The Assistant Principal Identity: Protecting Your Leadership Mindset, Fervor, and Authenticity

by Baruti K. Kafele

Baruti K. Kafele, a champion for assistant principals, offers stories from his own leadership practice and thought-provoking advice for being effective in the role. The job of a school leader is more challenging—and important—than ever. To be effective, administrators need to support their students and staff, but they also need to take care of themselves. Bestselling author Baruti K. Kafele brings this motivational message to the pivotal members of the leadership team who are too often assistant principals. Kafele explains that even as assistant principals gain knowledge and build their leadership identity, their leadership values and skills can be compromised or lost without intentional care. Along with stories from his own years as a transformational school leader, Kafele offers assistant principals 35 thought-provoking questions for reflection and conversation centered on the idea of protection, from How am I protecting my leadership purpose? to How am I protecting my leadership optimism? and How am I protecting my leadership integrity? Whether you are a new or experienced assistant principal, this insightful book will help you hold a mirror up to your own practice and more effectively navigate your powerful role in improving outcomes for students and schools.

Genres: Leadership, Education

124 pages, Paperback

Published May 5, 2023

About the author

A highly-regarded urban educator in New Jersey for over twenty years, Principal Baruti Kafele distinguished himself as a master teacher and a transformational school leader. As an elementary school teacher in East Orange, NJ, he was selected as the East Orange School District and Essex County Public Schools Teacher of the Year, he was a New Jersey State Teacher of the Year finalist, and a recipient of the New Jersey Education Association Award of Excellence.

As a middle and high school principal, Principal Kafele led the turnaround of four different New Jersey urban schools, including "The Mighty" Newark Tech, which went from a low-performing school in need of improvement to national recognition, which included U.S. News and World Report Magazine recognizing it three times as one of America's best high schools.

One of the most sought-after school leadership experts and education speakers in America, Principal Kafele is impacting America’s schools! He has delivered over two thousand conference and program keynotes, professional development workshops, parenting seminars and student assemblies over his 34 years of public speaking. An expert in the area of “attitude transformation,” Principal Kafele is the leading authority for providing effective classroom and school leadership strategies toward closing what he coined, the "Attitude Gap.”

A prolific writer, Principal Kafele has written extensively on professional development strategies for creating a positive school climate and culture, transforming the attitudes of at-risk students, motivating Black males to excel in the classroom, and school leadership practices for inspiring schoolwide excellence. In addition to writing several professional articles for popular education journals, he has authored 10 books, including his six ASCD best sellers - The ASPIRING Principal 50, Is My School a Better School BECAUSE I Lead It?, The Principal 50, The Teacher 50, Closing the Attitude Gap, and Motivating Black Males to Achieve in School & in Life. His next book – The ASSISTANT Principal 50 will be released in Summer, 2020.

Principal Kafele is married to his wife Kimberley, and is the father of their three children, Baruti, Jabari and Kibriya. He earned his B.S. degree in Management Science/Marketing from Kean University and his M.A. degree in Educational Administration from New Jersey City University. He is the recipient of over 150 educational, professional and community awards which include the prestigious Milken National Educator Award, the National Alliance of Black School Educators Hall of Fame Award, induction into the East Orange, New Jersey Hall of Fame, and the City of Dickinson, Texas proclaiming February 8, 1998 as Baruti Kafele Day.

Reviews

[Hilary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite this book being a little over 100 pages, there was too much information packed into it for me to take anything meaningful from it. Something like this might serve better as a weekly podcast with guests who could speak to each part of the assistant principal identity.

[Trish Bodine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kafele presents many questions to ask yourself as the move into an AP position is pursued or attainted.

[Candice Square · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book. This will help me in my career as an AP and it causes a lot of introspection. Highly recommend.

[Lisa K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely soaked up every word in this book!