Beginning the Principalship

John C. Daresh is professor of educational leadership at the University of Texas at El Paso. Over the years, he has held faculty or administrative appointments at the University of Cincinnati, The Ohio State University, the University of Northern Colorado, and Illinois State University. He has also worked as a consultant on high school reform and administrator professional development for universities, state departments of education, national and state professional associations, and individual schools and districts across the United States, and also in Barbados, Canada, France, Holland, Israel, Turkey, South Africa, and Taiwan. By far, the bulk of Daresh’s international service has been in the United Kingdom where he served an advisor and trainer for the School Management Task Force that developed and promoted support programs for beginning headteachers, the National College for School Leadership, the Welsh Office of Education, the North West Network for Diploma Development in Cheshire, Manchester Metropolitan University, the University of Lincoln, the University of Hull, CREATE Consultancies, and literally dozens of Local Education Authorities and individual schools across England and Wales.Daresh recently completed three years of service as the lead consultant on principal mentoring programs for the Chicago Public Schools as that megadistrict was faced with the challenge of bringing in mostly inexperienced principals to serve in nearly of the school system’s elementary and high schools. Linda Alexander is a teacher and department chair for social studies at the Mission Valley Early College High School for the Socorro Independent Schools. Prior to that, she spent her teaching career as a teacher and testing coordinator at Coronado High School in El Paso. Her academic career included a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from The Ohio State University and Masters degree in Educational Leadership from the University of Texas at El Paso.

• IntroductionPlan for the BookA Word of CautionSuggested ReadingsA Framework for Understanding the Beginning PrincipalCase Study: I’m Not a PoliticianCase Study: To Go or Not to GoCase Study: Figuring Out the PapersBalance is the KeySuggestions for Improvement and Professional DevelopmentSuggested Readings and ReferencesPART I: Self AwarenessAffirming Your Ethical StanceReturning to Elijah’s DilemmaKnowing the Difference between Right and WrongFoundations of Ethical Judgments and BehaviorsReferencesReviewing Personal ValuesCase: Because It’s Important to MeCase: But What About the Children?What Do You Do with the Platform?Your Personal PlatformBeing a “Boss"Others’ PerceptionsSo What Do You Do?Strategies to Reduce IsolationEasing into the Principalship as an AssistantYour Personal PlanSuggested ReadingsA Personal Leadership ChecklistCritical Leadership SkillsYour Personal PlanReferencesPART II: SocializationSeeing Your Invisible HeroesOffice WorkersCustodial StaffFood Service WorkersBuilding a Personal PlanSuggested Readings and ReferencesWe’re All on the Same Side: Home-School-Community RelationsTraditional Functions of Home-School RelationsFostering Effective Two-Way Communication as Relational TrustUtilizing Community ResourcesYour Personal PlanReferencesLearning Your School’s CultureDon’t Just Look…SeeListen… Don’t Just HearCelebrate the PastDevelop an Action PlanOthers’ ExpectationsCritical Skills for Beginning Principals: A SurveySo What Does this Mean?Your Personal PlanPART III: Technical and Managerial SkillsUnderstanding the Environment of AccountabilityNo Child Left BehindWhat Happened with NCLB and Where do we go from Here?