School principals face growing administrative load, and expectations of leadership
Principals must handle employment law, finance, procurement and property management, while pay does not always match responsibility. The author calls for looking beyond teachers when recruiting principals and for stronger peer support.
The range of duties facing school principals is widening, which may be one reason vacancies attract few applicants. Judging by selection requirements, a head must handle employment law, record keeping, finance, procurement and property management alongside oversight of the educational process.
Pay and responsibility
Salary may be another deterrent. Some 2026 job ads show only a small gap between base pay for principals and teachers. The Jelgava 4th Primary School principal vacancy lists 1,929 euros gross per month, while a teacher at Jelgava 4th Secondary School is offered 1,600 euros for a full workload. Salaspils 1st Secondary School offered teachers from 1,940 euros for a full workload in the new school year. Pay depends on pupil numbers and municipal rules, yet greater responsibility does not always bring a notably higher wage.
School as an enterprise
As child numbers fall, schools compete for pupils, so principals must identify their school's strengths, define its offer and persuade parents. The head of More Primary School says enrolment grew from about 80 to 175 in ten years, and that her earlier experience in finance and marketing proved useful.
The Directors' Club of the Independent Education Association was founded three years ago. Together with the association "Līdere", a mentoring programme called "Business Leader – for the School Leader" is also run.
Finnish experience and new principals
Last week the association met nearly 60 school principals from Finland. There, school premises are used by various community groups, and the principal becomes a local community leader.
According to the OECD TALIS 2018 study, 25% of principals are aged 60 or over. The author argues that successors can be sought beyond teachers, provided a person can lead a team and keeps the child at the centre of the school's work.
