OLYMPIA, Wash. – It’s an idea that’s catching on around the country: give school principals the power to reject a teacher assigned to their building. Giving principals veto power has already passed the Washington Senate. But at a public hearing in the House Friday the idea faced opposition – and not just from teachers.
In the education documentary “Waiting For Superman” they talk about the dance of the lemons.
Waiting For Superman: “Principals have their lemons. These are teachers who are chronically bad: they know it, the other teachers know it …”
So, as the movie tells it, at the end of each school year principals get together and trade their lemons. But in testimony before a panel of Washington lawmakers a parade of teachers, principals, superintendents and school board members said that’s not happening in Washington. And they voiced their opposition to giving principals veto power.
“If they have a problem teacher we expect them to put that teacher on a performance plan and work to help that teacher achieve their greatest potential," says Tacoma School Board member Karen Vialle. "Not just shove them off on somebody else.”
Backers of the principal bill include the Washington Business Roundtable and the education reform group Stand for Children. Under the measure, teachers bounced from a building would have eight months to find a permanent slot in another school or face termination.
On the Web:
SB 5242: Teacher reassignments - Washington Legislature
