Dr. Carr/EDL /15/2010

Interview #1 Retired Principal Stan Sneeden interview conducted on October 2 nd What did you enjoy the most about being a principal? I liked seeing my students succeed and I also like working with teachers helping them in their professional development. I liked walking through the door in the morning and having my students greet me with a smile, that made my day! What was the most challenging aspect of your job? Honestly, the largest challenge I faced was keeping the parents and teachers happy at my school. The students were the easiest part of my job. I have five children of my own and I enjoy trying to get kids to make the right choices.

Interview #1 (cont.) What changes impacted you the most during the years of your profession? During the first few years of my principal position I saw a trend in buying the latest and most advanced textbooks and learning programs. The last few years of my profession saw the gradual introduction of technological devices into schools. I liked the new technology, but many of my teachers who were excellent performers resisted this change. I think this resistant had a big impact on me as I saw it as an advantage, not an inconvenience. I was dismayed to see the reactions of teachers I had depended on for years protesting to new ideas.

Interview #1 (cont) What advice would you have for a new, upcoming principal? Good question! I have been out of it for a while and I am sure things have changed. I still think the students have to be the main priority in all decision making. How did you maintain organization and prioritize obligations as a principal? I was fortunate when I got my first job as a principal to have the rare opportunity to start at a well established school. I had people all around me whole helped me organized and meet deadlines. If anything, the help I received was above and beyond the call of duty and for that I can still say today that I am grateful. I had a calendar and scheduling notebook and I must have referred to that several times a day!

Interview #1 (cont) Did you consider yourself to be a teacher mentor, supervisor, and leader all at the same time? I like to think I helped to mentor my teachers and lead my school to success. I certainly felt privileged to work with all of my colleagues and I still keep in contact with many of them today. How did you manage to gain teacher trust and confidence, yet still remain an observer and evaluator? That can be a tricky assignment (laughs), I just think a person just has to rely on his intuition for developing this type of skill. If given the opportunity to do it all over, would you still choose the same career path as you chose in principal leadership? I would do it all over again even the bad days. It was well worth it, I loved being a principal. Retirement is not so bad either!

Interview with Mrs. Margaret Dickens, current Principal of Castle Hayne Elementary School

Interview with Mrs. Brenda Whitley 15 year supervisor at Born Again Christian Academy

Thanks for listening to my principal interviews!