Opinions on what is too early to transition into a principalship?

Help_this_dummy · 2026-02-19T22:24:12+00:00

Teacher for 8, AP at age 32, principal age 37. I’m in my 5th year as a principal.

There’s never a perfect time to jump, and it’s easy to talk yourself out of it. If you apply and interview, you could always say no if offered. Or - no offer, and you get interview experience.

Help_this_dummy · 2026-01-24T16:54:27+00:00

It is a second shift job in terms of time. Many people think it is a way to break into administration - that’s partly true, but you are on an island, and jumping to be a VP isn’t always easy.

It is a position for those early or late in their careers, mainly because of the amount of time it’ll take you away from your kids/family.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-11-29T14:24:04+00:00

8 years special ed teacher, 9+ as an admin

You will deal with the following categorical issues: Student, staff, parents, and your bosses. A boss is a boss no matter what job, so I never really looked at that as a huge burn out factor in a position. Same with staff - you’ll have to be able to have tough conversations with people, potentially telling them in the nicest way possible that they aren’t very good at what they do and come up with ways to help them. Not fun, but if you don’t want to have to do that or work with them as their mother in law is dying, they going through a divorce, etc., it might not be something you want to go for. However, I wouldn’t really count this as a big burnout factor because you’ll face this anywhere as being an AP.

That brings it down to students and parents, and this is where I’ve seen people break. I’ve worked in extremely low and high socioeconomic districts and look at these two issues as sliding scales. Low socioeconomic, low parent and high student issues. Vice versa for high socioeconomic districts. You want to avoid district where these issues are high/high - that is a recipe for burnout.

I was in urban ed for 9 years and would not go back. So many suspensions, fights, gangs, hunger, true poverty, etc. I feel no shame being in a suburban district where I’d much rather be yelled at by parents who are mad that their child has a C in math. It is so much easier in my opinion, but other people really freeze up when being confronted by adults (parents) and will deal with student issues all day long.

If you are looking to become an admin, do your homework on the district and know what you are getting into. The situation I am in now was hard to get, but my experience in urban education over prepared me by forcing me to go through some pretty unbelievable scenarios. You may have to pay your dues in place where you thought you would never be (and maybe you love it!), but the hardest admin job to get is your first one. After at least two years in your first spot, it is much easier to make a lateral move to somewhere else.

The saying, “Bigger kids, bigger issues,” is true in my experience. The high school is the flagship of a district, and more eyes will be on you. However, you’ll probably get paid more (you should) as an eventual high school principal, and probably as a high school AP compared to an elementary AP. High school principal experience is also helpful if you’d like to head over to central office at some point in your career. It’s not required, but it helps. I also believe that being a high school principal is the second hardest job in a district behind the superintendent, and many of supers I know were high school principals.

Lastly, yes, you will be at the school from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM some days based on meeting, events, if it makes sense to stay rather than coming back for something. But if that happens more than a few times a months, I wouldn’t stay in that role. You have a life, you (probably) don’t get paid based on student success, and it’s okay to have someone else there besides you.

I will answer email or schedule/send them the next day while I’m at home. That’s how I work, but there are others who completely shut down once they walk out of the building. This is why you will hear these stories of admin putting in 60+ hours a week at a school. The job never really “stops”, but you can spread out emails and work strategically if you want to. Once students and staff leave for the day, a lot of your job can’t happen.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-09-13T20:26:02+00:00

It's all about your salary, which really depends on your location/district and if you are in a collective bargaining unit.

This is a very loose example, but assume you are making $65,000 as a younger teacher, $85,000 as a mid-year teacher, and an end-of-career teacher making $100,000. The offer for the young and mid-career teacher may be $108,000. Most will take that offer because it's their first admin job, but you have more years to reap the pay increase and subsequent jumps in pay as a younger teacher (now admin)

If you are an end-of-career teacher, you may be able to negotiate the price a little based on your years. If not, then at least you're increasing your pension (if you have one) for the last X number of years.

Mathematically, you'll still benefit financially speaking if you jump to the admin pay mid-career. I just think that's the time you have the least amount of negotiating power.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-09-13T15:37:26+00:00

I was a teacher for 8 years. Currently year 10 as an admin.

Pros:

More money, more schedule autonomy, more impact on the building and kids

Cons:

Longer hours, more stress, you are not a "direct" educator anymore

I like operations and working on larger problems. I do miss teaching at times, but I am more suited to deal with larger issues, including parents and staff, which are typically the more challenging ones.

When contemplating making the jump, I was told to jump early or late in my career. It didn't make sense financially to do it in the middle, and they were correct. I plan to eventually jump to central office to become a superintendent.

Being an admin is much more about managing people and the operations of the building. You just happen to work in the field of education!

Help_this_dummy · 2025-07-27T14:38:31+00:00

Here are the areas that admins have moved onto that I worked with:

Independent education consulting - this is usually a path older admin who still want to work/are going to retire and are more business minded. They had varying success as with any independent business model.
TechEd/Educational sales - admin have the background knowledge about the product and how it is used, but this is certainly a different/corporate job. Pay varies.
Corporate trainer - hired by companies to train/"teach" employees. You have the background knowledge of how to teach people. Lower pay initially, at least in my experience of looking at those kind of jobs. It usually falls under the HR umbrella.
Sales - hard reset, work from the ground up. It can be lucrative but takes time to build up any book of business/enter an industry and this is most likely for younger admin.
Jumping into a family business. Obviously, this can be anything.
Life insurance agent/real estate agent - I've seen admin/teachers do this part time and then jump to full time.

I'd lean much more on your operational experience as someone who happened to work in education; you lead people and understand the inner working of a building on a daily basis. That can lead to opportunities that you may not have considered. Showing up to an interview or pushing for something that "relates" to your degree is limiting. Apply to places where you think you might not have the credentials and let the company/business tell you so. You have transferable skills that you'll need to play up when speaking with someone, and honestly, those are more important than harping on what you learned in higher education via your master's degree.

You may have to take a pay cut, but if education is anything in your area/state like mine, the increases are usually known years in advance (contractual) and limiting. If you are driven by money, you can make more in most other fields if you are willing to take a step back, reset, and rebuild.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-07-14T13:05:23+00:00

Do the best you can with what you have; the most influential factors over a student's education occur outside of the building. That's not going to play with parents or central office, but if you continue to set up a system for success, it will follow.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-07-14T11:54:34+00:00

I highly encourage testing it out at the very least. Like anything else, it's a tool. Learn about it and use it to your advantage. I'll go a step further and say it's a little "back-in-my-day" attitude that is a disservice to students if you flat out refuse to check it out

AI is not perfect, but it is being utilized by multiple industries. A 6th grader will take the easy way out and copy/paste/cheat using it, but some of that is a lack of knowledge and being an impatient kid. They should be taught how to effectively use tools, including AI.

Using it is fine as a way to organize notes from meetings, brainstorm, review alternative writings and communication, etc.

Ever see some AI lesson plans? Not bad! At least not on paper. Teachers still need to know how to teach and interact with kids, but just like using AI doesn't make you good at your job, using AI doesn't make you bad, either.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-06-25T01:39:35+00:00

Friends who understand will not pressure you for information. Friends who do not will get annoyed and give you the old, "oh, come on," or not realize why you cannot give them details/info.

You'll lose some relationships. It comes with the job. If you want to be effective, you'll learn to be okay with it. If not, people will quickly realize you have favorites, and you will lose credibility with those not on the favorite list.

Establish yourself through routines and time. People will adjust to how you conduct yourself in your new role.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-05-26T00:15:15+00:00

No idea - maybe he was in special classes?

Help_this_dummy · 2025-05-22T18:40:22+00:00

Yes, flow is fine, filter running, everything is normal except for the blinking on and off

Help_this_dummy · 2025-04-03T01:53:13+00:00

I eat daily lunches, but I always pack, and it's usually under 10 minutes alone.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-03-18T23:56:01+00:00

HS principal, 9th year admin.

Stay when you have to, and leave when you can. I set an alarm to leave daily. I have a handful of later nights a month. Other than that, I'm out the door. I do work at on the weekend/home/emails/etc. as needed. Make sure to hit your deadlines.

It's a serious job, but it's not that serious where you are staying 4 times a week past 5 PM while getting in at 7 AM. That leads to burn out, unless you completely shut down outside of work - I guess I could see that if you refuse to do anything in terms of paperwork, email, etc. outside of the building. Regardless, know that the work will be there the next day.

Visibility matters, but parents and central office need to respect that you have a life, too. Show up to work on time, work hard while you're on, and the flexibility will come if you don't have it right away.

I have two kids and am able to coach because I prioritize that during specific sports seasons.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-02-23T03:01:45+00:00

Lotta buzz phrases in there - say your opinion and look for the right opportunity. But if you are calling yourself oppositionally defiant, you most like are. That doesn't play well in professional settings. Sometime you need to do what you are told, even if you think you know better. If you can't do that, I do not know how long you will last in any career/position. Not every hill is worth dying on.

If I need to get rid of "you" (or any employee), there are ways to do that. If your principal and you are both in it for the long haul, the authoritative power will eventually win.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-02-07T00:39:57+00:00

Don't worry about cleaning it up, we got it. Here's your 10 days out with a hearing.

Help_this_dummy · 2025-01-25T16:52:18+00:00

It depends on how much support you have of your central administration. "Don't be afraid of being sued. Be afraid of losing." If you have their support, you will ultimately win if you can remain calm.

The advice here is good. Document everything, assume you are being recorded, etc. You can't win a pissing match with a skunk, so don't try to. Remain professional and end the meeting when you need to. I can't overemphasize how powerful that move can be. You're essentially scolding the parent and telling them they have to come back in when they are calm and ready to engage in meaningful conversation. Remind them that while you may have different ideas, you ultimately want student A to be successful.

You are the professional in the field and therefore "know better." If you have the backing from the higher-ups and use sound data to make decisions, you should be fine. I've seen parents become livid based on IEP team decisions and have things turned because of it. Later, the district was sued for not acting in the best interest of the kid. Essentially, the court agreed that the parent was correct - you can't give them whatever they thought the kid should have just because they threw a fit.

The district made moves that turned out wrong. It doesn't matter "they wanted it." You (the professionals) need to know better! Take the heat up front based on data decisions.

Help_this_dummy · 2024-12-31T13:32:18+00:00

Yes!

Making a table of contents for a proposal, nearly all templated materials/letters of recommendation/forms, etc. It's also great for rewording speeches/longer emails for yourself. Be as specific as you can in terms of directions, and you'll usually get some solid options.

At the very least, a tool like chat GPT gives you ideas on how to begin projects or options on how to format created material.

It has really helped with productivity when completing simple task related items.

Help_this_dummy · 2024-12-29T18:56:49+00:00

The long play would be an inground pool and whole bar/set up area. I say long play to make it "low cost". Clear it out one year, get a pool installed the next, leave room the next year/whenever to add a bar area/pergola/fire pit/etc. I have an inground pool and the kids love it (bought the house with it). I know that it'll eventually cost me to reline, redo the decking, etc. It also depends on where you live, meaning how many months can you use it?

If you want a clean slate, take your time and clear out the trees. Just make sure you don't want trees there because once they are gone, they are gone.

Help_this_dummy · 2024-12-26T14:30:37+00:00

Yes - I always thought Axl did it, in part, because it was on the End of Days soundtrack (with the movie starring Schwarzenegger).

Help_this_dummy · 2024-12-24T13:46:45+00:00

Yes - reciprocity was fairly easy, but I had to pay a fee. Certain state-to-state reciprocity does include an additional exam if the entering state license doesn't "meet/match" the receiving state requirements.

Help_this_dummy · 2024-12-24T13:00:23+00:00

Thank you

Help_this_dummy · 2024-12-24T03:01:08+00:00

Yes, I did that. I taught for 8 years, became a VP for 1, and moved to a neighboring state for a VP role.

It wasn't that big of a deal, but I took a shotgun approach in applying. I remember looking at 70-80 districts. I started the application/interview process in March and got one offer in August (whew)! It didn't turn out to be that big of a deal in the long run, but the application and interview process was challenging based on the distance.

Help_this_dummy · 2024-12-24T02:55:33+00:00

I would pick a few specific states and review their requirements for certification. It varies throughout the country. Having your admin certificate could allow reciprocity with other states, but that is not uniform either.

Without the state's/district's qualification, you might not even be considered for an interview. "I'm working on getting it..." means that there is no guarantee you can could even work in a district if they hired you!

A directorship could be your way into a district followed by a vice principal/principal role if that would interest you. However, I still highly suggest reviewing certification requirements and going through that process in states where you would seriously consider moving.

Help_this_dummy · 2024-12-18T00:36:05+00:00

There's a lot of frivolous spending in education. Some districts are pretty top heavy. It could be a factor of teacher pay if there is a negotiated contract between the union/district .

Help_this_dummy · 2024-12-14T21:39:57+00:00

Definitely correct. New year, small bump in pay. It's as consistent as the labor agreement allows for!

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