News Briefs
Addressing the Pay Gap: Recommendations to the K–12 Basic Education Compensation Advisory Committee
Legislation passed in 2021 directs OSPI to convene a K-12 Basic Education Compensation Advisory Committee to develop recommendations to the Governor and the Legislature that supports recruiting and retaining a multicultural and multilingual educator workforce. The focus of proposals should address how compensation could be structured, and what could be put in place to attract and retain a highly qualified, multilingual, and multicultural workforce.
Read our letter and proposal to the K-12 Basic Education Compensation Advisory Committee. It addresses the shrinking pay difference between teachers and principals, as well as the out-of-balance expectations and workload.
Principal and Assistant Principal of the Year Nominations
As this year starts to wind down, it’s time to think ahead. The nominations are now open for our 2023 Principal and Assistant Principal of the Year. We will select one Washington State Principal of the Year and one Washington State Assistant Principal of the Year. Because there are two national associations, we get to honor four winners at the national level (we pick our two state winners from these four). The national awards are:
- National Association of Secondary School Principals | Principal of the Year
- National Association of Secondary School Principals | Assistant Principal of the Year
- National Association of Elementary School Principals | National Distinguished Principal
- National Association of Elementary School Principals | National Outstanding Assistant Principal
The New AWSP Career Center
Goodbye Job Jar, hello Career Center. For decades, the AWSP Job Jar has been the go-to resource for school administrator jobs in Washington. We’ve finally retired the old “job jar.” In its place, you’ll find a much more powerful and fully featured AWSP Career Center. With new features for job posters and job seekers, there’s something new and improved for everyone. Access the Career Center now.
AWSP’s Principal Contract Guide
We designed this resource to help principal groups, large and small, enter into a mutually beneficial contract agreement with district leadership. Going in to negotiate your contract with the person who evaluates you is not an easy or comfortable task. We hope this guide helps you navigate this delicate, yet important relationship. Our hope is that the following information in this guide will provide you with talking points, research, and examples to help you and your colleagues engage your district in fruitful conversations resulting in a contract that both sustains and rewards your hard work as a school leader. View the principal contract course in our learning management system.
Farewell to Kerry Mill
Kerry Mill, who has been with AWSP for over 10 years as our Administrative Assistant & Member Support Specialist, announced that she will be retiring in April. This is awesome news for Kerry and very sad news for us. We see a lot of exciting travel in Kerry's future.... mostly to warm, sunny locations.
With Kerry leaving, we will be welcoming a new staff member to our team in July. We will tell you more about this exciting news in the next issue, but for now we can say that this person is a currently a teacher, which is why they are waiting until July to join us!
New from AWSL: The AWSL Communications Guidebook
Communication is the heart of effective leadership and fostering positive relationships with team members, students, and communities. AWSL’s new Communication Guidebook features resources, reflective questions, tips and tricks, and insight on how communication can be augmented and strengthened to support leaders in our ever-changing world. This guidebook is for school leaders, instructional leaders, and team leaders as they work, develop and cultivate their teams. Learn more and order the Guidebook.
Find us on
Association of Washington School Principals
Washington Principal | Volume 3 – 2021-22