It took Stacy Monette under three seconds to list the priorities she wanted her Massachusetts legislators to tackle.
鈥淢ental health. Teacher pipeline. More funding,鈥� Monette said, framed against the looming Capitol building in Washington. Monette, the principal of Charlton Middle School in Charlton, Mass., was in town with 400 other K-12 principals to lobby their states鈥� representatives for increased funding and support to the nation鈥檚 schools.
As she walked towards Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren鈥檚 office, Monette added one more priority to her list. 鈥淧rincipals need support, too. At least three of my principal friends have burnt out and quit [the profession] in the last few years. The pressure on us is intense. This trickles down to teachers and students.鈥�
Principals across the nation have turned into advocates to protect the interests of their schools. Principals must defend against uncertain funding, protect their staff from political attacks, and find sufficient resources to deal with poor mental health in their schools.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think people realize that schools are now the number one providers of mental health support to kids,鈥� said Gordon Klasna, a former principal and executive director of secondary education at the Billings Public School District in Billings, Mont.
Klasna and Monette might have reason to celebrate this week. Lawmakers a modest $20 million increase in Title I funds for the financial year 2024 in the newly passed federal spending bill and avoided proposed cuts to Title II, which funds teacher and principal professional development, and other programs. The $20 million, said Klasna, will allow schools to support students who need the most support to make up learning gaps, like more interventionists or tutoring.
In a statement, the president of the National Association of Secondary School Principals, Ronn Nozoe, hailed this funding announcement as a 鈥渧ictory鈥� for principal advocates, who will now have more funds to carry on their rebuilding efforts after the pandemic.
The principals also had a chance to advocate for several pieces of federal legislation they think would make a difference鈥攁lthough with passing none of them are likely to advance anytime soon.
Klasna was happy that Congress 鈥渄idn鈥檛 take away any funding,鈥� but also struck a cautionary note. 鈥淭his [money] isn鈥檛 enough to bridge the gaps we鈥檙e facing.鈥�
People over programs for mental health support
Seated in Sen. Warren鈥檚 office, Monette advocated for more funding for mental health support, telling a story about her own school.
鈥淎t the beginning of this year, I advertised for a Spanish teacher position six different times. I couldn鈥檛 get any good applications,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 also had to choose between keeping a Spanish teacher and a school counselor. That鈥檚 telling.鈥�
School leaders said they often must rely on a single psychologist for a whole district, while simultaneously letting go of paraprofessionals who help school psychologists.
鈥淲e are going to lose an interventionist and aide for our guidance counselor. Counselors have a crazy amount of work. Aides look after the administrative tasks. Teachers already have a full plate, and now we鈥檙e going to lose our interventionist. It鈥檚 not about buying another program, but finding the right people,鈥� said Tracy Hilliard, the principal of Urbana Elementary School in Frederick, Md.
Principals said that when they do find psychologists, they often lose them quickly to better-paying opportunities. Hilliard added that the pool of psychologists that schools have to choose from aren鈥檛 often familiar with specific issues that students face in school.
There鈥檚 a lack of continuity, Hilliard added, when psychologists are shared between schools.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 get the opportunity to build the kind of relationships [with them] that we normally have with guidance counselors. This person is just giving a report. They don鈥檛 actually know what鈥檚 going on with the kids,鈥� Hilliard said.
Dan Jenkins, the principal of the high school in Clinton, Tenn., said there needs to be time in the schedule to work on students鈥� mental health.
鈥淲e do student assemblies once a month where we award students for good attendance and good behavior. We do a common lunch where kids can catch up [with their studies]. We have 7,000 kids and one counselor. I took all other administrative tasks off our counselor. They just do check-ins with the kids,鈥� Jenkins said. He stressed the need for fewer state-mandated tests till the mental health problem is in check.
Most principals threw their weight behind bills like the Protecting Kids on Social Media Act, introduced in Congress in 2023, which requires social media platforms to verify users鈥� ages and limits access to children under 13 who try to create accounts. The bill has bipartisan support.
This act will help if it鈥檚 enforceable, said Andy Jacks, the principal of The Nokesville School in Prince William County, Va.鈥淜ids can just lie about their age. We need to have a national movement [to curb social media use], like the need for seatbelts. Parents must share the responsibility, too. We need to be clear about things the school can鈥檛 do,鈥� he said.
Principals also lobbied on behalf of their teachers, who are often the first adults to respond to a student鈥檚 mental health crisis in school. They sought support for the proposed Mental Health of Educators and Staff Act, introduced in the Senate in July 2023, which would identify and disseminate best practices for preventing suicide and building resiliency in school staff. Educators are under pressure, principals said, and their own mental health is in jeopardy as they try to respond to students鈥� growing needs.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to put more on my teachers鈥� plates. If teachers need to be trained to deal with mental health challenges in school, something else has got to go. Let鈥檚 be careful about what this dialogue on training teachers [for mental health support] looks like,鈥� said Jenkins.
Educators need respect and respite
Most principals who attended meetings on Capitol Hill came away with the hope that stories from the ground would coax their representatives into action. Chris LaBreck, who was part of the Massachusetts contingent that met Warren鈥檚 aide, talked about how an investment by the Worcester Public School department helped him get a degree in education.
LaBreck, now a principal in the same school system, emphasized that new teachers needed financial support to join the workforce. 鈥淚 struggle to find math and science teachers 鈥� they come out of school $120,000 in debt but are offered $40,000 to start teaching. We also need support for parents who can become educators, but don鈥檛 have the money to do it,鈥� LaBreck said.
He supports the Loan Forgiveness for Educators Act, introduced in the Senate in March 2023, which incentivizes educators to work in early education and schools with a large high-need population. The proposed act would remove the $17,500 ceiling on federal loan forgiveness at the end of five years of qualifying service, and extend it to school leaders.
The focus on mental health and educator pipelines, for principals, all boils down to making schools an easier, more welcoming place for students and teachers.
鈥淭eachers were our heroes during the pandemic. Now they鈥檝e turned into punching bags,鈥� said Klasna.
