Principal Leadership for School-Community Collaboration

Posted by on April 30, 2004

[posted from Public Education Network newsblast]

A CASE STUDY OF PRINCIPAL LEADERSHIP FOR SCHOOL-COMMUNITY COLLABORATION

According to one principal, the real magic is in parents. It is their presence and approval, if you ask anyone who has done any teaching, that makes the difference. …When children know that their parents are interested, the students just do so much better. It doesn’t have to be mom or dad, but someone from home — it just makes a world of difference for them as far as their behavior, as well as academics. …There is a role for the community as well …It may be secondary, but it certainly is wanted and appreciated. Community involvement lets our children know that there are other people in the community who care about them, people who are willing to work with them and do things for them. This case study identifies four factors that allowed the school to build successful bridges to its community. These factors are: a) the school’s commitment to learning; b) the principal’s support and vision for community involvement; c) the school’s receptivity and openness to community involvement; and d) the school’s willingness to engage in two-way communication with potential community partners about their level and kind of involvement. Mavis Sanders and Adia Harvey explore this and other dimensions of school-community relations in “Beyond the School Walls” at: http://www.tcrecord.org