Ten Leadership Qualities of an Effective School Principal

Introduction: Leadership in School Administration

An important part of a public school principal's job is to set a tone for others — teachers, administrators, counselors, and staff — not just by producing memos and holding meetings, but also through leadership and on-the-job performance. Leadership at this level of school administration is vital for providing motivation and setting an example. Leadership also entails the basic fundamentals of management; schools are not businesses, but running a school with a consciousness that emulates good business practices means being accountable for everything that goes on.

By shadowing my principal for a few days, I was able to witness and record a number of leadership qualities she exhibits.

Ten Leadership Characteristics Observed

One: I found that this principal conducts daily business in a manner similar to what Drs. Alex Schneider and Neil Burton describe: "Education management should emphasize educational goals rather than managerial ends" (Schneider, et al., 2005, p. 8). In other words, a principal's job is to manage people, but within the context of education and learning it is a different kind of management. She is more flexible than a corporate executive, she says, emphasizing her attention to events that may not turn out precisely as originally intended.

Two: This principal is clearly very well organized. In the morning before school starts, she has a list — on an erasable board in her office — of meetings she is obliged to attend during the day. Under each meeting she lists the materials and reports she should bring. In her computer's "Reminders" section, she tracks events she is supposed to attend, including PTA meetings, parent-teacher conferences she has been asked to sit in on, birthdays of various teachers and staff members, and anniversaries of important events in the history of public education in America.

Three: In the Schneider piece, the authors assert that "management" in a public school is more appropriately the task of assistant principals. "Leaders construct vision and strategies" and "managers implement them" (Schneider, p. 8). In my principal's case, the two assistant principals manage discipline, truancy, attendance, and urgent parental concerns, while the principal visits classrooms on a daily basis, works outside during the lunch period, sets the agenda for teacher meetings, and interacts with the district office and the community.

Four: Is my principal a transformational or transactional leader? I wondered that prior to shadowing her, but I soon discovered she is a transformational leader because she believes in creative change and bringing new ideas into discussion. Transactional leadership "targets management functions," according to Kaye Pepper, writing in the journal Planning and Changing. My principal is opposed to teachers focusing narrowly on test scores — notwithstanding No Child Left Behind — and instead wants teachers to emphasize learning the fundamentals (math, science, history, and reading) and learning how to solve problems.

Five: When it comes to decision-making, my principal wastes very little time, especially when a decision does not require research or consultation with others. Her instincts are sharp, she knows how to get things done, and she expects that what she asks others to do will be completed promptly.

Six: This principal is very responsive to questions and matters of importance brought to her attention, regardless of who raises them. When a boy in the hallway stopped her to report that another boy had been bullying girls during lunch, she immediately instructed a vice principal — via text — to observe that boy during lunch and to address the problem directly.

Seven: The image of the school is important to this principal. She insists that teachers dress appropriately, emphasizing neatness: shirts tucked in, clean and pressed trousers for male teachers, and conventional outfits for female teachers. I overheard a male teacher suggest the principal was too strict on this point, but in fact the staff looked very professional.

Eight: This principal shares decision-making with teachers as part of her emphasis on transformational leadership. This approach "energizes school faculty and staff by building leadership from the bottom up … rather than from the top down" (Pepper, 2010, p. 47).

Nine: I would not say this principal has charisma in the conventional sense, but she does inspire staff through her work ethic, her attention to detail, and her camaraderie with the faculty. She sponsors a staff picnic every spring at a picnic facility by the town lake, and a holiday party in December. She creates a relaxed atmosphere of fun and food, and she goes out of her way to purchase entertaining raffle prizes.

Effectiveness and Importance of These Traits

Ten: The principal has established positive relationships not only with parents but with community leaders in business and government. She is very adept at securing in-kind donations from local businesses — a sporting goods store recently installed basketball backboards and nets on the playground — and she makes sure students write handwritten thank-you letters. She even provides the stamps.

The ten leadership characteristics described in this paper help answer why effective leadership matters and how it can be cultivated. While this principal demonstrates strong managerial skills — and leadership does require certain key managerial abilities — she is above all a leader concerned first and foremost that students are engaged in the learning process and enjoying the experience. She is not a power broker; as noted, she encourages faculty to research proposals and arrive at a consensus about what should be done in the school. Transformational leadership calls for involving all parties in decision-making, and she does that very effectively.

Another characteristic this principal exhibits is a willingness to engage with all cultures represented in her school. Last summer she attended Spanish language classes and is determined to achieve reasonable fluency within two years, so that she can interact directly with the parents of Latino immigrant children in her school. These are important leadership traits, and in just the few days I shadowed her, that enthusiasm had a positive effect on my own view of public school management.