Principal's open office door or not?

In large primary (elementary) and secondary (high) schools the Principal usually does not have an officially designated teaching role and is generally busy running a complex organisation.

The question is whether under these circumstances the Principal should have an open door to their office.  This can be difficult if it gets to the stage of so many interruptions that the Principal's daily administrative and educational goals cannot be easily achieved.

There is nothing wrong with having times where you are not available to everyday sorts of interruptions, but care is needed so as not to isolate oneself and be seen to be unreachable.  A reliable secretary or personal assistant (PA) will be alert to let you know if there is an urgency that you would want to attend to immediately.  The role of this PA is crucial for you as the Principal.  The PA needs to be a super communicator who never appears officious in shielding you from contact by staff, parents, board members or students.  I was lucky as a Principal and Superintendent of Schools to have excellent secretaries.

There will be others in the hierarchical chain who have delegated roles that in effect give you time to focus on your leadership role.  They shield you from the everyday interruptions. These persons have various designations such as assistant or deputy Principal, Counsellor, Registrar, Curriculum Coordinator.  You need to be an effective delegator to bring these persons into play.  Once you have delegated a set of responsibilities you need to let the person get on with it.

Many Principals do a bit of teaching to keep their hand in and maybe lead by showing that they have not lost it.

If your self assessment process comes up with judgements that you are unapproachable or remote you have a problem.


May the Force be with you!


GD