Volume 3 - Issue 1 - DBU Journal for K-12 Educational Research - Page 52

50 PRINCIPAL LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT PLANS AND THE PERCEIVED IMPACT ON SCHOOL CULTURE Le’Ann D. Downs, Ed.D. Introduction The era of urgency and accountability which demands improved student learning and improved quality of schools has bolstered the momentum to develop high-performing school leaders. As a result, the role of a school principal has been redefined and requires the school leader to possess a broad skillset. In 2011, the 82nd Texas Legislature called for a new principal evaluation model (TEA, 2014c). Senate Bill 1383 was enacted by the Texas Legislature in 2011 and codified as Texas Education Code (TEC) Section 21.3541: Appraisal and Professional Development System for Principals. The bill directed the Commissioner of Education to “establish and administer a comprehensive appraisal and professional development system for public school principals” with a 2016-2017 statewide rollout (TEA, 2014c). Education Service Center (ESC) Region 13 developed a Texas Principal Evaluation and Support System (T-PESS) rubric for districts to utilize when evaluating school leaders (2016). The rubric specifies five performance levels: distinguished, accomplished, proficient, developing, and improvement needed. These levels are used in scoring a principal leader’s effectiveness based on principal standards as identified in Chapter 149 Commissioner's Rules Concerning Educator Standards (TEA, 2014b). The standards provide the basis for the T-PESS by which school administrators are evaluated (TEA, 2014c). The five principal standards are instructional leadership, human capital, executive leadership, school culture, and strategic operations (TEA, 2014b). Each standard is supported by four or five indicators that provide general expectations required in order to meet the performance expectations of the standard (TEA, 2014b). The indicators are based on meta-analytic research from Marzano, Waters, and McNulty (2005) and nationally recognized leadership standards from the Council of Chief State School Officers (2008). These indicators delineate performance descriptors related to leadership responsibilities and practices that statistically link principal leadership and student achievement (ESC Region 13, 2016). As indicated in Figure 1, a principal is an effective culture- leader when a shared vision and culture of high expectations is established for all staff and students. With T-PESS, Texas school principals are provided feedback on instructional leadership, human capital, executive leadership, school culture, and strategic operations (TEA, 2014a). While T-PESS provides feedback regarding principal leadership performance, it does not provide a detailed plan for developing the leadership competencies necessary to improve performance. To develop high-performing leaders who promote sustainable learning organizations, leadership development plans serve as a guide to the campus principal for self-reflection and continuous improvement (Kirtman, 2014). Leadership development plans begin with assessment inventories to identify leadership styles, behaviors, and values (Deal & Peterson, 2003; Kirtman, 2014; Sugerman, Scullard, & Wilhelm, 2011). Next the principal collaborates with a mentor to develop a comprehensive leadership development plan based on the findings of the leadership assessment inventory. The plan outlines areas of growth by matching leadership styles and positions with continuous improvement plan frameworks to increase effectiveness (Hall, Childs-Bowen, Cunningham-Morris, Pajardo, Journal of K-12 Educational Research 2019, VOL. 3, ISSUE 1 www.dbu.edu/doctoral/edd