Where’s The Principal Posting?

(Opinion) ​“When can we expect the Principalship of the Barack Obama Magnet University School to be posted and the search and screen process to begin?”

This was the question asked at the May 10 meeting of the New Haven Board of Education. The question was a moot one, because that very same day the interview process of candidates for that position had begun. Yet the question deserves an answer.

New Haven operates the largest school construction program in Connecticut. Starting in 1995, the Citywide School Construction Program has addressed 41 school programs with additions, renovation, or new construction. New Haven public school buildings are designed to enhance the learning environment for students and staff and provide facilities that can be used year-round by the school and community. By 2016, these projects totaled $1.489 billion in building investment; overall nearly 4 million square feet of school building will be impacted by the program.

Upon examination, the magnet plan with the Connecticut State Department of Education reveals that the Obama school was to be established as a dual language lab school with Southern Connecticut State University.

Thus, the question of when we can expect the principalship of the Barack Obama Magnet University School to be posted and the search and screen process began may be moot, but it is certainly not irrelevant or merely academic. How is it that the principalship of a school with a dual language/bilingual mission it’s not posted, while other schools with similar missions were posted and had successful search and screen processes. What implications and lack of respect is implied in such a decision?

The target population of this dual language school has been dwindling. This is the time at which it is crucial to bring a board and educator who has a strong background in bilingual/dual language education. We need a leader, at that school, who has a deliberate plan to recruit families and shore up enrollment. Someone who brings the target population to the table at which decisions about recruitment, choice and enrollment are made. Someone who can speak to families in their language and explain the remarkable opportunities for their children if they choose a dual language pathway. Someone who can ensure that recruitment is not blind to the cultural and linguistic needs of students and families. … So that enrollment supports sound programming and instruction.

We ask that the New Haven Board of Education, Superintendent Tracey, as well as the entire administration continue to recognize important opportunities to shore up the bilingual educational pipeline in New Haven. As you may know, The Obama School is poised to be a place where teachers can develop the strategies,they will need to support the entire district’s workforce. Remember that English Learners come from all over the world, Africa, Latin America, Asia, the Caribbean, Asia minor, the Middle East and Europe, … and make up 1 in 5 students in our district. That proportion is expected to grow.

When many community and district leaders encouraged, strongly, our New Haven alders to include $10 million in our city budget to build the Barack Obama School, it was with the urgent goal to address the educational needs of this population. From the very beginning of this effort the Board of Education and the Board of Alders conceived of the Obama School at Southern Connecticut State University’s College of Education as the much-needed conduit & environment to address the shortage of bilingual teachers.

Thus, why not open this position, publicly, to increase the probability of getting the best qualified person to undertake the goals and mission for which the school was funded by the state legislature and by the New Haven board of Alders?

Instead, the interview process for a new principal is going on currently with little if any public knowledge. In fact, even some members of the Board of Education were not aware of this fact.

Some background is important for understanding the severity of this situation. For the last several years, the New Haven Public Schools has experienced a shortage of teachers, … specifically in bilingual and special education. Given that the need for teachers in these areas surpasses the supply, students are being taught by teachers not qualified in these areas, retired teachers, substitute teachers, and teachers brought in from outside our state and, even, outside the country. 

One of the goals of the district was to support Southern in the preparation of future local teachers. Therefore, the Obama School is so important. It is meant to be a pipeline of NHPS students to Southern’s College of education where they could practice at a school which is, in fact, a microcosm of the New Haven Public Schools. 

Thus, the leader of this school needs to be more than proficient in dual language/bilingual education, language acquisition, second-language acquisition. This person must be skillful in navigating the cultural and linguistic needs of the target population’s parents and community. This person needs to understand culturally responsive pedagogy that relates to multilingual learners attending dual language schools. This leader needs to ​“understand and foster a culture of continuous improvement through collaboration with staff, …” and with families whose home language may not be English. 

Also, we need to remember that this leader, along with the rest of the school’s staff, will serve as mentor for SCSU’s pre-service teachers and NHPS’s future teaching force. 

Dual language research demonstrates that students achieve at higher levels when implemented correctly and with fidelity. Thus, it is imperative to:

• Post the Obama principalship, broadly, advertising it as the dual Language lab school on the campus of Southern Connecticut State University, … and emphasize that this school is prepared to be a place where teachers can develop the strategies, they will need to support the entire district’s workforce. 

• Interview qualified candidates who exhibit the appropriate preparation to lead a Bilingual / Dual Language School, … someone who is bilingual and has the language acquisition background necessary to attract families during the Choice and Enrollment process. 

By ensuring that the next leader of the Barack Obama Magnet University School be linguistically and culturally representative of the families who need to be recruited for the school, we would be raising the bar to ensure that the vision and mission of the school, and of the New Haven Public Schools, are fulfilled.