§ 16-2-11.1. General powers and duties of school principals.
(a) Principals employed under this section shall be the educational administrators and managers of their schools and shall supervise the operation and management of their schools and school property, subject to the supervision and direction of the superintendent. The principal shall have any duties as are defined in this section and in this title and shall perform any other duties as may be vested in him or her by law. In addition to serving as the educational administrator and manager of his or her school, it shall be the duty of the principal:
(1) In consultation with the school improvement team, to recommend the hiring of all teachers, athletic coaches, instructional or administrative aides, and other personnel assigned to the school, consistent with district personnel policies, collective bargaining agreements, and budgetary restrictions, and subject to the approval of the superintendent. Provided, that the hiring of employees may not interfere with the layoff or recall rights provided in collective bargaining agreements and the provisions of § 16-13-6.
(2) To recommend the termination of any teachers, athletic coaches, instructional or administrative aides, and other personnel assigned to the school, consistent with district personnel policies, collective bargaining agreements, and budgetary restrictions, subject to review and prior approval by the superintendent and subject to the provisions of this chapter.
(3) To oversee the care, control, and management of school facilities and equipment.
(4) In consultation with the school improvement team, to prepare a school budget for consideration by the superintendent.
(5) To provide for the evaluation of personnel assigned to the school, including all teachers, consistent with the standards developed by the school committee pursuant to § 16-2-9(a)(15).
(6) In cooperation with the district’s leadership, to initiate a performance review plan for the school and for individual teachers.
(b) It shall be the responsibility of the principal, in consultation with professional staff of the building, to promote participatory decision making among all professional staff for the purpose of developing educational policy.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to limit or interfere with the rights of teachers and other school employees to collectively bargain pursuant to chapters 9.3 and 9.4 of title 28, or to allow any school principal to abrogate any agreement reached by collective bargaining.
(d) Recognizing that there may be a transition period necessary to implement the provisions of this section, all local education agencies, as defined in chapter 97.1 of title 16, shall ensure that the implementation of the powers and duties of school principals as provided by this section are adopted and implemented as soon as practical, but no later than August 1, 2021.
History of Section.P.L. 2019, ch. 224, § 3; P.L. 2019, ch. 259, § 3.
Structure Rhode Island General Laws
Section 16-2-1. - Cities included as towns.
Section 16-2-2. - City and town schools required — School year — Location — Kindergartens.
Section 16-2-3. - Emergency reduction of school year.
Section 16-2-5.1. - Professional development.
Section 16-2-6. - Chairperson and clerk of city or town committee.
Section 16-2-7. - Distribution of documents and blanks by clerk.
Section 16-2-8. - Regular meetings of committee.
Section 16-2-9. - General powers and duties of school committees. [Effective until January 1, 2023.]
Section 16-2-9.1. - Code of basic management principles and ethical school standards.
Section 16-2-9.2. - Joint purchasing agreements.
Section 16-2-9.3. - The advisory council on school finances.
Section 16-2-9.4. - School district accounting compliance.
Section 16-2-9.5. - Other post-employment benefits — OPEB trusts.
Section 16-2-9.6. - Joint purchasing agreements for technology and IT infrastructure.
Section 16-2-10. - Certification of superintendents.
Section 16-2-11. - General powers and duties of superintendent.
Section 16-2-11.1. - General powers and duties of school principals.
Section 16-2-12. - Joint superintendent employed by two or more cities or towns.
Section 16-2-13. - Joint committee — Annual convention — Superintendent — Dissolution.
Section 16-2-15. - Location of schools — Control of property.
Section 16-2-16. - Rules and regulations — Curriculum.
Section 16-2-17. - Right to a safe school.
Section 16-2-17.1. - In school suspensions.
Section 16-2-18. - Selection of teachers and superintendent — General control of schools — Expenses.
Section 16-2-18.1. - Criminal records review.
Section 16-2-18.2. - Prior criminal records checks.
Section 16-2-18.3. - Rules and regulations.
Section 16-2-18.4. - Criminal records review for volunteers.
Section 16-2-18.5. - Prior criminal records checks for school volunteers.
Section 16-2-19. - Children attending in adjoining cities or towns.
Section 16-2-20. - Visitation and examination of schools.
Section 16-2-21. - Pre-budget consultation — Annual reports — Appropriation requests — Budgets.
Section 16-2-21.1. - Repealed.
Section 16-2-21.2. - Three-year budget forecasting process.
Section 16-2-21.3. - Meetings with city and town councils.
Section 16-2-21.4. - School budgets — Compliance with certain requirements.
Section 16-2-21.5. - Notification of state school aid to school districts.
Section 16-2-21.6. - Collective bargaining fiscal impact statements.
Section 16-2-23. - Expenditures pending annual appropriation.
Section 16-2-24. - Survey of city or town schools.
Section 16-2-25. - Distribution of powers in Providence and Cranston.
Section 16-2-26. - Special statutes prevailing.
Section 16-2-27. - Eligibility for attendance — Kindergarten.
Section 16-2-28. - Eligibility for attendance — First grade.
Section 16-2-28.1. - Regulations.
Section 16-2-28.2. - Kindergarten multiple sessions.
Section 16-2-30. - School lunch programs.
Section 16-2-31. - School crossing guard equipment.
Section 16-2-32. - Policy manual for school committee.
Section 16-2-33. - City of Woonsocket — Compensation to school committee members.
Section 16-2-33.1. - City of Woonsocket — School dress code.
Section 16-2-33.2. - City of Central Falls — School dress code.
Section 16-2-34. - Central Falls School District board of trustees.
Section 16-2-35. - The Middletown public schools sponsorship program.