Why This Principal Is Staying Put When So Many Want to Quit
Students are facing pandemic-related mental health challenges. There are
academic gaps to close. Teachers are overwhelmed. Political battles from
outside are seeping past the front gates and into schools.
“This is such a crucial and critical moment in our society,” said Asher, the
principal of Orange High School in Lewis Center, Ohio, about 20 miles north of
Columbus. “My biggest thing is that I don’t want to look back at this moment
and regret not meeting it.”
The profession is observing National Principals Month at a stressful time for
those in that frontline role. About 40 percent of secondary school principals
said in a survey this summer that they planned to quit in the next three years
and another 14 percent said they intended to do so in the next school year.
Asher isn’t one of them.
“No—in case that was a question,” Asher, an administrator for 14 years, six of
them as a high school principal, said emphatically. “This is exactly what I’m
supposed to be doing.”
But Asher truly gets why her colleagues are stressed out and why the weight of
the last three years—an unending pandemic, changing instructional modes,
racial discord, and distrust—is leading so many of them to say they’re
thinking about packing it in.
“This work is hard; it’s really difficult,” she said. “In recent years, it has
become increasingly more difficult. … Schools do not exist in a vacuum. We
are reflections of our communities. So when you see these large divisions in
the community, we often get the brunt of that, and have to figure out how to
manage.”
My biggest thing is that I don’t want to look back at this moment and regret
not meeting it.
Monica Asher, principal, Orange High School, Lewis Center, Ohio
Add to that, many administrators were just not prepared for some of the
challenges they’re currently facing, and it’s easy to see why many feel
they’ve reached their limit, Asher said.
“It is definitely overwhelming,” said Asher. “You often feel like you’re not
succeeding. It can be difficult to want to kind of pick up and keep going.”
‘This generation gives me a lot of hope’
The thing is: Many of the factors that are nudging principals towards the
exits are the same ones keeping Asher firmly rooted in the principal’s office.
“I see so many kids in crisis,” Asher said, adding that she wants to “provide
a space where they can have support, where you can empower their voice, where
you teach them how to communicate, how to disagree.”
“This generation gives me a lot of hope,” she continued. “When I see them
struggle, I want to help them not struggle because I see so much kindness in
them. I see compassion. I see innovation. I see a lot of wonderful things in
them.”
Asher wants to be a role model for students, in general, at a time when
national leaders don’t always offer the best examples, she said. But she also
wants to be a beacon for girls, in particular, who don’t often see women in
the secondary school principal’s office. (Although the number of female high
school principals has been increasing, only 54 percent were female in the
2017-18 school year, according to federal data.)
Focusing on staff’s, students’, and families’ needs
Asher joined the Olentangy, Ohio, district this summer as Orange High School’s
principal, having spent the last six years leading Chagrin Falls High School,
just outside of Cleveland.
She started her education career as a teacher in Las Vegas, before moving back
to Ohio for graduate school. Though sports played a big role in shaping her
outlook as a student, her first school leadership job—as an athletic
director—was not the right fit.
“I hated that job,” Asher said. But once she made the move to an assistant
principal position, Asher knew that she’d found a home.
Monica Asher talks to faculty members before a football game during a tailgate
party on staff appreciation night.
Monica Asher, principal of Orange High School in Lewis Center, Ohio, talks to
faculty members before a football game during a tailgate party on staff
appreciation night.
Dustin Franz for Education Week
In her new position, she’s taking time to learn about the school community and
its needs before barreling ahead with grand plans.
But one area she’s already focused on is strengthening the school’s MTSS
(multi-tiered systems of support) to ensure that students and families do not
to fall through the cracks when they are facing difficult times.
This generation gives me a lot of hope. I see compassion. I see innovation. I
see a lot of wonderful things in them.
Monica Asher, principal, Orange High School, Lewis Center, Ohio
The societal and political divisions of the last few years have made
school-community partnerships more difficult even as the need for those bonds
became more apparent, she said.
“What has been interesting in the last couple of years is that parents have
definitely been more open about when they are struggling, and they’ll call and
want to know what they should be doing to help their kids,” Asher said.
“Because kids don’t come with manuals, and parents are learning this like we
are. I think that school systems can figure out a better way to provide
wraparound services for families.”
Principals should heed their emotional limits
Asher is not staying solely for the students, but also for the teachers who
are their trusty guides.
At Chagrin Falls, she worked with staff to ensure that teachers were able to
recognize and address secondary trauma in themselves.
“When you are with people all day long who are in crisis, it’s hard to take
care of your own mental health,” Asher said.
The job can extract a heavy toll, and she urged principals and teachers to
know their emotional, physical, and mental bandwidths and prioritize their
well-being. Networks and mentors can help principals find the right balance,
she said.
While a significant percentage of principals have been saying they’ll quit
throughout the pandemic, many are not following through. That means that there
are lots of stressed out and overworked principals continuing to lead the
nation’s public schools.
“I’ve had to really work with myself and my staff about understanding
boundaries with empathy and compassion, so that they aren’t impacted to the
point where they also need that support,” Asher said. “Because if somebody is
struggling, and you are so involved in that struggle, and you begin to
struggle as well, then we are saving two people instead of one.”
Monica Asher takes a selfie with other staff members before a football game on
staff appreciation night.
Principal Monica Asher gets a photo with staff members before a football game
at Orange High High School.
Dustin Franz for Education Week
As someone who has put a lot of pressure on herself to hide her weaknesses and
imperfections, Asher said she’s been intentional about showing a “human side”
of herself to staff and students to let them know that everyone goes through
hard times and it’s OK to seek assistance.
“I have to model that, and I’ve gotten much better at being OK with having
moments when I am not OK,” she said.