NAESP Calls on New Congress to Support Principals

Citing the fact that “a great teacher gets results in a classroom, but only a principal can lead a school to success,” NAESP Executive Director Gail Connelly sent a strongly worded message to members of Congress on January 8 urging for the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA):

“Principals respectfully request that Congress work to refocus the law to help put in place state and local education systems that will provide robust, meaningful accountability … The law is in dire need of this redirection to provide high-quality educational opportunities and improved outcomes for all students.”

The letters were addressed to Sen. Lamar Alexander, newly elected  Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, ranking committee member Sen. Patty Murray, as well as members of the House Education and Workforce Committee members. The letters were also signed by Diann Woodard of the American Federation of School Administrators and JoAnn Bartoletti of the National Association of Secondary School Principals.

School principals who work long hours for modest pay are heavily invested in seeing their students succeed. But they are also in need of help. The letter to Congress stressed the need to set aside specific funds for professional development for principals—as opposed to lumping professional development funds for principals in with teachers’— and suggest Congress lay out a different plan for principal evaluation than the systems states are putting in place as part of their NCLB waivers.

The letters also make recommendations on broader issues: The groups say they oppose any vouchers or tuition tax credits and stress that teachers and principals need new and better technology in schools. NAESP opposes any vouchers or tuition tax credits and believes that teachers and principals need new and better technology in schools.

The message to Congress was also featured in a POLITICO Pro post, which noted that the letter urges lawmakers to focus more on school leadership as it looks to rewrite the law.

POLITICO Pro also reported that U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will call for repealing and replacing NCLB, joining Republicans in Congress in pushing what could be the most significant rewrite of federal education law in 14 years.

In a speech on Mon., Jan. 12, Duncan will lay out his principles for rewriting the education law, sources familiar with the event confirmed to POLITICO. But he is not expected to back down from his insistence that a rewritten law retain the federal mandate that all students be tested in math and reading every year from third through eighth grade.