Albuquerque Public Schools
Principals Set the Tone and Culture of Every School
In her weekly message, Superintendent Gabriella Blakey discusses the important role principals play in the success of their schools.
I’ve worn many hats in my 20 years in public schools, and one of my favorite jobs is that of a school principal.
Being a principal is a huge responsibility, but you also get the opportunity to have a big impact on students and staff.
Twenty-six of our schools have new principals this year, and I’m excited to welcome them. These are dedicated educators with diverse backgrounds who want to make a difference.
Take Maurice Guerin, the new principal at La Cueva High School. Mr. Guerin comes from Rio Rancho Public Schools, where he served as a principal and vice principal. He’s originally from Canada but moved to the U.S. as a boy speaking only French, which gives him unique insight into our English language learner population.
Then there’s Parisa Asgharzadeh, the new principal at Dolores Gonzales Elementary, an impressive new school leader. She has been an educator for 20 years and is passionate about dual language.
Another one of our new principals is Dr. Robert Sims Jr., who is at Whittier Elementary School. He has more than 25 years of experience in education but is new to APS. Dr. Sims is committed to the community schools model and recognizes the importance of listening to students, families, and teachers.
I’ve been visiting schools with new principals in recent days, and it reminded me of my first job as a school administrator, which was at Roosevelt Middle School. I went on to several principal jobs after that and have even taught principal classes at the University of New Mexico.
I know this: Being a principal is a gratifying job. Yes, it can be tough at times, but principals set the tone and culture at a school. I always tell them they need to think about every interaction they have with their students, staff, and families, because it has an impact on student learning.
While it can be a lot of weight to carry at first, it’s also fulfilling to know that, as a principal, you’re setting the learning conditions for students.
A piece of advice I frequently give to principals is that they shouldn’t jump over adults to get to the kids. We’re all here to serve students, but the way you do that as a principal is to support your staff. Provide them with the resources they need to be successful and be there for them. We have to invest in adults to get to kids.
I also tell principals to spend time in classrooms. It’s important to observe classroom instruction to get a feel for how things are going and when more support is needed. And I tell them to “put people before paper” – to prioritize speaking to students and staff. Email and reports can wait.
Principals have a big job, and I recognize they also need support to be successful. We now have six assistant superintendents supporting their work, a move that creates the smallest principal-to-supervisor ratio that I can remember at APS. Each assistant superintendent now supervises no more than 25 principals, which enables them to spend more time at schools. As a zone superintendent, I supervised about 40 principals.
I want our principals to think of themselves as the CEOs of their buildings – to take ownership and create the best learning environments possible for their students. I want them to think about how they’re going to support their teachers as we roll out our new units of study – what we’re teaching and when we’re teaching it. I want them to be innovative.
And I want them to create a welcoming environment for students, staff, and families.
It’s a big job, an important job. That’s why I want to recognize the people who head our schools. They’re critical to our work as we improve our schools and take our kids to new heights.