4 Ideas To Have A Successful First Year as Principal
by George Couros • • 0 Comments
I am so intrigued with the number of people that are jumping into principal positions as I think it is truly one of the best jobs in the world. It is also one of the toughest. Isolation within a school (even though that is a choice that we now make ourselves) has been kind of a norm in past years, so to have a shared focus as a school is foreign territory for many (including principals). Yet with a constant focus on “change”, many principals bring people together, but often for the wrong reasons. If you move to fast, that can often lead to strained relationships within a school and resentment towards the new “leader”. As much as principals want to make it “our school”, many admin really try to make it “their school”, or at least, that is the picture that they paint to their staff. Sometimes you need to move slow to go fast.
Here are some things that I have learned from my time in both success and failures.
1. Build strong relationships first. If you did a “Wordle” on my blog, I am guessing the term “relationships” would be the word that is in the top five for being most used. Although this may seem redundant, to emphasize the importance of this over and over again, is something that cannot be understated. The investment you make in your staff, students, and community will come back tenfold, but it takes time to build trust. I have watched administrators like Patrick Larkin,Kathy Melton, Jason Markey, Amber Teamann, and Jimmy Casas show and share the significance that they put into people. This is not just your teachers either.
Every single person on your staff is an important part of the team and should be treated in that same manner. Make sure that you connect with every person on that staff and know something that goes beyond the building.
One of my favourite things to do with the community was to wait for the busses and talk to kids and parents as they 4 Ideas To Have A Successful First Year as Principal | Connected Principals: