Celebrate your assistant principals’ successes during National Assistant Principals Week, April 11–15! This week recognizes the contributions of assistant principals to the success of students, teachers, parents, and school communities across the United States.

While the roles and responsibilities may depend on the individual school settings, assistant principals are essential to establishing a positive learning environment that ensures each student and adult is known and valued.

NASSP celebrated early by hosting all of the State Assistant Principals of the Year during the Ignite ’16 National Principals Conference in Orlando, Florida, February 25–27. As a result of that meeting, the state winners committed to serve as leaders for all assistant principals, and NASSP is kicking off National Assistant Principals Week by launching an “AP Expert of the Week” series in the online Assistant Principal Leadership Center. Look out for the first post on April 12. These posts, which will be written by State Assistant Principals of the Year on various topics, will be posted weekly.

Ideas to Celebrate

There are several ways for you, your students, and community to get involved in celebrating National Assistant Principals Week:

  • Join Jared Wastler, the 2014 Maryland Assistant Principal of the Year, for #apchat on Sunday, April 10 at 8:00 p.m. (ET) on Twitter to discuss connected leadership. The chats allow APs to discuss relevant topics and share ideas.
  • Implement activities that let everyone in on the action! Visit the AP Week webpage for ideas for school leaders, students, teachers, and parents, or create your own celebration ideas.
  • Send your AP a free e-card to thank them for everything they do.
  • Post to social media using #apweek to tell us (and the world!) what makes your assistant principal so great.
16_PD_APWeek_E-Cards_p412

Send your AP an e-card like the one above!

The Impact of Assistant Principals

During the State Assistant Principal of the Year celebration at Ignite ’16, we had the distinct privilege of hearing the state winners’ voices as they shared the challenges and successes of their school communities. While the stories and settings differed, it was quickly evident that assistant principals are keenly aware that building relationships is fundamental and essential to strong learning communities.

Here are just a few of the great things that students, teachers, and parents said about the APs in their communities.

  • “Mr. [Paul] Hermes provided a place where I could feel a part of something, a place where others cared about me, and a place where I was safe from some of the things I deal with outside of school. I always appreciated that Bay View was a place that could help me with that “outside stuff” and be a place where I could feel like many other kids—safe, supported and cared for.” —Student comment from Bay View Middle School, Wisconsin
  • “Ms. [Holly] Ripley has been instrumental in moving administrators to create meaningful feedback opportunities for teacher observations and evaluations. She recognizes that the most important part of our work is the coaching and supporting of teachers in their classrooms.” —Teacher comment from West Fargo High School, North Dakota
  • “In addition to the many ways Mr. [Matthew] Younghans devotes himself in the academic realm to the advancement of students toward college and careers, he has also has fostered remarkable relationships with business and community resources in order to further these efforts.” —Parent comment from Clarkstown High School South, New York

These accolades are true for the many assistant principals across the United States who are passionate about the success of each student and teacher. Encourage members of your school community to start making plans to celebrate National Assistant Principals Week today!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *