This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Have You Hugged Your Principal Today?

Principals usually juggle several plates while simultaneously putting out small and big fires. If yours doesn't return that phone call between the hours you said you're available, here's why.

I bet you didn’t know that this week is Principal Appreciation Week. About the only people who know are members of the Illinois Principals Association and the legislators who voted for a proclamation to make it official. And for most principals in the trenches, that’s fine with them. They do the job they do because they love the wacky “ordered” chaos that defines the job. Principals would prefer to heap the glory on their teachers, who are working directly with students.

Most of us remember the principals from our own school days if we had the opportunity (usually with an escort) to visit the principal’s office. Otherwise, we may not remember much more than their names—which we consider a good thing.

Being a principal today is much more complicated than it was 20 years ago. Society has changed, and so have the demands and issues. The emphasis is (and should have always been) on how well each student is learning, improving, and achieving. Now we have the world of technology to help us assess and monitor student learning. But every time we add a new wrinkle to how we practice, principals need to find ways to train their teachers and follow up with them. That’s one big plate.

Find out what's happening in Elmhurstwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Principals are responsible for the climate of their school. If children aren’t emotionally ready to learn, they won’t learn effectively. If they’ve been teased, lost a pet, or had to move in with the grandparents because of divorce or loss of job, the emotional effect will influence how the child performs in school. So it’s really important for a principal to foster and support a respectful, supportive and accepting climate among students as well as staff.  He will work to ensure that the staff understands the intricacies of personal relationships and the hallmarks of bullying so that they can work with students—and each other—effectively. He’ll also make sure staff is aware of how technology can be used and abused so that they are attuned to student conversations. That’s another big plate.

Principals nurture, support, celebrate, correct, and discipline everyone within their community. They hire, evaluate and, yes, when all else fails, fire staff. It’s hard to convey in those two sentences the breadth or the importance of this aspect of the job. Helping staff and students be the best that they can be results in the best learning opportunities for your children. Let’s call this a platter.

Find out what's happening in Elmhurstwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Every day, principals must ensure that the “unstructured” times—before and after school, during lunch, and passing periods—go smoothly. And depending on the day, a principal may be called upon to deal with a student refusing to come to school; another refusing to behave in class; students who bully or are bullied; fights or petty arguments between students; drugs or other illegal substances; property damage; parents who are divorced but using their child in a tug-of-war; parents who demand that their child be (you choose) placed in a different class, challenged more, challenged less, given more homework, given less homework, be made more accountable, be made less accountable, be called on more in class, be left alone. We’ll call these fires. Let’s hope they don’t all occur on the same day!

And when the dismissal bell rings at the end of the school day, the principal attends to what we used to call paper-and-pencil tasks, but what are really the thinking and responding tasks: responding to or writing e-mails, following up on requests, writing reports, meeting with individuals, making and returning phone calls. I’ll call these a stack of smaller plates.

There is no “day in the life” of a principal. Every day is different. Principals respond to crises, big and small, all day long. They plan to implement changes and work with the staff to educate them and support them as they make changes to their practice. They're there for the students, whether they need counseling, a mediator, or a cheerleader. They are visible within the building to see what learning is taking place in the classrooms and to get to know the students. They field parents’ calls, requests, concerns and complaints (big and small). They attend meetings before school, during school, after school; with parents, teachers, teams, administrators, and district personnel. They go to extra-curricular events. They  ask questions. They listen. They make a plan and act. They get involved with county, state and national education organizations so that they stay up-to-date with what’s happening at those levels.

Yet when someone says to her, “I wouldn’t do your job for all the money in the world,” the principal is a little perplexed. She loves her job. It sounds cliché, but she gets to shape the future by ensuring that children are well educated and well rounded.

But it wouldn’t hurt if, the next time you think about picking up the phone or writing a note to your principal, you end it with “I really do appreciate all that you do for our students.” That will mean the world to the principal, and it will be just as good as a hug.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?