One of Our Own Is Principal for the Day. What Were They Thinking?

The "Principal Today" program creates synergy between the school district and the community at large

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Sometimes, you just have to wonder, what were they thinking?

Tuesday was one of those times, as Miami-Dade County Public Schools invited NBC 6's Ari Odzer to be the principal of the day at iPrep Academy, which is a pre-K through 12th grade school.

What could go wrong?

The district calls the initiative Principal Today, which is basically an invitation for hundreds of community and business leaders to serve as the principal of a school for one day.

What’s the point? It creates synergy between the school district and the community at large.

“And as a result, there’s increased awareness of what education’s all about, there is increased goodwill, there is the exchange and the interaction with students, and we often get internships for students, we get mentorships for students,” explained superintendent Alberto Carvalho.

Carvalho says the goodwill generated by the program is priceless, and often leads to jobs for students beyond internships. 

Those who serve as principals don’t make any real administrative decisions, of course, but they do get to see and experience what happens in classrooms.

Carvalho says the more people who get that first-hand look inside schools, the better it is for the district.

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