Learn How to Become a Principal, Superintendent, or Other Administrator in Georgia with a Doctorate or Master’s in Educational Leadership

Check out any one of the many publications that rank our nation’s public school systems every year and you’ll find Georgia somewhere in the middle. Not among the most poor-performing in the nation, but also not among the top states being celebrated for the quality of their public schools. But Georgia is a state on the move, and if you take a closer look, you’ll find plenty of reasons to give the Peach State its due praise for its efforts at working toward a brighter tomorrow for its PreK-12 students.

Take Georgia’s Tiered System of Support for Students, for example — a framework for (1) identifying students in need of enrichment; (2) providing evidence-based interventions; (3) monitoring student progress; and (4) adjusting interventions based on student responsiveness. Through this four-tiered system, schools and districts are able to develop and implement a sound infrastructure and a solid, unified system that meets established goals.

This framework for school and district improvement isn’t just pie-in-the-sky wishing, either. Recent stats reveal that it’s working, and quite well. For example, Madison County High School in Danielsville reported that upon embracing the Tiered System of Supports, their graduation rate increased nearly 5 percent in one academic year alone.

Thanks to efforts like this and to the tireless work of educators like you, Georgia’s public school system continues to show signs of improvement. Your dedication to the state’s public school system and to its some 1.6 million students is firm and unwavering, so taking your career in education to the next level just makes good sense for both you and your career.

You’ve chosen educational administration and leadership as the next stop in your career, and for good reason. A bigger paycheck, plenty of exciting professional opportunities, and more opportunities to effect positive change at both the building and district levels are just some of the exciting things that await you. But first you’ll need to advance your education and complete the education and training that will get you where you want to be.

A move into educational administration and leadership calls for a master’s, educational specialist, or doctoral degree in the field. Fortunately, you’ll find a wealth of graduate-level programs in education and leadership, both in Georgia and throughout the country, that are designed to align with your future career goals.

How to Become a Principal or Superintendent in Georgia – School-level Educational Leadership

There’s more than 2,200 public schools, more than 115,000 educators, and 181 school districts in Georgia. Whether you’re working toward a building-level role as a vice principal, assistant principal, or principal or a district-level role as a superintendent, you’ll find plenty of ways to effect positive change in Georgia’s public education system.

To become a principal or superintendent in Georgia, you must earn Tier II Educational Leadership certification through the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC).

Note: Tiered Leadership replaces Educational Leadership – Building Level (field 706) and Educational Leadership – System Level (field 707) certification.

Before you can become a principal or superintendent in Georgia, you must be a Georgia-certified educator (Level 5 or higher).

Once you meet this requirement, you can begin taking the steps to become a principal or superintendent in Georgia.

Step 1. Complete a GaPSC-Approved Tier I Educator Preparation Program

You must earn Standard Professional Educational Leadership – Tier I certification before you can earn Tier II certification.

To earn Tier I certification, you must complete a master’s, educational specialist, or doctoral degree from a GaPSC-approved Tier I educator preparation program.

To be admitted into an approved GaPSC Tier I program, you must take and pass the Ethics for Educational Leadership Assessment.

GaPSC-approved educational leadership graduate degrees include all coursework and practical experiences necessary to earn Tier I certification in Georgia.

If you’ve already earned a minimum of a master’s degree, you can meet the requirements for Tier I certification by completing a Tier I certification-only program. These programs, which consist of about 18-22 credits and 250 hours of practical experiences, feature coursework such as: