Leaders for California’s Schools

A new PACE policy brief presents an overview of the current state of school leadership in California. Susanna Loeb and Jon Valant from Stanford University examine the challenges that California must overcome to recruit, hire, train, and retain strong and talented principals, with a particular focus on the limitations of current state and district policies. Loeb and Valant note that California principals are underpaid relative to their colleagues nationwide, and many report feeling overworked, constrained by state policies, and doubtful that they will remain in the principalship until retirement. The authors propose a set of actions that policymakers can take in order to ensure that great principals are providing leadership in all of California’s schools.