Administrators: How are you supporting yourself and your school?

 Three years into the pandemic, the teacher shortage shows no signs of abating.  But now, another educator shortage looms.  A February 16, 2023 Edweek article asks, Is This The Beginning of the Principal Exodus?  Unsurprisingly, it points to pandemic stressors and increased responsibilities as reasons for administrator burnout, but I think there were already other factors that were exacerbated in response to recent years’ events.

Just like teachers, administrators are human beings who are vulnerable to stress.  National Association of Elementary School Principals ED David Griffith states,  “I think the other part of that is that leaders are also burned out … They have been on the go for three years. That’s also been an under-appreciated part of the pandemic.  The increased job demands, staff shortages, and politicization of education have also all contributed to a decline in job satisfaction and job retention.  Griffith went on to say that, “district officials and policymakers have to figure out how to make the job more attractive to would-be principals, including by offering incentives, providing additional in-school supports, and rethinking the role schools and school leaders play in communities.”

It’s mystifying to me (though it shouldn’t be, after decades of watching school systems exacerbate problems by implementing ineffective policies) that with both the teacher shortage and a looming potential shortage of administrators, schools are still focused on hiring new staff instead of retaining the experienced, dedicated talent they already have.

As a new Assistant Principal, I experienced all of the stressors the article describes.  Though at the time, I wasn’t familiar with the term “moral injury”, I was definitely suffering from it.  I chose to go into administration after decades of teaching because I wanted to be able to coach and mentor newer teachers and have a positive influence on school culture and climate.   I felt that my Instructional Coaching background and relationships skills would help me create a positive school climate that would allow teachers, and in turn students, to flourish.

The reality was drastically different:  I hardly ever got time to work with teachers because as an AP I was dealing with the off-the-charts discipline issues of the year back to in person learning.  This was exacerbated by having several new teachers lacking classroom management experience.  I struggled to implement a restorative justice program, I realized, because I didn’t take the time to get the buy-in from the teachers and train them adequately.  All of these factors seemed to create a vicious cycle of time spent managing student behavior issues and not coaching teachers, fielding criticism from all sides (my supervisor, the teachers, the students and their parents).  It was without a doubt the most stressful year of my career.

Principals feel trapped.  They aren’t allowed (or at least encouraged) to do the one thing that would stem the hemorrhaging of teachers:  empower them with self-autonomy.  Principals are encouraged to focus on the data, but as every experienced educator intuitively knows, this is only part of the equation.  We are not building widgets, we are educating humans with other humans.  Everyone is traumatized.  The need to prioritize relationships has never been more urgent.  

Annette Anderson,  deputy director of Johns Hopkins Center for Safe and Healthy Schools, says, ““We did not anticipate the mental health needs, the school climate needs, the school safety needs. These are ongoing challenges. As I talk to folks anecdotally in the field, they are feeling frustrated, they are feeling unheard, they are feeling exhausted, and they are trying to figure out, ‘Do I hang in there, do I try to ride this out, or do I start looking for other options in this economy?’” she said. “That concerns me because the schools where this is happening, as always, are our most under-resourced schools. We’ve got to figure this out.”

We can’t solve the problems overnight, so what are the brave souls who are choosing to ride out this painful transition in education?    We can’t control the waves, but we can help them become better surfers.  There is a way to access your intuition to help you improve relationships with teachers, students and parents, to manage your time better and most importantly to remain calm and positive.   

When I tell people about Positive Intelligence and my efforts to bring it to schools, they immediately start talking about the youth mental health crisis and how beneficial this would be for students.  I agree 100%, but I believe we must focus on school leadership first.  School culture, for better or worse, begins at the top.  By teaching school leaders how to be more productive, focused, calm and empathetic, we are creating a more supportive, sustainable environment for our teachers and students.  Besides, how can teachers and administrators support students with using PQ if they don’t have a PQ practice themselves?  

School leaders, what are you doing to take care of yourselves?  How are you supporting teacher retention?  Is it a priority for you?  Please share your thoughts!