Chapter 5: The Case for Selecting Better Principals

There are three imperatives for this book. First, Haberman explained that the problem with school leadership is a result of selection blindness; districts are unaware that current default interview models are misguided and repeatedly fail to identify suitable school leaders. The Haberman Star Administrator Selection Instrument (HSASI) tool (also known as the Haberman Administrator Pre-Screener) is proven, through evidence-based practice, to harvest better principals for turnaround schools. The choice of the right personnel to staff schools, to ensure that each student succeeds, is one of the cornerstones of Haberman’s life work. His vision of a star principal for every school is based on the belief that selection of the right principal “up front” is even more important than training.