A group of Seattle principals is beginning the process of lobbying the Governor for a veto of the provision I inserted in the Race to the Top bill that lowers the legal bar to demote or remove them from office. The Seattle Times has covered the issue on both the news and editorial sides here, here and here.

I first blogged about the issue of principal leadership here and followed with this recent post.

Like every parent, I believe in strong school centric leadership with high accountability and high authority to lead your team forward. I stand with 40,000 teachers who spoke out loudly and clearly in a fascinating new Gates Foundation report about teacher attitudes toward progress. Not surprisingly they found a passionate belief in the need for strong, quality leadership:

“Within these solution areas, the survey findings debunk several commonly held myths about teachers’ views. The survey found that:

While higher salaries are important, teachers say they are less important than a supportive leader. Fewer than half of teachers (45%) say higher salaries are absolutely essential for retaining good teachers. More teachers say it is absolutely essential to have supportive leadership (68%), time to collaborate (54%), and quality curriculum (49%).”

And yet let me be clear: My commitment as a legislator to increasing principal accountability by attempting to eliminate de-facto tenure is matched by my belief in providing you with the tools to achieve your goals.

We all know that principals have little authority over their budgets (about 5% according to many estimates) and the big issue of who teaches and works in their building. We must address this 800 pound gorilla in the room. How can principals be held to a higher standard of performance yet lack authority over their budget and their staff?

Education reform cannot succeed without the embrace of principals and teachers. They form the core of student-centric work and they know the inside of education on every level. Our job as parents, activists and legislators is to empower principals and teachers to reach their full potential. I realize my amendment has caused some disequilibrium among some Seattle principals. But students, teachers, parents, activists and administrators all look to you as a principal to be courageously honest about what it takes to succeed. We need you to ‘be the change you wish to see in the world.’

I am deeply and passionately committed to working closely with principals, teachers, administrators, parents and advocates in Seattle and statewide to craft stakeholder-driven legislation to align principals’ accountability and authority. A first, rough, working draft of the legislation will be ready for distribution, discussion, debate and a genuine dialogue soon.

Your partner in service,

Reuven.