As a teacher, Sham Bevel thought her principal was barely visible in her school: holed up in their office, answering emails, or in meetings with other teachers.
Bevel鈥檚 opinion quickly shifted when she became a principal.
鈥淚t was my misconception that principals want to sit in their offices all day. We don鈥檛. But some days, there are so many fires to put out,鈥 said Bevel, who took charge as principal of the Bayside Middle School in Virginia Beach, Va., in 2021. Bevel said she now works extra hard to be 鈥渟een.鈥
There is no clear job description of a principal鈥檚 role because the responsibilities are varied and ever-changing鈥攆rom curricular recovery to organizing a safe bus pick-up after school. The tasks pile up fast and make competing demands on a principal鈥檚 time. And they stretch well beyond the school day.
鈥淚鈥檓 usually answering emails right from the time I get up. This is before I even get to the [school] building. And then your whole agenda will go out the window because you have to deal with some unexpected development,鈥 Bevel said.
The seen and the unseen
The problem is, Bevel adds, that no one sees the work that principals put in behind the scenes, which often contributes to a damning misconception: that principals aren鈥檛 really tuned into what鈥檚 going on in their schools. Bevel disputes this notion.
鈥淲e are sent about 20 memos every week [by the district] of tasks that need to be done. I鈥檓 working on a memo that鈥檚 asking me to project how many student enrollments I鈥檒l have next year. Based on these estimates, I have to hire more teachers, set up interviews, make phone calls. All that happens while teachers are in their classrooms鈥攁nd all of it needs to happen now,鈥 said Bevel.
This means Bevel might delegate someone from her leadership team鈥攁 vice principal or assistant vice principal鈥攖o supervise the bus pick-ups. 鈥淚n this environment of heightened security risks, it鈥檚 important that we are visible to parents. People are handing their children to us. They need to see our faces,鈥 said Bevel.
Bevel isn鈥檛 the only principal anxious to bust the myths around their invisibility and disconnect. EdWeek asked school principals to share misconceptions about the gig on its social media pages. Here鈥檚 what they shared:
鈥淭hat we鈥檙e only in our office all day.鈥
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鈥淲e just come in and observe and manage. That we also don鈥檛 have to internalize, prepare etc. like teachers, on top of other obligations.鈥
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鈥淲e get a lot of free time and time off to plan, call parents, grade, and eat.鈥
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Busting the myth, one role at a time
Ben Feeney, the principal at Lampeter-Strasburg High School in Lancaster, Pa., said he鈥檚 found a quick hack to bust through the myth that principals are invisible or unavailable.
鈥淚f I鈥檓 not making calls, I鈥檓 usually posted up in hallways or at the media center with my mobile desk. It has a cup and pen holder, and it has wheels,鈥 said Feeney.
Feeney did this to be more visible. But it鈥檚 also his attempt to undo another misconception. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 just emerge from our offices to bring down the hammer and deal with disciplinary issues. Principals want to proactively build a positive school culture,鈥 he said.
Don鈥檛 just delegate
It is incumbent on principals, said Feeney, to clearly communicate their role and its competing responsibilities to their teachers. This helps dispel another misconception about how principals delegate work to their teams.
The concern was echoed by principals on EdWeek鈥檚 social media page:
鈥淧rincipals do not know what it is like to be in the classroom. And that principals are control freaks. Lastly, that principals only care about the 鈥榖ottom line.鈥 鈥
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鈥淭hat it鈥檚 easy, that everything is delegated.鈥
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鈥淲e can control or even influence everything.鈥
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Feeney said he does delegate tasks, but there鈥檚 a good reason behind it. He鈥檚 trying to build up a second line of leadership in his school, to the assistant principal and other leaders.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a misconception that delegating is pushing work off to teachers. But you do have to make the why clear. And you must select people carefully for the responsibility. Play to people鈥檚 strengths,鈥 said Feeney.
In the last few months, Feeney has assembled a team of five teachers and an assistant principal to come up with a way to meet the school鈥檚 social-emotional learning needs. The team decided how to roll out the program in classrooms and built out all the content and activities associated with it. Feeney said he consciously stayed out of the committee.
It鈥檚 important to be clear about the motives of a new change, said Feeney. 鈥淧eople are going to ask: is this a directive by the district? Is it the feds? Was it the superintendent? The people in your team need to feel connected to the goal,鈥 said Feeney, so teachers don鈥檛 feel pressured to do compliance-oriented tasks on top of their busy schedules.
Principals still have to manage these projects and be ultimately responsible for their rollout. But Feeney says delegation has another added benefit.
鈥淚f people can glimpse transparently into the principal鈥檚 role, more teachers and students might want to train to become principals,鈥 he said. 鈥淲e could build a robust pipeline right here in school.鈥
