Assistant Principal: a guide for teachers
By Devin Lewis, Founder of NextGround
- Runs operations
- Supervises adults
- Observes and coaches
- Sets direction
You might like this if
- You want school-wide impact
- You can hold a hard conversation
- You're organized under pressure
What the job is
Assistant principals help run the school. The Bureau of Labor Statistics says they may own a subject area, student safety, discipline, attendance, buses, or the building itself, depending on what the principal assigns.
A day in the role
Two classroom observations with feedback, a discipline conference, a bus issue, a parent meeting, and a basketball game that night.
Teaching skills that translate
Leading a classroom becomes leading adults, hard parent conversations become hard staff conversations, and your organization under pressure becomes operations.
How teachers get there
The Bureau of Labor Statistics says principals typically need a master's in education leadership or administration plus teaching experience, and most states license school administrators. Check your state's rules for assistant principals.
Pay and outlook
Occupation: K-12 education administrators
- Median pay
- $105,870
- Projected growth
- Little or no change through 2035, but about 20,600 openings come up each year as people retire or move on
View the source. Data as of May 2025 wages, 2025 to 2035 projections, Bureau of Labor Statistics.