Step Nine

Nurturing and Supporting the School Principal

Thank our Lord! You now have a new principal for your school. It has probably been a struggle to engage just the right person. May the Lord of the Church now bless your shared ministry with your new principal so that through your partnership children, parents, church and the world will be blessed.

This is also a good time to reflect on and review the role of the school board:

• Board Roles Concerning Work of the School
• Shaping/redefining mission
• Agreeing on long-term objectives & strategic plans
• Budget Setting
• Establishing and monitoring Board Performance (See Appendix D)
• Ensuring Financial Security
• Be a partner with the principal (Appointing, supporting, reviewing administrator)
• Establishing policies
• Monitor overall performance against plans

Typical Board Policies:

• Mission Statement
• Code of conduct / conflict of interest
• Bylaws
• Other governance policies
• Board Giving
• Meeting Attendance
• Investment Guidelines
• Annual Budget
• Board Self Evaluation

Typical Board / Administrator Policies and Procedures:

• Authorization/delegation of authorization
• Crisis Plans
• Financial procedures (especially checks and balances)
• Enrollment (Numbers / Profile)
• Salaries and Benefits
• Sexual Harassment
• Buildings and Grounds
• Use by Outside groups
• Evaluation of the administrator by the board

Typical policies/procedures by the Administrator:

• Admission (Application process, including decisions on admittance)
• Administrative Staffing (Job Descriptions / Evaluation)
• Faculty and staff (Academic structure / Evaluation)
• Students (Code of Conduct / Evaluation and grading system)
• Program (Curriculum development / Extracurricular activities)
• Systems (Administrative procedures / Information systems)

Studies have shown that a board may contribute to the problem when an administrator fails. Paying attention to these issues will help the board successfully support the administrator and mission of the school for the ultimate benefit of the children being served.

Administrator’s Main Failings:

• Implementing existing policy and strategy
• Specifically, apparent reluctance to deal with performance shortcomings of staff

Board’s Role in Administrator "Failure":

• Not setting clear strategic policy directions
• Not specifying performance expectations
• Not determining who instructs Administrator
• Not providing timely feedback on performance

See also
Eight Steps to a Successful Executive Director Evaluation 
Director/Principal Assessment Questionnaire 
Sample Administrative Policy