and Fort Wayne Community Schools are doing to prepare school leaders.

The 2007 Stanford University report on preparing exemplary school leaders confirms that good leadership programs are expensive.  Our panelists discuss (5:43) where the dollars for current programs are coming from, the un-intended consequence of current spending patterns, and some creative ways to invest in recruiting, preparing and supporting effective principals.

Click here (1:12:54) to listen to the full session or here for additional resources.