Research & Reports

Leaders We Need Now

NAESP worked with the American Institute of Research to conduct focus groups with elementary school principals about school and professional changes occurring through 2020-21, a year when most schools experienced significant crises. We wanted to know how schools and the profession were changing from the perspective of principals, who were leading the change, and what policy supports principals believed were necessary to support schools.

Elementary School Principals’ Professional Learning

To learn more about principals’ opportunities for professional learning, NAESP teamed up with the Learning Policy Institute to conduct a national principal study surveying 1,000 principals. The results are outlined in a new report, “Elementary School Principals’ Professional Learning: Current Status and Future Needs.”

Leading Pre-K–3 Learning Communities

This guide encourages elementary principals to deepen their own knowledge and skills related to Pre-K–3rd grade, and to provide specific guidance for principals to become more effective leaders on behalf of young children.

Leading Learning Communities

A practical resource designed for new and experienced principals. It is a distillation of the role of the principal, informed and shaped by experienced principals in diverse schools across the country.

A 10-Year Study of the Principalship

Since the 1928 publication of its first 10-year study, The K-8 Principal, NAESP has been collecting data on the climate, challenges, and conditions that mark the principalship.

Culturally Responsive Schools

The Principal’s Guide to Building Culturally Responsive Schools presents recommendations for four leadership competencies that are meant to guide school leaders in their work to ensure equity for all students.