Dive Brief:

• The Wallace Foundation has announced a new $47 million donation aimed at advancing principal preparedness through the redesign of at least six university training programs, based on previous research on principal training and effectiveness underwritten by the Foundation.
• Participating universities will be selected in the fall of 2016, and each will partner with school districts so that practicing superintendents and administrators can provide feedback about learning and preparedness.
• The Wallace Foundation's previous research showed the majority of superintendents reported dissatisfaction with the quality of principal prep programs.

Dive Insight:

In addition to training, the methods used by most school districts to recruit and retain candidates to lead schools are outdated. That's what research by Brandon Palmer, a school administrator and researcher who studies principals at California State University-Fresno, found. Palmer studied principal selection practices and deduced that they are, generally, underdeveloped, under-researched and out-of-date. He also noted principal selection processes haven't been deeply investigated in the U.S. since the 1950s, and a disconnect existed between traits desired by superintendents and those sought after by hiring committees.

Most states don't have well-known or widely-used principal evaluation systems. Previous research underwritten by the Wallace Foundation aimed to better identify the qualities of good principals, yet the overall research effort pales in comparison to that which goes into identifying highly effective teachers.

Principal evaluations are slowly becoming more common, yet experts say they can improve: Many principals reportedly spend less than 2% of their time on professional development.