The Ministerial Tasks of Principals

1. Leadership for the SchoolhouseHow is it Different? Important?Thomas J. SergiovanniJossey-Bass1996 Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006

2. The Ministerial Tasks of Principals The roots of school leadership involve a commitment to administer to the needs of the school as an institution by serving its purposes, by serving those who struggle to embody these purposes, and by acting as a guardian to protect the institutional integrity of the school. Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006

3. Purposing The principal brings together the shared visions of the staff into a covenant that speaks compellingly to all stakeholders with a moral voice. Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006

4. Maintaining Harmony • Involves building a consensual understanding of school purposes, of how the school should function, and of the moral connections between roles and responsibilities while respecting individual conscience and individual style differences • Assumes that the school has a group conceived vision, methods to implement the vision, and delineation of roles and responsibilities Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006

5. Institutional Values This concept involves translating the school’s covenant into a workable set of procedures and structures that facilitate the accomplishment of school purposes and that provide norm systems for directing and guiding behaviors. Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006

6. Motivation • The principal provides for the basic psychological needs of staff on the one hand and for basic cultural needs of staff to experience sensible and meaningful school lives on the other. • Said another way, the principal must watch out for individual external needs of staff plus provide an environment conducive for teaching and learning. Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006

7. Management • The principal ensures the necessary day-to-day support (planning, organizing, agenda setting, mobilizing resources, record keeping, procedures, etc.) that keep the school running effectively and efficiently. • This does not imply that the principal personally does all of these tasks, but it does imply total responsibility for all of it. Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006

8. Explanation • Principals must be able to give reasons for asking staff to do certain things and give explanations that link what staff members are doing to the larger picture. • The more staff is aware of the larger goals, the better things will be. • Bottom line: tell staff why they are doing something and what the anticipated results will be. Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006

9. Enabling • The principal should remove obstacles that prevent staff from meeting their commitments on the one hand, and provide resources and support to help them meet their commitments on the other. • The concept of enabling implies that the principal must remove as many tasks as possible from staff that do not relate to instruction and student learning. Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006

10. Modeling The principal accepts the responsibility as the head follower of the school covenant by modeling purposes and values in thought, word, and deed. Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006

11. Supervision • The principal provides the necessary oversight to ensure the school meets its commitments and when it does not to find out why and to help everyone do something about it. • Sergiovanni sees supervision as the caring for and oversight of the school. Johns Hopkins University School of Professional Studies in Business and Education 2006