Editorial: Principal shortage

Thursday, June 10, 2004 | 9:26 a.m.

The Clark County School District has to hire 2,000 teachers every year -- 70 percent of them from out of state -- just to keep up with Las Vegas' explosive population growth, but that shortage isn't the only staffing crunch it faces. As the Sun's Emily Richmond reported Wednesday, the school district is confronted with a shortage of experienced principals, too.

A staggering 35 percent of Clark County's principals in elementary schools have fewer than three years of experience compared to just 7 percent nationally. In secondary schools, 45 percent of Clark County's principals have fewer than three years of experience compared to the national average of 16 percent. What makes it even more difficult for principals here, especially if they don't have much experience, is that our schools typically hold many more students. For example, Clark County high schools are built for 2,700 students while the average high school nationally has 753 students.

It is encouraging then that the Clark County School District is intensifying its search to bring more experienced principals here from other parts of the country. Two such recent recruits, a married couple from Anchorage, Alaska, have impressive credentials. Keith Taton was National Middle School Principal of the Year in 1997 and his spouse, Georgia, was Alaska Principal of the Year in 2000 (they individually have more than 20 years of experience as administrators). These are the kinds of hires we'd like to see more of, principals with experience who have been recognized for their commitment to excellence. Principals often get ignored as part of the educational component, but experience has shown that a principal devoted to academic achievement and instilling discipline can make a real difference in ensuring that children get a quality education.