Insights: How Expert Principals Make Difficult Decisions

Learn to make the best decisions for your school!

Essential to inspiring and improving schools, principals make complex decisions on a daily basis.  This invaluable resource offers extensive case studies to explore how expert principals manage crises, navigate tough choices, and support school environments. You will find:

• Problem-solving strategies and cases focused on data analysis and competing stakeholders
• Easy-to-use checklists, robust reflection questions, and a framework to define your own professional core values
• Tools to coach and evaluate teachers, and bolster struggling students

A former elementary and secondary school site administrator, the author presents a highly sensible, cohesive, and research-based approach to decision-making that will greatly benefit school principals at any career stage.

"I have never seen or heard of an excellent school that did not have an excellent principal.  In this important new book McLaughlin helps us to understand what it takes to become a genuine expert as a school leader by closely examining how they navigate the challenges involved in leading schools during these turbulent times."  -Pedro A. Noguera, Peter L. Agnew Professor of Education, Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Development Executive Director, Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools, New York University

"This book is a rare blend of practice and solid academic work. Dionne McLaughlin’s writing shows that she ′talks the talk′ because she has ′walked the walk.′" -Fenwick W. English, R. Wendell Eaves Senior Distinguished Professor of Educational Leadership School of Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

"McLaughlin describes a sensible and cohesive approach to decision making and includes case studies of actual situations faced by real principals. Insights is a valuable resource for new and aspiring principals as well as experienced principals." -C. Diane Payne, Director Principal Fellows Program, Center for School Leadership Development, Chapel Hill, NC