The Assistant Principal Interview: Part 1 of 3

The Assistant Principal interview is a process that is unlike any other. This means that you need to prepare for it if that is even possible. The Interview process is an opportunity to determine whether you are a fit for the school. It is also a check to see if the principal thinks that they can work alongside you. Fit, however, goes both ways. Do your homework and ask questions.

It is essential that you read the school website and absorb the information. Consider the following:

• What is the school context and demographic?
• How are they ensuring that everyone is included? Are they deliberate in their creation of a culture of belonging?
• What is the mission and how was it created? 
• What are the school values, and how are they being taught and lived everyday?
• What does learning look like in the school, for teachers and students?
• How does the school build relationships with the community?
• What practices or policy do they have in place to ensure high quality learning is taking place?
• Do I believe in what this school is doing? Are my values aligned?
• Does the school look like a place that you would enjoy working in?

It is likely that you will experience a number of interviews before gaining a position, so what should you focus on?  Let’s take a look today at the first of three big ideas:

1. What is the Assistant Principal job to you?
2. How will you enter the role?
3. How will the school be different because you are the Assistant Principal?

What is the Assistant Principal job to you?

The answer to this question will vary between candidates and will provide the interviewer with a sense of your character and priorities. When I have been asked this question I have always been very honest. There is no point hiding the truth in order to get a job. You will have to work in the school every day and develop a very strong relationship with the principal, so ensure you find out as much as you can about them. They are, after all, learning about you too.

The Assistant Principal position, for me, has always centered upon this set of simple underlying principles:

• Leadership is about relationships: Care personally about your community. Get to know them. This will allow you to ensure that you can best serve their needs. It also allows you to have the difficult conversations later on as they will know that you have their best interests at heart. For more information on this principle, read Radical Candor by Kim Scott.
• Leadership is about building a culture of belonging: How many times have you seen this line being posted on LinkedIn or other forms of social media:” People do not leave a job, they leave poor leadership.” It’s true. Your school community want to feel that they belong and that they matter. People want to know the story of your school, how the values were created and prioritized, why you chose them (teachers) and where they fit into the story. Be deliberate in building an inclusive and psychologically safe learning environment. If people do not feel safe, then they cannot learn. For more on this principle read Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek, The Fearless Organization by Amy Edmondson and Belonging: The Ancient Art of Togetherness by Owen Eastwood.
• Everyone is capable of learning: If we do not believe this then we should not be teachers. It is surprising however, how many people forget this when faced with a difficult student or teacher. Caught in in the moment, we may view their behavior as defiant rather than consider their personal circumstances or a sense of overwhelm. Remember that learning new skills can be daunting. We need to pave the way and create fertile ground for learning. To learn more about this principle read An Everyone Culture by Robert Kegan and Lisa Laskow Lahey, Switch by Chip and Dan Heath and Mindset by Carol Dweck.
• You cannot do this alone: Being a successful Assistant Principal requires forging strong relationships and successful collaboration. It is essential that you study how to best manage a team and how to empower them to support you in making a difference. For more information on developing safe and successful work culture read The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle, Dream Teams by Shane Snow and The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni.
• The small things matter:  Your words and actions matter. As Kousez and Posner state in their classic book The Leadership Challenge, “Do What You Say You Will Do.” Failure to do so will result in a loss of credibility and trust. The small technical details such as sending the daily bulletin or assigning duties matter. These actions determine the details and flow of a persons day. Do them, and do them well. As John Amaechi PhD states in The Promises of Giants:

“Winning requires that you vigilantly tend to everything that is within your control, including the dusty stuff in the corners that you’d rather not deal with. It requires doing lots of things you won’t want to do, spending time you won’t want to spend in ways that you don’t want to spend it. If you cannot commit to that, then you are not truly committed to winning.”

John Amaechi PhD

Being a successful Assistant Principal is about ‘winning’ at the small stuff so that you can focus on the bigger stuff. It all matters. For more on this read: The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg and Atomic Habits by James Clear.

Identify your principles and form your questions around them. They will help you to decide if you should accept the job should the offer come your way.

We will answer questions 2 & 3 in future posts. In the meantime, clarify your principles. Write them down and consider how they will guide you in your work as the Assistant Principal.

Journeying:

Books: Read books cited above

Videos:

Building a psychologically safe workplace: Amy Edmondson

How to build credibility, solve problems and multiply your impact #441. Liz Wiseman on the Learning Leader Show with Ryan Hawk.

The Culture Code: Daniel Coyle. A Book Summary