Trends in Public and Private School Principal Demographics and Qualifications: 1987-88 to 2011-12. Stats in Brief. NCES 2016-189
Author: Hill, Jason
Date: 2016-04-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Educational Trends,Principals,Demography,Administrator Characteristics,Administrator Qualifications,Private Schools,Public Schools,Work Experience,Compensation (Remuneration),Administrators,School Surveys,Administrator Surveys,Trend Analysis,Gender Differences,Educational Attainment,Elementary Secondary Education,Tables (Data),Racial Composition,Statistical Distributions,National Surveys

Using data from seven administrations of the Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS), this Statistics in Brief examines trends in public and private school principal demographics, experience, and compensation over 25 years, from 1987-88 through 2011-12. Data are drawn from the 1987-88, 1990-91, 1993-94, 1999-2000, 2003-04, 2007-08, and 2011-12 survey administrations. Principals of the sampled public and private schools provided information about their characteristics, experience, and compensation via written surveys or interviews. Public schools include both traditional public schools and public charter schools. Estimates are produced from cross-tabulations of the data, and t tests are performed to test for differences between estimates. The following study questions are examined: (1) How have selected demographics among principals changed between 1987-88 and 2011-12?; (2) How have the education, experience, and salaries of principals changed between 1987-88 and 2011-12?; and (3) Did new public and private school principals in 2011-12 differ from their more experienced colleagues? Have these differences changed over time? Key findings include: (1) The percentage of female principals increased in public schools between 1987-88 and 2011-12, from 25 to 52 percent. In private schools, while the percentage of female principals did not change, a greater percentage of private school principals were female compared with their public school counterparts across all school years, except for 2007-08.2.; (2) More public school principals reported a master's degree as their highest level of education in 2011-12 compared with 1987-88. However, fewer public school principals held a degree higher than a master's in 2011-12 than in 1987-88. Among private schools principals, the percentages at all degree levels remained unchanged since 1987-88.; (3) Principals in elementary, secondary, and combined public and private schools earned higher salaries in 2011-12 than in 1987-88, even after adjusting for inflation.; (4) In public schools, female principals were more evenly represented among experienced principals in 1987-88 than in 2011-12: 12 versus 47 percent, respectively. During the 2011-12 school year, 54 percent of new public school principals were women; and (5) Among new public school principals in 2011-12, more reported a master's as their highest degree (67 percent) than did their experienced counterparts (53 percent). This was a reversal from 1987-88, when 49 percent of new principals held a master's degree as their highest degree, compared with 57 percent of experienced principals. The following are appended: (1) Data Tables; and (2) Standard Error Tables.