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Abstract

First-year principals' decisions influence school performance and their own success as school leaders. RAND conducted a study to examine first-year principals' actions and working conditions, and how those factors relate to school achievement and principal retention. RAND found that principals' use of time did not affect key outcomes but that their ability to foster teacher capacity and cohesiveness did. The study found no single strategy for principal success but suggests that a principal's effectiveness as a manager of human capital is likely to contribute to improved school outcomes.

A school principal's role is a complex mix of leadership and administration, geared toward enabling and motivating school staff to provide the best possible opportunities for student growth and achievement. School principals face many challenges, especially in their first year at a school, when they must function effectively in a new environment and assimilate quickly to a new culture. Furthermore, the principal is usually expected to improve or at least maintain levels of student achievement. First-year principals' decisions and strategies are critically important and influence their schools' performance, their success as a school leader, and the likelihood that they will remain at that school. Because there is little research on this important part of principals' experience, RAND conducted a study to examine the actions and working conditions of first-year principals (those who are new to their school, regardless of prior experience as a principal), and how those factors relate to student achievement and principal retention.