Monday, March 08, 1999
Schools may face principal shortage
Retirements, reluctance high
BY MIRIAM SMITH
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Educators are used to students dreading the principal's office. Now they fear teachers may soon be the ones shying away.
Local, state and national educators are concerned that increased stress, baby-boomer retirements and salary issues may mean fewer candidates who seek principal positions.
“We're concerned the pool of candidates moving into administration is not meeting the demand,” said Robert Mahaffey, director of communications with the National Association of Secondary School Principals in Reston, Va.
Many principals will retire in the next three to seven years, which may lead to a shortage in that time, said Steven Raines, executive director of the Ohio Association of Secondary School Administrators. “It's going to get more critical,” he said.
Mr. Mahaffey cited a number of issues.
“There's a growing number of individuals certified to become administrators but (who) elect to stay in the classrooms,” Mr. Mahaffey said.
“They want to stay in the classroom and work with young people directly. The role of administrators is changing so significantly that they are becoming more facilitators within the community.”
Principals traditionally are promoted from the teaching ranks or jump from district to district.
However, more are staying in the classroom, where they work fewer months and — for some veteran teachers — earn equal or even better pay than
they would as entry-level principals.
That translates into fewer high-quality applicants applying for principals' jobs.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of positions for K-12 and college administrators will increase almost 12 percent from 1996 to 2006.
“There's going to be a substantial number of job openings in this occupation,” said Jon Sergent, an economist with the bureau's Office of Employment Projections.
A national study in 1998 found about half of the school districts surveyed reported a principal shortage in the labor pool. The study concluded school systems will find fewer qualified applicants when they need to hire principals.
Data came from a random sample telephone poll of 403 rural, suburban and urban districts across the country. It was commissioned by the National Association of Elementary School Principals and the National Association of Secondary School Principals.
Kentucky hasn't experienced a problem with vacancies yet, said Lisa Gross, spokeswoman for the Kentucky Department of Education.
But “there's going to be a span of time here where we're going to have trouble finding principals to fill the ranks. ... What's happening is it's a function of the baby-boomer age, they're the ones retiring.”
In Butler County, two principals will retire from Fairfield schools this year, Assistant Superintendent Catherine Milligan said, but the district has enough teachers and administrators interested in filling those posts.
Still, officials worry that will not always be the case.
“Many times our highest-paid teachers are earning more per diem than some of our administrators are earning,” Mrs. Milligan said. “So the question becomes, "Do I really want to work more days and take on more responsibility for less money per day?'”
Sam Ison, principal of Lebanon High School, said he enjoys his job and being a part of students' lives.
“The demands are there. You just continue on and do your job,” he said.
In his typical day, he answers calls from parents, juggles staff meetings, addresses curriculum issues and attends athletic events.
He also visits classrooms, copes with disciplinary issues and handles myriad administrative tasks in a 10- to 12-hour day.
At Lebanon schools, none of the teachers has administrative licenses, which would enable them to be promoted to principal, district spokeswoman Carole Dorn said.
“Out of 300 teachers, I think that's an incredible number,” Ms. Dorn said.
Rural districts such as Wayne schools in northern Warren County also may have trouble attracting qual ified candidates. Superintendent Charles Williams said the pool is shrinking.
“I think it's affecting us in terms of having variety and quality of candidates. The selection pool is not what it used to be,” Mr. Williams said.
Cincinnati Public Schools had about 20 principal vacancies two years ago and about nine last year — many because of retirements, Deputy Superintendent Rosa Blackwell said.
“In the next few years, we expect that we will have an increase in the number of retirements,” she said.
District educators have learned how to cope because they have been able to fill vacancies quickly — including two recent appointments from the teaching ranks, Ms. Blackwell said.
Her advice for districts that will be encountering what the district already has grappled with?
“Don't wait until the last minute to start recruiting,” Ms. Blackwell said. “Spend quality time conducting the research and don't settle for anything less than what is necessary to provide our children and staff quality leadership.”
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