Putnam Leans On Principal Pipeline For New Hires

With multiple principals stepping down across the school system over the last several weeks, how do the Putnam County Schools replenish the pipeline of candidates?

Deputy Director Tim Martin said the district offers training courses for teachers with the potential to take on administrative leadership roles. He said the district consults teachers and parents to feel out their preferences. Martin said he favors familiarity over experience.

“When we hire somebody out of the district, even if they have good recommendations, we don’t know 100 percent what we’re getting until they get here and start working,” Martin said. “And when that’s a leadership position, that’s a big deal.”

Martin said principals nominate teachers to participate in the pipeline each year. He said from there, the district leans on the training instructors to suggest candidates.

“Sometimes we’ll have teachers that say, ‘Look, I want to be a leader in my building. I want to be a lead teacher. I want to help my principal do things inside my school, but I’m not interested in going farther than that,'” Martin said. “You know, then they might not progress on later on.”

He said the district takes into account grade level as well. He said some candidates may be better suited for high schools, elementary schools, or vice versa. He said that for any principle, adaptability and good judgment are of utmost importance.

“It’s got to be somebody that can make some decisions while under pressure,” Martin said. “Those types of things. You’ve got to be able to talk to a lot of different people. You’ve got to be fairly outgoing. You’re going to see a lot of different people on every day that you work.”

He said that the district has no experience requirements, but all candidates must be certified by the state, which requires a master’s degree.