An effective principal is one of the most important keys to a high-performing school.

With that in mind, I’m proud of Dallas ISD’s new “grow-your-own” principal pipeline initiative to help ensure a best-fit leader at every school. 

Dallas ISD last school year launched the Leader Excellence, Advancement and Development (LEAD) Department. LEAD focuses on four key areas: attracting talented, diverse candidates who could become high-quality principal candidates; growing leaders at all levels into strong principal candidates; providing exceptional professional development for campus leaders; and identifying strategies to retain top-tier principals.

The Dallas ISD LEAD Department launched the 2020–2021 Principal Candidate Pool on Aug. 29 for internal candidates. Those who are selected for the pool will be invited to attend a series of leadership seminars and on-site observations. Later this school year, only candidates from the internal and external Principal Candidate Pools will be eligible for hire as a principal.

This process will give Dallas ISD leadership a more accurate idea of who the principal candidates are and what they bring to the position. And not only will the district be better at placing the right candidates in the right schools, district leadership will know the coaching needs of a principal as soon as they begin leading a school.

I encourage parents to reach out to your campus principal and get to know them by attending Coffee with the Principal events and other school activities. Building a relationship, with your child’s teacher and your school principal, will help you identify ways to work together to ensure your child succeeds. 

In other District 2 news…

J.L. Long Middle School was one of 10 schools that participated in the district’s first-ever Middle School Cheer Camp. The Long cheerleaders showed off their routine and helped other students learn the basics of cheer.