A principal's job is astonishingly complex, and its competing demands can be overwhelming, especially in the first few years. In this book, Jen Schwanke, a principal herself, provides a mentor's guidance to steer new principals through the period of adjustment and set the foundation for a long and rewarding career. The topics you wish your graduate program had covered are covered here—directly, practically, and without the jargon.
Drawing on her own experience, Schwanke provides strategies for tackling the most common yet most daunting challenges of the principalship, including
Establishing productive professional relationships
Building and maintaining a positive school culture
Resolving conflict among staff and parents
Providing effective instructional leadership
Supporting students' social-emotional needs
Conducting staff evaluations and delivering feedback
Keeping up with district, state, and federal mandates
Managing the facility and the budget
Providing focused and effective professional development
Prioritizing responsibilities
Learning from student and schoolwide data
Planning for growth and change
Working through behavior and discipline issues
Hiring high-quality teachers and supporting new ones
Leading effective meetings
Maintaining balance
The standalone chapters provide easy access to the solutions you need for the situations you face. Along with real-life scenarios and critical tips for success, you'll find helpful models of what to do, what to say, and how to say it. This book is a source for ideas any time you encounter a problem and think, "
Now
what?" It's the beginning of an ongoing conversation about the wonderful and rewarding work of being a principal.