Coaching Practices To Stem The Looming Principal Exodus: ONLINE EXCLUSIVE

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Coaching practices to stem the looming principal exodus: ONLINE EXCLUSIVE

By Lindsay Prendergast, Piper Nichols and Angela Morton

Categories: Coaching, Leadership, School leadership

April 2022

Seated across from Darrell, a seasoned middle school principal with accolades on the walls and a respected reputation in his community, we were astonished to recognize the feelings reflected in his eyes above the mask that veiled his face: helplessness, inadequacy, even fear. It was clear that two years of pandemic leadership had all but erased his confidence. One can imagine why a career change suddenly seemed to him like the best — or only — option. Darrell is not alone. (All names in this article are pseudonyms to protect principals’ confidentiality.) Even relatively early in the COVID-19 crisis in August 2020, a poll by the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP) found that “forty-five percent of principals report that pandemic working conditions are

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References

Aguilar, A. (2013). The art of coaching: Effective strategies for school transformation. Jossey-Bass.

Bryk, A. & Schneider, B. (2004). Trust in schools: A core resource of improvement. Russell-Sage Foundation.

Grissom, J.A., Egalite, A.J., & Lindsay, C.A. (2021). How principals affect students and schools. The Wallace Foundation.

Levin, S. & Bradley, K. (2019). Understanding and addressing principal turnover: A review of the research. Learning Policy Institute.

National Association of Secondary School Principals. (2021, December). NASSP survey signals a looming mass exodus of principals from schools. www.nassp.org/news/nassp-survey-signals-a-looming-mass-exodus-of-principals-from-schools/

National Association of Secondary School Principals. (2020, August). “Overwhelmed” and “unsupported,” 45 percent of principals say pandemic conditions are accelerating their plans to leave the principalship. www.nassp.org/news/overwhelmed-and-unsupported-45-percent-of-principals-say-pandemic-conditions-are-accelerating-their-plans-to-leave-the-principalship/

Nordengren, C. (2022). Step into student goal setting. Corwin.

Lindsay Prendergast

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Lindsay Prendergast has served schools and districts across the globe for nearly two decades as a leadership coach, consultant, principal, counselor, and teacher. She is currently Assistant Director of Learning Experiences for The Danielson Group (Framework for Teaching). Lindsay enjoys advocating for educators by writing and speaking around the world for organizations such as ASCD, Learning Forward, Edutopia, AMLE, and others around instructional leadership grounded in student-centered schools where teachers thrive.