5 Myths About Your Principal Totally Busted

In honor of National Principals Month (October 2015), here are a few things you thought you knew -- but didn’t! -- about your school principal.

Myth #1: A principal’s primary job is to deliver the morning announcements and make sure the buses run on time.

Via savedbythebellreviewed.com

And regularly get duped by Zach Morris and the gang.

Fact: Great principals are kick-ass former teachers.

John Oliver (http://www.bemorephotography.org) / Via bemorephotography.org

Dr. Sherelle Lowe served as a Master Educator (read: superstar teacher) before becoming principal of Lyndhurst Elementary in Baltimore, MD. Because they know great teaching (and how to support it in every classroom across an entire school), top-notch principals can improve student achievement by as much as 20 percentage points.

Myth #2: Principals have summers off and the rest of the year their work day ends early, typically around 3:00 PM.

Via blog.collegehumor.com

Oh, Principal Skinner. Sigh.

Fact: A great principal usually works 10 hours per day (or more), all year round, overseeing every aspect of a school.

Leroy Gaines

Please. We’ve heard this about teachers, too, and it’s time to debunk this myth once and for all. Leroy Gaines, principal of Acorn Woodland Elementary in Oakland, CA, runs after-school parent leadership workshops that benefit students and the wider community (and make for loooooooong days). Because schools are such an important part of the fabric of our communities, supporting students and their families doesn’t just happen within the school walls or between bells: being a principal is truly a 24-7 job.

Myth #3: Principals don’t remember what it’s like to be a student.

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That’s why Principal Strickland was always nagging Marty McFly.

Fact: Great principals are deeply committed to students and are always learning themselves, often by pursuing advanced training.

Project LIFT / Via projectliftcharlotte.org

Alison Welcher, director of school leadership in Charlotte, NC, talks to a student about getting her master’s degree from Harvard. (No big deal.) Whether brushing up on the latest developments in classroom pedagogy, neuroscience, data analytics, or technology, chances are any principal you meet is currently (or was very recently) a student.

Myth #4: Principals are disconnected from the realities of teaching today. They don’t remember what it’s like to be "in the game."

Via writeups.org

Nor, apparently, do they know that hanging children upside down by their legs is not an effective classroom management strategy. (C'mon, Headmistress Trunchbull.)

Fact: A great principal is like a great coach: she is in classrooms and working with teachers as much as possible, developing and inspiring them to perform their best.

Via ussoccer.com

The results of strong coaching can be truly inspiring – in schools and on the pitch. Seriously, who’s more excited? The U.S. Women’s National Team, including players and Head Coach Jill Ellis, celebrating winning the 2015 World Cup...

Via newleaders.org

...or students, teachers, and Principal David O’Hara of Expeditionary Learning School for Community Leaders in Brooklyn, NY, celebrating 100% of graduates getting accepted into college?

Myth #5: Students only talk to their principals when sent to the dreaded principal’s office.

Via ia.media-imdb.com

Or when being chased down at home for faking sick and taking a day off.

Fact: Great principals would much rather send their students to the Oval Office than the principal’s office.

Humans of New York / Via Facebook: humansofnewyork

Nadia Lopez, principal of Mott Haven Bridges Academy in Brooklyn, NY, and her student, Vidal Chastanet, meet with President Obama. (Need we say more?)

October is National Principals Month, so be sure to #ThankAPrincipal for all they do to support students, teachers, families, and communities!