Assistant principals nationwide got their day in the sun yesterday (4/27), when the House of Representatives unanimously adopted a resolution (H. Res. 1131) honoring the contributions of assistant principals to the success of students and supporting National Assistant Principals Week, which occurred from April 18 through April 23, 2010. The resolution also gives, for the first time ever, congressional recognition to the NASSP/Virco National Assistant Principal of the Year program, which recognizes outstanding middle level and high school assistant principals who have demonstrated success in leadership, curriculum, and personalization.
“Assistant principals are the unsung heroes of our schools,” said Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA), who helped shepherd the resolution’s passage. “[Assistant principals] serve as a behind-the-scenes link between every sector of the school community. Their job description has expanded significantly over the past decades, and they are the backbone of a school’s administrative team. They interact with students, with teachers, with staff, and with parents on a daily basis to ensure that every child is receiving the best education possible. National Assistant Principals Week recognizes their important contributions.”
During National Assistant Principals Week, state assistant principals of the year, the National Principal of the Year and two National Finalists met on Capitol Hill with their Representatives and Senators to advocate for meaningful education reform in five priority areas: school leadership, improving middle grades education; ending the high school dropout crisis; comprehensive literacy education; and realistic education funding.
For more information on the week’s events and the National Assistant Principal of the Year program, including how to nominate an assistant principal for the 2011 award, please visit www.nassp.org/apoy.