Teacher and Principal Evaluation Policy
The data and analysis on this page is from 2019. View and download the most recent policy data and analysis on Principal Effectiveness in New Mexico from the State of the States 2022: Teacher and Principal Evaluation Policies report.
Objective Student Growth Measures: New Mexico requires that 50 percent of a principal's evaluation rating be based on the change in a school's A through F letter grade, and 25 percent must be based on a school's multiple measures.
Link to Teacher Effectiveness/Instructional Leadership: New Mexico requires that a principal's professional practice is evaluated using the state's Leadership Competencies and Indicators, which include Instructional Leadership. Specifically, a principal is rated based on whether he or she "evaluates teachers using the Three-Tiered Licensure Performance Evaluation to promote high quality teaching and professional learning."
Improvement Plans: New Mexico requires that all principals rated minimally effective or ineffective are placed on a 90-day performance growth plan.
Surveys: New Mexico state policy does not mention surveys for the purposes of principal evaluation.
Require or explicitly allow surveys.
New Mexico should require—or at the very least, explicitly allow—survey data to be included in a principal's evaluation rating. These data could be derived from school climate, teacher, student, or school community surveys and are necessary to provide data about a principal's overall leadership of the school community.
New Mexico recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis.
7G: Principal Effectiveness
Research demonstrates that there is a clear link between school leadership and school outcomes.[1] Principals foster school improvement by shaping school goals, policies and practices, and social and organizational structures.[2] Principals vary significantly in their effectiveness, and research suggests that high-quality principals positively affect student achievement, in-school discipline, parents' perceptions of schools, and school climates.[3] Further, principals affect teacher retention and recruitment;[4] effective principals are more adept at retaining effective teachers and removing ineffective teachers.[5] The time principals spend on organizational management, instructional programming, and teacher evaluation is critically important for positive effects on teachers and students.[6] Because principals are an essential component of creating successful schools, their effectiveness should be regularly evaluated by trained evaluators on systems that include objective measures. Such systems will help to ensure that all principals receive the feedback and support necessary to improve their practice and, ultimately, student and school outcomes.