When Fort Worth ISD schools open their doors to students this fall, 53 of its 120
campuses will be led by a new principal–the highest principal turnover the district
has seen in a decade. Jo Beth Jimerson, College of Education Professor and William
L. and Betty F. Adams Chair of Education, spoke with the Fort Worth Report about the
shakeup.
“You have a campus having to readjust to a principal within a district having to readjust to an entire new leadership structure,” Jimerson said. “That’s probably like standing on a rowboat and shaking it and trying to make a sandwich. It’s going to be really challenging until things settle down.”
A successful campus leader can have a massive impact on both student outcomes and campus culture. But, according to Jimerson, that impact doesn’t happen immediately. Meaningful improvement will take more than a single school year. “You have these waves that go back and forth from the classroom through campus through the district and back down,” she said. “All of those things take time to settle.”
Read more at the Fort Worth Report.