4-5. Principal's Responsibilities

Earlier we talked about deciding what are the responsibilities of different groups of people (teachers, parents, students, community, principal, etc.).
Here is a draft of the Principal's Responsibilities that can be used as a starting point:

TO STUDENTS

• Treat them with the ultimate of respect
• Help them sort out the world views they live in
• If dysfunctional, help them redefine who they can be
• See they are respectful in the school environment
• Use whatever respectful means possible to have students act in a respectful manner
• Students have more "rights" than teachers in school BUT along with those rights go responsibilities
• Teach students "gray" areas
• Teach students due process and how to complain in positive ways
• Make sure students know what kinds of powers there are and how to deal with inappropriate powers

TO PARENTS

• Keep parents informed/involved in their children's' schooling as well as their attitudes towards respect
• Respect differences in families
• Involve parents when principal/teacher and/or student agrees it's time to bring them in
• Let parents know when their children are doing great
• Be available when teachers need to talk to parents about a disrespectful action by a student

TO TEACHERS

• Assist teachers in dealing with disrespectful behaviors (which both the teacher and principal agree upon)
• Follow whatever process is agreed upon (and if, for some outstanding reason the process is not followed, the teacher is informed)
• Agree with teachers with respect to "gray" areas and how those areas will be dealt with
• If a teacher is being disrespectful to a student, that must be pointed out and a positive course of action decided upon
• Must do closure on all respect issues as soon as possible
• Assist, if requested, in developing Action Plans for specific students

TO COMMUNITY

• Must understand the norms, and values of the communities within the community
• Demonstrate support for respectful actions within the community and speak up against negative actions

The principal is a key person in developing, and implementing changes within the school environment. If he/she is not directly involved, he/she must give appropriate support to ensure success.