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Lead Transformational Schools at DCPS
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Reach new heights as a leader. Develop new strengths in your team. Build a school that defies expectations for all students. At DCPS, you’ll get the tools, talent and flexibility you need to help teachers and students succeed together.

A VISIONARY DISTRICT THAT PUTS STUDENTS FIRST. We’re building a district where everyone is deeply committed to getting things done for students. We’ve got big goals for our schools, and know that great school leaders are key to our success.

COMPREHENSIVE TOOLS AND SUPPORT. DCPS helps principals do their best work. Tools like the Leadership Framework and IMPACT evaluation system outline a vision for excellence and set clear standards for success. And development opportunities – including individual support from experienced instructional superintendents and a Georgetown Executive Master’s in Leadership program – ensure that principals grow as much as their teachers.

THE FLEXIBILITY THAT REAL LEADERSHIP REQUIRES. In too many districts, principals find that their hands are tied when it comes to important decisions, particularly about who’s in their building. Not here. We’re giving principals the flexibility they need to build strong teams, hold high standards for everyone, and focus on what matters most: giving every student in their care a great education.

THE RECOGNITION YOU DESERVE FOR RISING TO THE CHALLENGE. DCPS offers extremely competitive principal salaries, including up to $25,000 in annual performance bonuses beginning with the 2012-13 school year. We also honor exceptional school leaders with a Standing Ovation awards gala at the Kennedy Center.

School by school, great leaders are achieving great results and overcoming a legacy of low expectations for high-poverty students. Join us and help lead the charge. Learn more on the main DCPS website.

“I love that I can use my experience and my creativity to support my kids. DCPS doesn’t micromanage. They provide support and guidance. I think the question I’ve gotten most is, ‘What do you need?’”

– Pete Cahall, Principal of Wilson High School

Principal candidates will follow the steps below. For details on salary, eligibility and certification, visit the main DCPS website.

1. ONLINE APPLICATION. Upload a resume, answer three essay questions (1.5 hours).

2. PHONE INTERVIEW. Interview with the DCPS school leader selection team (45 minutes).

3. IN-PERSON INTERVIEW. Meet with representatives from the Office of Human Capital, the Office of the Chief Academic Officer and/or DCPS instructional superintendents and principals (2 hours). Complete a reference check.

4. CHANCELLOR'S INTERVIEW. Participate in a one-on-one interview with Chancellor Kaya Henderson (20 minutes).

5. COMMUNITY PANEL INTERVIEWS. Meet with a panel including school community members, parents, faculty, staff and students of schools with principal vacancies. The panels make a hiring recommendation to the Chancellor.

For additional information on assistant principal positions or the Mary Jane Patterson Fellowship (DCPS’s aspiring principal program), please visit the main DCPS website.

 
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meet our principals

Andria Caruthers

Principal
West Education Campus

Pete Cahall

Principal
Wilson Senior High School

Rachel Skerritt

Principal
Eastern Senior High School

 

2003: Began her teaching career in Los Angeles
2005: Began teaching in Nashville
2009: Joined DCPS as an assistant principal
2010: Became the principal of West Education Campus

Coming to DCPS as an administrator is life-changing. You have a chance to really be a part of a progressive movement.

Why did you come to DCPS?

If you have ideas, and you believe it’s really going to bring about achievement for students, this is a district that will support those ideas – not only financially, but also with the human capital that you need to take on big goals. We’re risk-takers in DCPS.

Coming to DCPS as an administrator is life-changing. You have a chance to really be a part of a progressive movement.

How does DCPS support you as a principal?

DCPS has definitely supported my transition. I have an instructional superintendent who was also a K-8 principal, so his expertise and his knowledge are invaluable.

We also meet monthly with other principals. It’s nice to be able to bounce ideas off of other principals who have been with the district for a few years. We get to share ideas and resources.

I don’t feel like I’m ever walking alone trying to figure it out. People are always willing to reach back and help.

Watch Principal Caruthers in action at West Education Campus »

1986: Began his teaching career in Virginia
1996: Became an assistant principal in Greensboro, NC
2003: Became a principal in Montgomery County
2007-08: Served as Director of School Performance in Montgomery County
2008: Joined DCPS as the principal of Wilson High School

DCPS is not for someone who just wants to maintain the status quo. And that's what makes this job so interesting.

What drew you to DCPS?

I believe in what we're doing, who we are, and the direction that we're headed.

I got into education because I wanted to provide opportunities to all the kids that I serve. DCPS seemed like the place to really have a positive impact.

DCPS is not for someone who just wants to maintain the status quo. We need people who are change agents, who are creative. And that's what makes this job so interesting.

This is my twenty-seventh year in education and my fourth school district. This is the longest I've ever stayed in any one position in my career, and I absolutely love it. I've never loved or enjoyed doing anything more.

How does DCPS support you as a principal?

At DCPS, I can use my experience and my creativity to support my students. It's not a micromanagement or a cookie cutter approach. DCPS allows us to do what we need to for our students, who might have different needs or strengths than students in another high school.

It's one thing to have change placed upon you; it was another thing to actually have the ownership to make those changes.  I love that DCPS provides support and guidance. I think the question I've gotten most is, "What do you need?" as opposed to, "Why are you doing this or that?"  It's a great system that has provided the support, but allowed me the flexibility to be creative and to do what I need to do for my school.  

Watch Principal Cahall in action at Wilson Senior High School »

1999: Began her teaching career in Boston Public Schools
2007-09: Served as the headmaster at Another Course to College Pilot High School
2009-10: Served as Chief of Staff to the Superintendent of Boston Public Schools
2010: Joined DCPS as the principal of Eastern High School

I really feel now like I’m on the front line of something very urgent, and I’m excited to be a part of that.

What drew you to DCPS?

I worked many years in Boston, one of the highest-performing urban school districts in the country. But I really wanted a change and a challenge. I noticed that everyone I met from DCPS was hard-charging, hardworking, and really liked challenges.

Are you glad you made that change?

I really appreciate how much I’m learning and growing through this experience, and the fact that there are a lot of people around me who came here for the same reason. I think if I had never left Boston, I would have always wondered if I could hack it in a district that had further to go and more to change. And I really feel now like I’m on the front line of something that’s such a work in progress and very urgent, and I’m excited to be a part of that.

Watch Principal Skerritt in action at Eastern Senior High School »

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