The idea of being sent to the principal’s office has caused chills to go up the spine of many a student over the years. No one wants to go to there.

It turns out, according to a newly released Penn State study, that as much as students don’t want to be in the principal’s office, a number of principals aren’t exactly happy there either.

In the 2022-23 school year, 15.4% of principals in Pennsylvania schools left their jobs for other opportunities, according to the survey from the university’s Department of Education Policy Studies. That’s an increase of a little more than 4% over the 2021-22 academic year. It’s the highest rate of principal turnover in close to a decade, and matches the national rate. More principals are searching for the exits at the same time there’s been a much-publicized teacher exodus and a decreasing number of young people seeking to enter the profession.

And for those who believe charter schools are a cure-all for the ills of public schools, it’s worth noting that the rate of principal attrition at urban and suburban charter schools is even higher than at public schools, coming in at around 35% – that’s 1-in-3.

For all the fear principals can strike in the hearts of students, it’s easy to understand why many principals would want to seek out greener and less stressful pastures. Principals rise up through the ranks of educators, and they have to combine administrative acumen with classroom skills. Principals have to deal with personnel and students inside their buildings, parents and community members outside, and administrators above them. They attend school events, and work outside the office. With that kind of workload, who wouldn’t be tempted by the prospect of getting a job where the hours might be shorter and more predictable and the pay is better?

Robin Cooper, president of the Commonwealth Association of School Administrators, told The Philadelphia Inquirer, “It’s intensified to such a degree that it becomes not worth it for a lot of people. People are choosing their mental health, and when they can get out, they’re getting out.”

Ed Fuller, an associate professor in Penn State’s College of Education, told the Inquirer, “I would argue principal turnover is more important than teacher turnover. One of the really important ways to address teacher turnover is to have good quality leadership. If you have constant leader turnover, you can’t create a high-performing school.”

Like anyone, principals get better at their jobs the longer they are in them, acquiring more insight and skills as they go along.

And no small number do go on to administrative positions, such as superintendent. But, as Fuller pointed out, we need to do more to keep the principals we have. Better salaries and lower stress would be places to start.

And probably a little appreciation, too. It’s a tough job and they deserve it.