School Principal
Quick Facts
Median Salary$130,178
Most Common EducationMaster's degree
Projected 10-Year Growth+13.27%
Assessment MatchTake the Assessment
What They Do
A School Principal manages all operations within a school, providing leadership and management to teachers and other staff. Ensures that teaching staff have the resources they need to meet the state's curriculum requirements. May be required to attend parent consultations, taking parent suggestions and discussing the educational needs of individual students.
Core Tasks:
- Counsel and provide guidance to students regarding personal, academic, vocational, or behavioral issues.
- Confer with parents and staff to discuss educational activities, policies, and student behavior or learning problems.
- Determine the scope of educational program offerings, and prepare drafts of course schedules and descriptions to estimate staffing and facility requirements.
- Observe teaching methods and examine learning materials to evaluate and standardize curricula and teaching techniques and to determine areas for improvement.
- Enforce discipline and attendance rules.
- Collaborate with teachers to develop and maintain curriculum standards, develop mission statements, and set performance goals and objectives.
- Recruit, hire, train, and evaluate primary and supplemental staff.
- Direct and coordinate activities of teachers, administrators, and support staff at schools, public agencies, and institutions.
- Set educational standards and goals, and help establish policies and procedures to carry them out.
- Plan and lead professional development activities for teachers, administrators, and support staff.
- Evaluate curricula, teaching methods, and programs to determine their effectiveness, efficiency, and use, and to ensure compliance with federal, state, and local regulations.
- Create school improvement plans, using student performance data.
- Prepare and submit budget requests and recommendations, or grant proposals to solicit program funding.
- Determine allocations of funds for staff, supplies, materials, and equipment, and authorize purchases.
- Plan and develop instructional methods and content for educational, vocational, or student activity programs.
- Participate in special education-related activities, such as attending meetings and providing support to special educators throughout the district.
- Recommend personnel actions related to programs and services.
- Prepare, maintain, or oversee the preparation and maintenance of attendance, activity, planning, or personnel reports and records.
- Teach classes or courses to students.
- Review and approve new programs, or recommend modifications to existing programs, submitting program proposals for school board approval as necessary.
- Meet with federal, state, and local agencies to stay abreast of policies and to discuss improvements for education programs.
- Write articles, manuals, and other publications, and assist in the distribution of promotional literature about facilities and programs.
- Coordinate and direct extracurricular activities and programs, such as after-school events and athletic contests.
- Organize and direct committees of specialists, volunteers, and staff to provide technical and advisory assistance for programs.
What to expect as a School Principal
1Earn a Master's degree
56% of people achieve this level of education.
2Gain skills and experience
See School Principal related courses on Tallo
3Land a job
2342 openings for School Principals
Career Progression
in United States (Nation)
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