Principal apprenticeships are on the rise. At least six states—Alaska, North Dakota, Ohio, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Virginia—have launched, or are planning to launch, programs that provide financial support and mentorship to educators aspiring to a school leadership role.
The apprenticeship pathway, which lets aspiring principals learn and train on the job, can help those saddled with student loans or a busy schedule find the time and money to pursue their leadership dreams, said Rob Gilstrap, the assistant superintendent of educator preparation at the Virginia Department of Education.
He and other state education leaders spoke during a recent webinar organized by the National Center for Grow Your Own, a nonprofit that helps states and school districts create apprenticeship pathways for teachers and principals.
Last fall, Virginia’s education department was awarded $510,000 in competitive grant funding by the U.S. Department of Labor to start and scale a principal apprenticeship program last year. Already, 37 candidates from 17 school districts have registered for the pathway that’s being rolled out at six universities that offer a master’s degree in education, according to information shared by Gilstrap.
“We’ve been pretty successful,” said Gilstrap, who was surprised by the amount of interest right off the bat. “I wish we’d started with a little more [money]. I think we could’ve supported more people.”
Apprenticeships have been hailed by advocates as the new frontier for educator preparation, eliminating cost barriers while offering substantive mentorship and support.
Ever since the Labor Department officially added K-12 teachers as a qualifying occupation for federal apprenticeship programs in November 2021—opening up a stream of state and federal funding that can pay for tuition assistance, wages, and other supportive services, such as textbooks and child care assistance—nearly every state has gotten approval to offer one. The Labor Department added K-12 principals to the list of approved occupations in July 2023.
North Dakota became the first state to launch a principal apprenticeship pathway soon after, in partnership with two state universities and three school districts.
Nearly three years in, the program is on track to prepare 43 principals, said Laurie Matzke, the assistant superintendent at the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction, during the webinar.
Matzke said the program has had a 100% completion rate so far, and 80% of the candidates have found jobs within North Dakota.
“This is a great rationale for continuing the program,” she said.
Start small, and target more remote locations
Most states aren’t facing a dire principal shortage, a labor environment that contrasts with the wave of crippling teacher shortages that peaked after the pandemic. Alaska, however, is an outlier.
Alaska’s challenging climate and topography—where some remote towns and cities can only be reached by a boat or plane ride—make it difficult for school districts to retain quality leaders, said Kelly Manning, a deputy director at the state’s education department, during the webinar. The cost of living in Alaska is also significantly higher than the national average, which could make it harder for educators to stay put in especially remote areas.
The principal turnover rate in Alaska hovers around 35% statewide, but in remote or rural areas, the shortage is more acute, with turnover rates closer to 55%. In contrast, the national rate of principal turnover stood at 16% in the 2021-22 school year, according to a study by the RAND Corp.
“Not only do our districts have to address the principal vacancy, but also the impact that leadership turnover has on the teachers,” said Manning.
For Alaska’s schools, the principal apprenticeship pathway will become a means to grow high-quality leaders within these remote locations, by giving them access to a fully paid leadership degree and 2,000 hours of on-the-job training under the guidance of an existing principal. Alaska’s program will officially begin this spring.
Manning said the program will target more remote school districts with the most acute turnover first, and start small with three to five apprentices.
“If we can meet the needs of our most rural remote districts, we can always adjust that to meet the needs of our larger, more urban districts. But it’s harder to do it the other way around,” Manning added.
For remote locations, principal apprenticeships can also boost retention.
While North Dakota doesn’t have a principal shortage yet, Matzke said it’s still hard to find teachers and principals who want to move to remote or rural school districts and stay there. It’s easier, she added, to provide growth opportunities for educators who are already part of the community.
“They obviously like it there. They want to stay there,” Matzke said. “If we can grow them and help them attain their [master’s] degrees, then obviously they’re going to stay, and that solves the problem. It’s been a great approach for us to strengthen the process of preparing principals.”
The program targets smaller, more remote school districts first, but there are opportunities to nurture leaders in larger school districts as well, Matzke added.
Assistant principals who aspire to become school leaders may already have their master’s degree, but leaders in other roles, like special education directors or instructional coaches, can leverage the pathway.
When there are multiple partners, clarify roles
North Dakota started with 21 apprenticeship candidates in its first year of the principal program, and one university partner. The number of apprentices has more than doubled now. Participating school districts have also gone from three to 12, and the state’s education department added another university partner that’s created its own apprenticeship program.
When there are multiple moving pieces in a program, it’s important to define clear roles for each partner, said Matzke.
Initially, both the universities and the school districts were “confused” about what they needed to do, she said. Matzke’s team solved that challenge by creating a detailed playbook that lays out what is expected from each partner: The school district employs the apprentice, the instructional partner or university provides the necessary coursework required for credentials, and the state education agency strings together the entire effort.
“Everyone signs off on it,” Matzke said. “It makes everyone aware of what they’re supposed to do.”
