assistant principal career transistion (part 1)

NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNALVOLUME 29, NUMBER 2, 2012-2013

Assistant Principal Career Transition (Part I)

David E. HerringtonTexas A&M University-San Antonio

W. Sean KearneyTexas A&M University-San Antonio

ABSTRACTThe Assistant Principal position plays an important part in the upward progression of teachers into administrative roles. Yet most principal preparation programs address only CEO or principal leadership needs. The purpose of this inquiry is to assess the extent to which the principal preparation program at a newly chartered State University in the Southwestern United States is meeting the needs of newly enfranchised assistant principals. This article focuses on the experiences of assistant principals in their new roles and the reflections of educational leadership professors as they examine the gap between program delivery and practitioner need.

Introduction

niversity-based principal preparation programs in the United States, from the earliest years of educational administration as an academic discipline to the present, have focused almost exclusively on the role

of the principal and the superintendent. Yet the most critical role that makes or breaks an administrator’s career in the upward progression from teacher to principal to superintendent is the role of assistant principal. It is the quality of the progression from teacher to assistant principal that will shape the mindset and beliefs of the school administrator, including their ability to reflect, their attitudes toward key constituencies served, and their tendency to act proactively rather than reactively to create successful learning environments (Flanary, 2009).

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This critical period determines whether there will be a successful career with an optimistic and hopeful outlook, or a failed experiment in which the individual drops out of the profession, falls into a passive and resentful

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pattern of thinking, or remains a permanent assistant principal for the duration of one’s career (Good, 2007).

Purpose of this Investigation

The purpose of this article is to learn more about the experiences of the first cohort of graduates from a recently created principal preparation program who are serving in their first year as an assistant principal. This principal preparation program bears many similarities to other programs in the state in terms of semester hour requirements and content knowledge. This program also was designed with some value-added features such as an internship aligned with the ELCC standards, certification in Instructional Leadership Development (ILD), certification in the Professional Development Assessment System (PDAS), and multiple preparation and tutorial opportunities to assist in mastering the state mandated principal certification exam (Herrington, Kelsey, Barker & Kearney, 2010).

The authors, professors and mentors for the novice administrators included in this study, are committed to developing a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by former students as they move from their roles as graduate students and teachers into the roles of school administrator and colleague. It is the intent of this investigation to learn what kinds of support and learning experiences these former students and current administrators need in order to become highly effective school leaders. The interview protocol was designed to assess graduates’/assistant principals’ experiences in the principal preparation program as well as to examine various aspects of their experiences in the field. This article focuses on the first half of these findings: assessment of the principal preparation program and its role in preparing the assistant principal for career transition and self-efficacy as administrators.

Rationale for the Study

The voices of two professors of educational administration and five novice assistant principals within an emerging principal preparation program at a newly chartered State University in the Southwestern United States were

David Herrington & W. Sean Kearney 84

captured in this study. Based on the interviews, co-authors/professors reflected on the implications for program curriculum change in terms of understandings, insights, and skills necessary for future educational administration candidates to be effective. This is issue is especially timely since value-added assessments of educator preparation programs are a growing trend across the country and is imminent within the state. This reality further highlights how important it is for professors to maintain relationships with graduates in order to understand better the current needs of leaders and to support and nurture them in the field after graduation (Dunn, 2010). Principal preparation professors also need to begin addressing the challenges their graduates face in the hiring process.

With an eye toward reflecting on novice administrator experiences in the field as practitioners and as administrative candidates within the principal preparation program, the authors/professors aim to inform ongoing efforts to improve the content, focus, and delivery of the principal preparation initiatives in their charge.

Methodology

The professors/coauthors developed an interview guide for semi-structured interviews related to pre-professional and novice professional experiences that would allow for further elaboration challenges faced getting certified, getting hired, launching themselves as assistant principals. Additional questions called for reflections ways that the program was most helpful or ways in which the program may have missed the mark.

The five interviews were conducted over a two week period of time. Three of the interviews were conducted face-to-face. Two were phone interviews. Coauthor/professors coded the responses based on common themes and explored the range of responses in some cases that were very different within certain areas of interest (Maxwell, 1996). Once interview responses were coded and developed into key themes, the coauthor/professors reflected on ways the principal preparation program may been perceived of as useful and relevant. This juxtaposes areas where gaps between education and experiences were greatest. These reflections on the professor-candidate


conversations comprise the analysis of data at the professor-candidate dyad unit of analysis.

Participants

The five assistant principals for this study were selected because they were among the first completers of the Texas A&M University-San Antonio principal preparation program. The five assistant principals that participated in this study were all male (N=5). Four were Latino, one was Anglo. They ranged in years of teaching experience prior to appointment as assistant principal from 1 to 10 years (R1 = 8; R2 = 10; R3 =7; R4 = 7; R5 = 1 1/2). Four were employed by public schools; one was employed by a private Catholic elementary school. The number of interviews they had before being hired ranged from 1 to 4 (R1 = 1; R2 = 4; R3 = 2; R4 = 1; R5 = 1). The school level at which they were teachers included elementary, intermediate, middle school, and high school (R1: Middle School; R2: High School; R3 = Middle School; R4 = High School; R5 = Private Elementary School). School levels at which they currently serve as administrators included the same range of school levels (R1: Elementary; R2: Middle School; R3 = Intermediate School; R4 = High School; R5 = Private Elementary School).

The coauthor/professors conducting the study were both male (N=2). Both were charter educational leadership faculty members who had taught the respondent/assistant principals in the principal preparation program.

Findings

Interviews with program graduates yielded three themes: 1) What the new assistant principals found most useful about their preparation program, 2) What their preparation program could have done better, and 3) Advice these graduates had for other aspiring school administrators. Each of these three themes will be presented in turn. Reflections on program development to close the gaps between principal preparation provided by the University and the actual needs of administrators in the field in their early career.


It was quite interesting for the professors in this study to hear what new assistant principals found useful in their training. Most of the positive feedback “what really works in schools.” The professors in this educational leadership program routinely invite guest speakers into class, those who are acknowledged by their peers as especially successful in their administrative specialty. Guest speakers included assistant principals, principals, directors of human resources, public information officers, school business officials, board members, and superintendents that made strong impressions on the future administrators in the program. This feature of the program was commended by all five assistant principals and former students as adding value to their learning experiences (R1, R2, R3, R4, R5). One respondent noted: “What’s most memorable were the guest speakers” (R1). Another concurred: “Practical application was the most valuable” (R2). Another graduate noted: “The best thing for me in the principal preparation program was focusing on the theme of what successful schools do. The rigor of coursework blending with reported real world experiences of practicing, successful school leaders was the most beneficial to me, and also this is what I hear from other students” (R4). Learning first-hand the perspectives of principals, superintendents, and school board presidents has opened my eyes to the realities of being in the mix of school operations” (R3).

Program graduates spoke most emphatically of the impact of principals of high performing, minority-serving schools on their thinking about school leadership. One respondent (R1) attributes his hiring as a direct result of knowledge gained from the series of interviews, focus groups and manuscript writing. This particular graduate had identified the most consistently highest performing, high poverty school in the region, and subsequently took initiative to conduct a site visit and principal interview well beyond the course assignment. He joined with two other professors who also were also investigating the phenomenon to create a case study analysis that currently is in submission for publication (Kearney & Herrington, 2010; Kearney, Herrington & Aguilar, In Press.)

Follow-up assignments to the 90/90/90 seminar and focus groups of 6 principal exemplars led to on-site interviews, additional focus groups with teachers, parents, students and staff, audio and video materials for use in other classes, and student manuscripts submitted for publication. These campus-connected assignments also were cited as highly instrumental in candidates for


assistant principal positions, knowing what to say in a variety of contexts, from job interviews to conducting themselves as school administrators. This confluence of research and practice was summarized well when one former graduate student stated that he wants to model his own principal career after the career of one of the principals.

While it is useful to hear what is working well in a principal preparation program, it is perhaps even more vital to explore what can be done better. According to the recent program graduates interviewed for this study, there are two refinements they would very much like to see. The first is more real-world experiences, and the second is district-specific training. As one respondent eloquently put it, “Books are books. They give you very little knowledge, but then on the job it becomes real” (R1). This same sentiment was echoed by another respondent who said, “Make students volunteer to do something (for their principal) at least once a week” (R2). Clearly, it will be vital for this principal preparation program to continue seeking out more opportunities for real world experiences.

Respondents in this study were well served by making their administrative intentions known to their principals or other district administrators. Volunteering for extra duties or projects the principal deemed important, serving on committees, and stepping up to do a variety things that teachers often avoid was viewed as being a way to catch the attention of key administrators, including the principal (R2, R3, R4, R5). “I took on any responsibility my principal sent out…I volunteered for committees. I volunteered to every email request…I responded first to every email from the principal” (R5). “I did everything I could to learn from my principal and she was glad to have the extra help” (R3). “I volunteered to serve on the Campus Leadership Team, our campus site-based committee. I served on any district level team I could” (R4). The critical difference for these individuals who successfully sought and interviewed for assistant positions was that they made their intentions known and they made themselves available, achieving the kind of visible exposure needed to demonstrate excellence of thought and excellence of action.

There is a demonstrable disconnect nationally between principal preparation programs and the types of skills principals will be called upon to utilize on the job (Sherman, 2006). This debate about the connection between


theory and practice not only has implications for universities (Goldring & Sims, 2005), but perhaps even more importantly, for the program graduates themselves. Other respondents of this study noted, “[We need] more exposure to what we’re going to really do [in order to] deal with policies and protocols from the district” (A1, A4, A5). Another respondent said, “I need more training in budgeting, fund raisers, what funds can be spent on what codes.” On this point, all respondents seemed to agree. “It’s not just one specific thing, right now; it’s everything, the software we use, the new training for STAAR (A Texas State Achievement Test)” (A2). Finding ways to connect theory with district-specific skills should assist candidates in job preparedness and employability (Martin, 2010).

When asked what advice they might have for other aspiring administrators hoping to land their first assistant principal job, the respondents shared their thoughts enthusiastically. “Be as aggressive as you can,” said one respondent. “Volunteer for every opportunity possible. Find a way to get involved with campus-wide testing – help out in one way or another” (R1, R3, R4, R5). Another respondent said, “Get your hands dirty. Get your hands on every job you can so you can decide – do I really want this” (R2)?

Examples of the kinds of things respondents had volunteered for while

they were still teachers: collecting federal forms from students, following up with students and parents regarding tardies and absences, handling low level discipline problems, serving on special education committees (ARD and RTI), and volunteering to supervise athletic competitions. One respondent reflected on his time before moving from teacher to administrator, “Whatever needed to be done, I did it” (R4). The respondent/administrators noted that throughout their experience in the principal preparation program, they also were engaged in voluntary leadership activities such as those listed above in addition to leadership projects required by courses. The concept of leadership as service to others is emphasized within school leadership training in general (Sergiovanni, 2009). It was a central focus emphasized within the principal preparation program in which the respondents had matriculated and in which the coauthor/professors taught.

As candidates volunteered in their schools to do more things, they were given progressively more significant duties. One candidate spoke to the importance of volunteering to serve as summer school assistant principal.


Although this experience took time from his summer, and he was not well compensated financially, it was this experience that provided his first opportunity to deal with an irate parent, discipline students, and supervise employees. He noted, “Once I got a taste of leadership, I was ready to do the job” (R1).

Being ready to do the job, however, and being hired to do the job are not necessarily the same thing. Regarding the application process, several respondents spoke about the importance of being confident yet teachable. “I know I came prepared, but I know I have a lot to learn” (R1). They spoke of making the interview feel like a conversation so that the committee would become comfortable with them as candidates. One respondent spoke about the importance of casting a wide net. He stated reflectively, that even individuals who want to work within their own district may have to apply outside of their district in order to be seen as sought after or “hot” commodity. This respondent’s experience mirrors the research of Turner (2005) on the principal of scarcity. Ironically, after adjacent school districts called for reference checks, administrators in this respondents school district mobilized and were ready to have him apply through HR and in short order were able to select him as an internal candidate. They knew they had a quality individual and did not want to lose him, as seemed imminent.

Four of the respondents promoted to assistant principal from the ranks of teaching staff within the same campus or school district in which they had previously taught. For three individuals the job search was relatively easy. Two respondents applied outside of their district and took longer. Those that promoted from within found the process to be relatively fast. One found his position after 3 weeks and one interview. He attributes his success to putting everything together: “It had to do with my level of success in the classroom, along with my volunteering for extra duties, and the fact that I looked at my vision of how the model principal succeeded on his campus [referring to a 90/90/90 principal and guest speaker]” (R4).

One area of improvement where the educational leadership faculty can improve is in the area of landing the first job. How to be selected for the right reasons in the right organization is the greatest challenge. For some individuals the first administrative position came easily. In some cases perhaps, perhaps too easily. For others who may have been equally qualified


to serve, it was far more difficult. The “socioeconomic” or “accident theory of career choice” was observed in this small study. This approach to understanding career development suggests that many people “follow the path of least resistance in their career development by simply falling into whatever work opportunities happen to come their way” (NOICC, 1994, p. 4) Being in the right place at the right time can play a significant role in the upward progression of a teacher to assistant principal. Having political connections, family connections, or close relationship with key decision-makers can play a role. Some individuals who self-select as candidates within a principal preparation program, less well-connected to local social and political networks, work hard to earn the certificate, serve diligently as teachers and volunteers within the campus or school district, yet never get the call to become an assistant principal. Others find positions in a matter of months or as in the case below, in a day.

The easiest transition within the group of five interviewees took place in a Catholic school. The assistant principal, after only 1 ½ years as a teacher related his sudden and unexpected promotion:

“It was offered to me…I promoted from within…I thought I was being called in to be fired! I received an email ‘meet me in office after the last bell rings’ [The last day of the school year] … but was provided no information as to what the meeting would entail. As I was sitting outside the door of the principal’s office, I was unnerved when I saw a teacher crying as she exited the principal’s office. She looked at me and said “Oh, no! You, too?’ I thought they were letting teachers go and that I was next. The superintendent and principal greeted me, smiling. I thought to myself, ‘You guys are pretty cold.’ The principal began to speak, “I don’t know if you have heard, we want to offer the assistant job to you. They spoke to me for about 5 minutes… they talked me into it…I had to speak to my wife. A week later I accepted the position.” (R5)

While the promotion was consistent with the candidate’s long range goals, had the professors prepared the candidate for such an occurrence, we might have pointed out potential areas of concern, most notably the uncomfortable communication and the awkwardness of the experience. Little reflection or


discussion between professors or candidate on the readiness of the individual to serve or the fit for the position, giving ethical and practical considerations.

By contrast, another candidate for assistant principal applied for approximately 30 positions over a period of four months. His charter school campus where he had been compliance officer for special education had closed and he was forced to find a new job. He put out resumes, secured official transcripts that had to be sent from degree-granting institutions, completed applications (many that required the same information with different formats), and made “cold calls” to individuals that might be part of the hiring process, most often without success. He was diligent and knew what he wanted to do. Finally he landed the second position for which he had interviewed. When asked how he got the job he attributed it to the fact that the campus had a formal presentation as a requirement of the interview.

“That was my hotspot. It was something I was prepared to do, applying my marketing experience and skills. I had to sell myself in 30 minutes. I had several different certificates in elementary and secondary education, a principal’s certificate, special education certification, an MBA degree, and excellent references. I spent the entire time highlighting my strengths, showing how my strengths will play alongside school district needs. At the end of the interview, I knew that I had the job.” (R3)

In this case the candidate, an outsider to most school districts in the area, stayed focused on the goal. With a lot of questioning, a lot of frustration, he continued to pursue every opportunity over-coming any barriers to entry into the profession of school administration. The stakes were high since his position at a charter school had been eliminated. Yet the sales strategy could backfire if the candidate over-sold himself to school staff, and then later failed to deliver.

Job-seeking skills are seldom taught in graduate school. It is critical for aspiring administrators to know that there are ways to maximize their chances within the school setting where they will work without some guidance or inside knowledge of the school. Selecting the right place to work where there is a genuine appreciation of the skills and personal traits is another area of concern. There must be a fit for the individual to succeed.


Assistant principal progression is a relatively new area of study. It merits further investigation.

Implications for Principal Preparation Programs

The interviews of graduate/assistant principals revealed a need to continue providing opportunities with administrator exemplars. Learning to have conversations school administrators is an important skill. Finding ways to integrate the findings of this study into practice is an area that is being given some thought. The student body within this University’s principal preparation program is made up almost entirely of classroom teachers. This means that courses are taught in the evenings and on weekends with some online components. Observations or demonstrations within actual K-12 classrooms and campuses are therefore difficult.

As a result of the feedback from program graduates, a survey was recently distributed to students enrolled in their first Supervision course. In this survey, students were presented with the option of utilizing one half day of developmental leave from their sick leave bank during the second semester of the Supervision course in order to meet on a campus during the day to conduct classroom walkthroughs as a classroom group. All 25 students who were surveyed agreed to this design. Additional follow-up to this initiative will be reported in a future submission on this topic.

The findings also have implications at the program level where pilot school-university partnership is being piloted. The proposal for such a partnership has been approved by the University and school district approvals are in process. This pilot joint principal preparation program may be funded as early as the fall of 2012. The research findings presented within this study support the need to increase the level of in-district real-life learning opportunities for students that are directed by school leaders as well as professors through an existing Leadership Academy for five school districts.

University professors will join forces with school district leadership training efforts offering university credit to all participants in the Leadership Academy. Candidates for the join Leadership Academy and the University principal preparation program will be selected by their respective school


district and campus administrators. The plan is for the students to remain in the program continuously. Experts in various fields available for classroom conversations and authentic school projects must be continued. Addressing real campus and district problems, writing formal reports and making presentations make for authentic problem solving. . In addition to visible exposure within their districts, the candidates will receive mentoring from school district, preparing them for leadership roles, building personal relationships, and will receive university credit leading to the master’s degree and state principal certification.

This pilot University-school partnership, if funded, would be characterized by: 1) the district would help determine the selection criteria for applicants, 2) a pool of candidates that the district has identified as potential future school administrators 3) selections would be based on their record of success within their own district, 4) co-teaching of courses would carried out by university professors and school district administrators, 5) a true blending of research, theory, and practice would be achieved in a way that fully integrates future administrators. An opportunity to experience organizational political learning would enable mistakes to be made without consequences often made by rookie school assistant principals. Ultimately, a better prepared assistant principal candidate would create greater job placement rates within schools where the candidate is known for excellence of work and thought. Success on the job would lead to greater school success and the outlook for the novice assistant principal would be greatly enhanced. This pipe-line selection model for viable administrative candidates would be a highly useful tool, relying on school districts to communicate the expectations they have for future colleagues and successors (Johnston, Walker, & Levine, 2010).

In summary, the proposed University-school piloted model will be a co-teach model in which a university professor will collaborate with school district experts so that leadership theory and administrative practice can be integrated. The value to the candidate, the University, and the school district is that this model will prepare an assistant principal who can step into a leadership role ready to do the job from day one. It is hoped that through this model, assistant principals will be truly ready to assume key positions and would be more quickly promotable as fully functioning administrators, lacking in nothing.


Reflection and Discussion of Future Research on Assistant Principals

This preliminary study provided the co-authors/professors an opportunity to discuss the principal preparation program with five charter program graduates serving in leadership roles. We found validation in the teacher-scholar model of the professorate in which the lines between research and practice erased. Practice cannot improve without research. Research is irrelevant if it does not either examine or inform practice.

Together professors and former students reflected on things that will continue -- in-class exposure to research, listening to exemplary administrators from the field, and completing authentic projects in schools. We learned that there are things we can do to eliminate the barriers that future assistant principals face on the job search as well as post-hiring adjustment. We must ensure that candidate selection and training within the principal preparation program are strongly connected to the missions of the schools where they will serve as well as that of the University. The dialogue between the professorate and the administrators at this University and partnering school districts will continue to develop as the proposed University-school collaboration for principal preparation grow and develop.


REFERENCES

Dunn, A. (2010). Perceptions of School Leadership Preparation. Ann Arbor, MI: ProQuest LLC.

Flanary, D. (2009). Building Leadership Capacity. Principal Leadership, 10(4), 60-62

Goldring, E., & Sims, P. (2005). Modeling creative and courageous school leadership through district-community-university partnerships. Educational Policy, 19(1), 223-249.

Good, R. (2008). Sharing the Secrets. Principal Leadership: Middle Level Edition, 8(8), 46-50.

Herrington, D.E. Kelsey, C.E., Barker, W.S. & Kearney, W.S. (2010). The role of trust in establishing a principal preparation program within a newly created urban university. The John Ben Sheppard Journal of Practical Leadership (5) 1.

Kearney, W. Sean & Herrington, David E. (2010-2011). High performing principals in historically low-performing, minority serving schools: A glimpse into the success of 90/90/90 high performing schools in South-central Texas. The National Forum of Applied Educational Research Journal (24) 1.

Kearney, Herrington & Aguilar (In review). Beating the odds: Exploring the 90/90/90 phenomenon. Equity and Excellence in Education.

Johnston, M., Walker, R. K., & Levine, A. (2010). Fit for the principalship: Identifying, training, and clearing the path for potential school leaders. Principal, 89(5), 10-12.

Martin, M. B. (2010). Bridge the divide. Principal, 89(5), 28-30.Maxwell, J.A. (1996). Qualitative research design: An interactive approach.

Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. National Occupational Informational Coordinating Committee (1996).

Improved Career Decision Making (ICDM) in a Changing World. Garrett Park Press, 1996, p.4-6)

Sergiovanni, T. (2009). The Principalship: A reflective practice perspective (6th edition). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Sherman, W. H. (2006). Transforming the preparation of educational leaders: A case for ethical district-university partnerships. International Journal of Educational Reform, 15(3), 309-330.

Turner, L. J. (2005). Elmo’s story: A ticklish media creation. Public Relations Review, 31(2), 297-299.


About the Authors

David Herrington, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor for Texas A & M University at San Antonio and teaches masters and courses in the Educational Leadership program. He received her Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from Texas A & M University. Dr. Herrington has served public education students as an Educational Administrator and Teacher.

W. Sean Kearney, Ed.D. Is an Assistant Professor for Texas A & M University at San Antonio and teaches masters level courses in the Educational Leadership program. He received his Ed.D. In Educational Leadership from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Dr. Kearney has served public education students as an Educational Administrator and Teacher.

Permission is granted to reprint this article for distribution as long as it is used for academic purposes. Credit must be given to NATIONAL FORUM JOURNALS, 17603 Bending Post Drive, Houston, Texas 77095 – Dr. William Allan Kritsonis, editor-in-chief.

assistant principal career transistion (part 1)

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