Professional Documents
Culture Documents
School Policies
School Policies
Lindsay Coyne
EDU 505
becoming a leader. Principals must learn and become fluent in the school’s policies in
order to most effectively serve and protect their staff and students. Each district differs
with their mission, their vision and the overall policies and rules that govern each school
as well as local and state laws that they must abide by. These policies are put in place
to best keep personnel, students and instructional programs effective and meeting all
Syracuse, NY. We are governed under National Heritage Academies (NHA) which is
based out of Michigan and follow the policy and protocols of a local school district. Our
leadership team follows the policy and regulations handed down by both our governing
board and the local district in a most effective and cohesive matter. We follow an NHA
developed Vision & Mission that aligns with local and state policies. The NHA Handbook
states, “This handbook has been written with the intent to comply with applicable local,
specifically designed to learn the ways and policies of a charter school. The principal
works side by side with the Chief Executive Officer and the Director of School Quality to
most effectively learn the NHA way, including the vision and the mission. In accordance
with NHA, the producers of the handbook have incorporated some specific policies from
the local school district to ensure meeting state standards as well. As a principal, it is
your duty to learn all of the policies in entirety, so as to most effectively serve as a
leader. Under the Syracuse City School District handbook, it states the principal must
“be knowledgeable about the policies of the Board of Education and administrative
regulations and rules, and enforce them fairly and consistently” (SCSD, 2019). NHA has
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adopted that statement into their own handbook, therefor creating a cohesiveness
Legally the principal is mandated to follow all of these policies and must be
ensured that they are accurately and fairly doing so by the governing board. As a part of
the hiring process, the principal is required to sign the Code of Conduct, Character and
Support under the Pursuant to Education Law. This binds the principal by law to follow
and enforce all of these policies and makes them aware of any legal repercussions that
management position who knowingly do not follow and abide by the policies and
regulations will be subject to disciplinary action including but not limited to legal
repercussions and immediate discharge (NHA, 2019). These handbooks are adapted
and put into place in order to protect all parties involved including the principal as well as
to govern and follow all education laws and policies. Another important piece of being a
leader is not only knowing the current policies and laws but keeping current with all
statues and laws. Fortunately, when it comes to education there are databases
designed to assist with this. Both LexisNexis and Westlaw are two databases that
provide sources for legal research and tools for educational professionals (Essex, p.14).
With all of these tools and supports in place, it is very difficult for a principal to fail or
falter from that as long as they follow the correct pathway and keep current and up to
date.
The mission and vision of any education establishment is the founding piece of
the institute. Knowing that vision and mission are key in running a successful operation.
NHA schools were founded around families. They are the driving force in all NHA
schools and what the vision, mission and core values are based on. Being a principal in
an NHA school, you are required to lead under the 5 governing principals. These
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include taking owner ship for the success of the students, do the right thing always,
behave with care, making the schools the best choice for parents’ students and acting
with discipline to sustain our academic success and financial viability. (NHA Schools,
2020). A leader must act and rule with these principles in mind. Each of these
principles align with the policies and governing bodies of the school making the job of
Each school is very different in their educational policies and procedures, yet
they all have on common goal of providing an education that is effective and meets all
state and local standards and requirement. As the principal it is their duty to ensure that
this happens. Becoming knowledge, aware and efficient in the policies and laws that
govern their academic program will only help them be successful and protect them in all
areas of leadership. As a leader you must make it your goal to understand the
connection between all governing pieces as well as implement and align those into the
References
Essex, Nathan. (2016). School Law and the Public Schools: A Practical Guide for Educational
National Heritage Academies: Who We Are. (2020, February 10). Retrieved from
https://www.nhaschools.com/en/who-we-are.
Syracuse City School District. (2020). Code of Conduct, Character and Support. Syracuse,
NY.