The Principal’s Office: What’s the principalship really like? Part two of two

Posted Thursday, September 14, 2017 12:10 pm

By Steve Kussin

As I explained in the previous column, I came across some notes I wrote eons ago when I was interviewed by a college class and asked what it was really like to be a principal. I boiled the job down into ten responsibilities. Last time, I detailed the first five: “most important,” “most surprising,” “most necessary,” “most boring” and “most challenging.” In this second installment, I will discuss the final five.

6. What is the most critical element of the job? In that first installment, I talked about the three skills requisite for success as an administrator (conceptual, technical and interpersonal). I also talked how time management is absolutely essential; work expands to fill the hours, so budget it carefully. And I talked about the need to be highly organized. But there is one skill which subsumes all of these three and it has to do with decision-making. I wish I could put the following statement in bold, italics, underlined, red color: Do what is right for the students. And sometimes that can be difficult to do. You’re not trying to win a popularity contest; nor can you please everyone all the time. I guess that’s the best advice I can give to a beginning principal. It was a mistake I made early on in some decisions I made. Be your own person; have convictions and stick to them. Above all, be objective, fair and consistent.

A picture is worth a thousand words. One story comes to mind. When building the master schedule for the following year, the six technology teachers met with me and made a common request: “Could we all have the eighth (last) period of the day as our preparation period to clean our shops? It was certainly a reasonable request — but not a practical one. I needed a certain number of sections on every period, so I couldn’t literally take one period out of circulation and have no classes on that period. I explained this to the six teachers. Remember what I emphasized in the previous column: Learn to say “no” — but “no” with a reason.

However, I could have made a very big mistake at that point. Suppose that one of the guys was my buddy; maybe we played racquetball or cards every week. When the schedule came out the following fall, he just happened to have that last period as his prep period. And then again the following year … and the year after that. A school is a goldfish bowl. As I explained this is a way to lose a faculty. And I’ve seen it happen. A big word in the news these days is “transparency.” It happens in schools, too.

What I did in this case was to make a compromise. Six teachers? Two would have the last period prep next year … two others the year after … and the final two the year after that. Were they totally satisfied with the solution? No, but they were understanding — and it was fair.

7. What was most disturbing? I think school leaders everywhere will subscribe to this statement: “Two percent of the students take up 98 percent of your time.” Maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but the point is clear. Problem students, usually those in terms of discipline, are very high-maintenance. Some principals have the luxury of assistant principals or deans who can help “spread the wealth.” Otherwise, these students can eat up hours in the week. My mantra was a simple one: No student should be allowed to disrupt the instruction and learning of others. I also used what I called a “robotic justice system” I’ve described throughout the years. It was called “crime and punishment:” a discipline code that spelled out every possible infraction, specifying what the consequences would be. No negotiations! No exceptions!

8. What was the most frightening part of your job? It’s awe-inspiring: You are responsible for the health and safety of hundreds, even thousands people. In this day and age, with more reported cases of school violence, as well as threats from the outside, this responsibility has taken on added importance.

9. What was the most challenging part of your job? This question is easy for me to answer. A principal has to walk a fine line — being friendly without being friends with faculty, students and staff. But keep an open door policy. I was surprised how many times I had to play the role of minister, mentor and mediator for teachers. They’re people, too, with personal needs.

10. What was the most rewarding aspect of the principalship? And the answer to this question is what kept me in the job for 21 years. Yes, there were days when I said “Enough!” But far and away, I had a sense of power — the power to influence lives.

Dr. Steven Kussin was a high school principal for 21 years. You can hear his “CBS on Education” reports three times a day weekdays on WCBS Newsradio 880. He is also an adjunct professor at Hofstra University and an educational consultant for school districts around the country. Contact him at sk3015@aol.com.

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