131Chapter Ten
Monitor the Communication
The original title of this chapter was “Control the Communication,” but
that sounded a bit too autocratic; however, given the scrutiny under which
schools and principals now operate, perhaps it would have been more ac-
curate. The principal’s office generates hundreds of documents each year:
reports, memos, letters, and bulletins. Each assistant principal’s office
adds scores more, including curriculum materials. Other offices, from the
dean’s office (disciplinary and hearing reports) to the admissions office
(public relations materials, letters to schools) to the Student Organization
office (flyers on field trips, graduation, prom), add more documents. Then
there are the official school publications: the school newspaper, the year-
book, the literary magazine, the school play or concert or sing or fashion
show program.
Any of these items could include inappropriate or overly controversial
content or embarrassing usage and spelling errors that could lead to the
principal being called on the carpet by her superiors or an exposé by the
ravenous press looking for yet another way to lambaste the schools. Is it
any wonder that principals want to monitor the communication?
There are several strategies a school leader may employ to ensure that
communications intended for both the internal school community and the
wider world are appropriate and relatively free of errors.
First, the school leader needs to change his personal writing style for all
school communications. In general, the longer the document, the greater
the possibility it will be misunderstood, likewise, the greater the likeli-
hood he will miss some writing errors. The same can be said about the