Building a bench of effective, qualified, prepared, and diverse leaders is essential for all organizations, especially school districts. Given the importance of principals to student and school success, many districts face a critical need to identify, train, place, and support new principals. A logical place for districts to turn is to the cadre of assistant principals in their schools. The Assistant Principal Advancement to the Principalship: A Guide for School Districts, supports district leadership in preparing assistant principals for promotion to and success in the principalship. This session will prepare participants to use the guide as an integral part of principal preparation by focusing on forecasting principal vacancies, identifying assistant principals with significant potential to fill vacancies, and implementing a professional learning plan to effectively prepare assistant principals to become principals.
Tiara Booker-Dwyer is one of the authors for the Assistant Principal Advancement to the Principalships: A Guide for School Districts. She also leads the Next Level Maryland Leadership Academy that annually prepares over 50 aspiring assistant principals and principals to lead Maryland schools. She was a part of the team that spearheaded the Maryland Superintendent Academy to prepare aspiring superintendents.