To boost education in Washington, find better administrators | Opinion

I let the phone ring three times before picking up. I had interviewed for a teaching job in the morning and was told a decision would be made by the end of the day. I had already learned from previous interviews that candidates not selected for positions did not get a call back, so I was excited to pick up the receiver.

“Mr. Jankanish?”

“Yes,” I replied.

“I want you to know you were the unanimous choice of the interview panel for the job, but you will not be hired. You may recall the man sitting in the corner of the room during the interview?”

“Yes.”

“He was the head basketball coach, and he has asked the principal not to hire you.”

“Why?”

“Do you recall being asked if you would be willing to coach the JV basketball team? You said you would coach the team, but coaching would never be a priority over your teaching.”

So, that was it. I thanked the person for calling and put the receiver down.

I guess I understood why the head basketball coach would object to my hiring, but I was put off by the willingness of the principal to so easily give priority to the wishes of the coach.

This early close encounter with the reality of our schools stayed with me for my entire 48-year career in the classroom.

The early days of the Trump administration have been characterized by much wringing of hands as his administration has swiftly moved to abolish or reform many longstanding government programs and agencies. The Department of Education has been one of those targeted for eventual shutdown.

This has not been the only hot button education issue instigated by the Trump administration: transgender players on girls sports teams, the expansion of school choice initiatives and low national student scores on measures of academic performance have all been on the table for debate, along with the on going question of how to attract, train and retain high quality teachers to the class room.

However, one issue is rarely raised in discussions of needed education reforms: The training and quality of school administrators, from vice principals and principals on up to central office administrators.

In my 48 years in the classroom, I have taught in three major Washington school districts and a variety of schools within each district, from grade 7 to grade 12, with the majority of my time teaching AP Social Studies classes at the high school level. I have encountered a great many school administrators. With one exception, all of them demonstrated one common characteristic: They prioritized looking good over actually being good.

This attitude plays out in many ways, all detrimental to the academic performance and overall success of our schools.

Consider one Washington State school district that hit upon the idea that Advanced Placement class enrollment standards were not equitable. Their solution was to enroll all students, with few exceptions, into AP classes.

The results have not been good. According to U.S. News and World Report, 69% of students at one Tacoma high school took at least one AP exam, but only 15% of students passed at least one AP exam. A school that succeeded in educating students to AP standards would achieve higher scores.

To better serve our students and schools with high-quality principals and administrators, several reforms should be implemented.

First, a minimum of 10 years of teaching experience ought to be required for principal candidates. The current standard in Washington State is only three years, hardly enough for anyone to know anything about teaching.

Additionally, the centralized administrative bureaucracies need to be reduced or eliminated, devolving more operational authority to the school building level.

Most importantly, teachers need to play a bigger role (not the teachers’ union) in the identification and selection of principals and supporting administrative staff.

The aftermath of the COVID pandemic has created an opportunity to rethink schooling in America. Hopefully, figuring out how to recruit, train and retain high-quality principals and other administrators will be a top priority as part of that effort.