At the end of this year, over 100 principals will retire from Chicago Public Schools. According to the Chicago Sun Times, the exodus of principals from CPS in the last year--the result of retiring baby boomers combined with the expiration of "a pension sweetener"--will mean that "about half of the system's roughly 600 principals soon will be relatively new to their jobs, with no more than three years experience."

The wave of principal retirements is not limited to Chicago. According to the
National Association of Elementary School Principals, "More and more principals have been nearing retirement eligibility for at least the past 12 years; fewer and fewer individuals are attracted to filling these demanding positions."

Why the shortage? According to e-Lead, an online resource center for principals, to some extent the candidates are there...they just don't want the job:

One of the primary factors that appears to be contributing to the dearth of applicants is the relatively low salaries vis-a-vis the increased number of work hours...[C]andidates are frequently unwilling to accept the increase in responsibility for such a nominal sum of money. Others do not relish the principal's role as a "jack of all trades, master of none." Many perceive the role of principal to be unrewarding in that it may leave little time for interaction with students and participation in the act of learning, as the principal can become overwhelmed with disciplinary and managerial issues. It is important to note, however, that some people feel that the apparent shortage of candidates is misleading in that it implies that there are not qualified candidates out there. In reality, say some, there are plenty of qualified candidates, but few who are motivated to apply or few who are "ready" to succeed in the job.

So, how about you? Would you ever consider making the jump from teacher to principal?

Labels: conversations