Last month, I attended the National Principals Advocacy Conference in Washington alongside more than 100 other principals from across our country. Our mission: Meet with members of Congress to advocate on behalf of public education.
Prior to this conference, I believed that all I needed to do was take care of my school community and let other people advocate public education. I now see that principals are the “others.” If we fail to speak up, we leave the future of our schools in the hands of those who may not fully understand our challenges. We must come together to educate Congress on the issues we deal with every day.
The day before we met with Congress, the U.S. Department of Education cut approximately half its staff. Whether you agree or disagree with that decision, investing in our country’s future should be a nonpartisan issue. As school leaders, we’re on the front lines of education and can provide firsthand accounts of how policies impact students, teachers, and families. We need to fight to take education funding off the political battlefield so we can prepare our students for a competitive workforce and strong democracy.
In this biweekly column, principals and other authorities on school leadership—including researchers, education professors, district administrators, and assistant principals—offer timely and timeless advice for their peers.
As a first-time advocate, one of the first lessons I learned was that many federal legislators have limited experience with public school challenges. In some cases, the only knowledge of the K-12 field they or their staffers have is from their own experience attending school.
I saw the power of this storytelling when I met with the staff of Rep. Bobby Scott, a Democrat from Virginia and the ranking member of the House education committee. I shared the story of a former student overdosing in school—the third time in one week that the student had done so. Before our school staff managed to revive the boy, I watched as the color drained from his face. I thought his life was over.
The congressional staffer began crying as she listened to my story and then explained that she didn’t know that such events were happening in schools. Lesson learned: Lawmakers need to hear real stories, such as this one, to make informed decisions.
The principals attending this conference encouraged politicians from both sides to support federal policies that strengthen our schools. We shared countless stories about the importance of Title I and Title II funding for disadvantaged students and teacher training, respectively.
Many staffers seemed surprised to learn how much the needs of public schools have changed in just the past five years. We are hiring teachers with different levels of classroom experience, we explained. For example, when we hire career switchers, these individuals may not be as prepared to manage student misconduct or create warm-up and closure activities in a lesson. In essence, their professional development needs are different from those who were trained in a teacher-preparation program in college.
Cutting federal funding for public education and teacher professional development would leave many students in public schools with teachers unprepared to meet their needs.
Attending the principal-advocacy convening was an eye-opening experience, different from attending a state or national conference. Instead of learning new and innovative strategies to bring back to our schools, the speakers at this conference encouraged us to bring our stories to Congress.
I hope that the work we did in these few days together will support strong education policy that will improve graduation rates, career readiness, and community well-being. I encourage my fellow school leaders to help share policies, as well as our focus on safety, student success, and serving our school communities.
Just as a single candle can pierce the darkness in a room, one principal’s advocacy for public education can be powerful. Now, imagine a room with 100 candles. By coming together as principals, we can help our lawmakers open their eyes to the real, daily challenges that we are facing in our school hallways and classrooms.
Our students, teachers, and communities depend on us to be their voice, ensuring that public education remains strong, well-funded, and equitable for all. If we want lawmakers to make the grade on education policy, it’s up to us to hand them the right lesson plan.
