Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Interview Notes:
CEL3, Culture and Equity Leadership
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Rating Scale (Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership):
1
2
3
Not meeting expectations
Approaching
Effective
Key Indicators
Evidence Collected During Interview
4
Distinguished
Probes – Areas for Follow-up
Rating
(circle one for each
category)
Cultural and Equity Leadership,
Indicator CEL3:
Leads in Equity Pedagogy for the
success of all students toward
college readiness
1
Domain
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
2
3
4
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
Page 1 of 54
Expectation
Indicator
Observable Evidence
Principal Behaviors
CULTURAL AND EQUITY LEADERSHIP
Not Meeting
 Leader is generally unaware of
differences among groups of
students (racial, socio-economic,
sexual orientation, linguistic,
disability or other social and
academic differences).
 Leader does not clearly
understand the equity gaps that
exist in the school and therefore
does not bring attention to
these inequities, nor works to
address them as a school
community.
 Leader does not attempt to
create a college-bound culture
and leaves college as an option
to chance for students whose
families may have this
expectation for them.
 Leader does not always act on
discriminatory behavior or does
not respond appropriately.
 Leader does not ensure that
expectations of high
achievement are communicated
to all students.
CEL 3: Leads in Equity Pedagogy for the Success of all Students toward College Readiness
Approaching
Effective
Distinguished
In addition to “Effective”:
 Leader is aware of differences
 Leader is aware of, speaks openly about, and
among groups of students
celebrates differences and diversity (racial,
 Leader empowers teachers and other
(racial, socio-economic, sexual
socio-economic, sexual orientation, linguistic,
stakeholders to celebrate
orientation, linguistic, disability
disability, age, or other social and academic
differences, discuss inequities, and
or other social and academic
differences) among students, families and
brainstorm and implement solutions
differences) in the school, but
staff, and in society.
to these inequities.
does not make consistent
 Leader understands and publically draws
 Leader creates systems that support
efforts to celebrate those
attention to all equity gaps that exist for
all students with understanding
differences.
various groups of students and staff with
around college bound process (e.g.,
 Leader may understand equity
plans to address their elimination.
application/selection process; college
gaps that exist for various
visiting and orientation process;
 Leader proactively engages in courageous
groups of students but does
career counseling).
conversations about race and creatively
not draw attention to these
implements ways to eradicate these
 Leader exhibits a relentlessness to
gaps as issues that need
inequities within the school; leader is willing
ensure that every effort is made to
immediate attention, or leader
to make difficult decisions in the best interest
support high achievement of all
attempts to create processes
of closing achievement gaps in the school.
students.
to build awareness of these
 Leader creates a college and career going
inequities but is not
culture for all students in the school.
measurably successful.
 Leader moves forward with innovative
 Leader creates sense of
solutions that address inequities with a sense
college-bound culture for
of extreme urgency toward college and
certain groups of students
career readiness.
(e.g., students taking AP
 Leader discusses and sets up structures for
courses, students who are
ongoing conversations for the expectation of
grade-level readers), but this
college readiness with all groups of students
college-bound culture does not
and their families.
apply to all groups of students
 Leader guarantees school environment is free
in the school.
from discriminatory behavior and
 Leader has zero tolerance for
discriminatory practices toward students and
discriminatory behavior.
staff.
 Leader communicates high
 Leader seeks input from staff and students to
achievement expectations
ensure the school and work environment is
throughout most of the school.
open and accepting of diversity.
DPS Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions
Page 2 of 54
Domain
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
Expectation
CULTURAL AND EQUITY LEADERSHIP
Indicator
Observable
Evidence
CEL 3: Leads in Equity Pedagogy for the Success of all Students toward College Readiness
Not Meeting




School Behaviors

Approaching
School does not celebrate or recognize differences and various cultures that exist
within the school community.
Teachers are unaware of and do not discuss equity gaps for various groups of
students.
Strategic initiatives to close achievement gaps for certain groups of students are
not in place in the school.
School does not have a college-bound cultural expectation for all students; college
may be an expectation only for certain groups of students but is not discussed with
others as an option
Only certain groups of students understand that college is an option for their
future, and when asked, most students do not discuss it as an option
Effective






DPS Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions
Distinguished
Students and stakeholders have opportunity to learn about and acknowledge the
various differences and cultures that exist within their diverse community (e.g.,
students, teachers and parents are heard speaking in their native languages,
students, teachers and parents share information about and educate others
about their unique cultures)
School artwork and performances represent all groups; student clubs capture the
diversity of the students; parent groups honor diverse communities and
languages, parent engagement activities account for the parent community
availability and circumstances that exist within their diverse community
Teachers discuss all equity gaps for various groups of students and have specific
efforts in place individually and across classrooms to address the gaps
Teachers work together and know how to implement strategic initiatives that
focus on closing achievement and equity gaps
College-bound culture for all students exists in the school and is embraced by
stakeholders (especially teachers, parents and students)
Students understand that college is an option for their future and when asked
can discuss it as an option
Page 3 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
Instructional Superintendent Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Cultural and Equity
Leadership, Indicator CEL3:
Leads in Equity Pedagogy for
the success of all students
toward college readiness
Principal Behaviors
Leader is aware of, speaks openly about, and
celebrates differences and diversity (racial, socioeconomic, sexual orientation, linguistic, disability,
age, or other social and academic differences)
among students, families and staff, and in society.
Relevant IS Interview Questions
 Let’s talk for a minute about diversity: about race, gender, class, sexual
orientation, or people with disabilities. Can you give us an example of a
time where you led a dialogue around these issues in your school
community? What was the short- and long-term outcome? What, if
anything, would you do differently to improve the outcome in the future?
Leader understands and publicly draws attention
to all equity gaps that exist for various groups of
students and staff with plans to address their
elimination.
 How do you go about setting realistic but ambitious student achievement
goals? How do your goals and expectations for student achievement vary
based on the school community you work with?
Leader proactively engages in courageous
conversations about race and creatively
implements ways to eradicate these inequities
within the school; leader is willing to make difficult
decisions in the best interest of closing
achievement gaps in the school.
 What have you found to be the greatest obstacles in reaching your goal of
increasing student achievement? Have you talked about these challenges
with your teaching staff and school community?
Leader creates a college and career going culture
for all students in the school.
 To your mind, what are the key characteristics of a school committed to
preparing its students for college and a career of their choice? How would
you see it if you visited a campus and spoke with its students, teachers,
parents, and community members?
 What do you see as the key drivers for low college enrollment and
graduation rates? As a principal, how would you ensure that all of your
students are able to graduate high school ready for the college or career of
their choice?
DPS Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions
Page 4 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader moves forward with innovative solutions
that address inequities with a sense of extreme
urgency toward college and career readiness.
Relevant IS Interview Questions
 When you review and analyze your student achievement data, what
patterns do you see in terms of achievement gaps? Are there particular
groups that struggle and what have you done to work with them
specifically? What strategies work best in raising achievement levels for all
students?
 What have you done with teachers to ensure they are working to meet the
needs of all students in their classrooms? What kinds of consistent
instructional routines and practices support students’ success?
Leader discusses and sets up structures for
ongoing conversations for the expectation of
college readiness with all groups of students and
their families.
 What would you say to parents who are unsure of the value of a four-year
college experience or hesitant to push their students to pursue that path?
Leader guarantees school environment is free
from discriminatory behavior and discriminatory
practices toward students and staff.
 Tell me about a time where there has been an issue of discrimination or
harassment for students in your school with which you have been directly
involved. What did you and your colleagues do to protect the students?
Were your actions effective? Why or why not? What would you do
differently if the situation were to come up again to protect the needs of
all students on campus?
 What strategies have you found most helpful to educate first-generation
college students and their parents about the value of a four-year college
experience?
 Scenario: In your first month on the job, a female student comes to you
saying that she has been a target of cyber-bullying on Facebook by other
students from school. She says they are accusing her of being sexual
promiscuous and taunting her daily online. What do you do in response?
What will your follow-up communications be with the student and her
family? With the staff? What will your actions be in relation to the specific
students involved as well as with the broader school community? How do
you know if you have been successful in your efforts?
 Scenario: One of your teachers is openly gay and he comes to you to
confide he has received anonymous, threatening letters and messages
DPS Principal Selection Candidate Interview Materials
Page 5 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader seeks input from staff and students to
ensure the school and work environment is open
and accepting of diversity.
DPS Principal Selection Candidate Interview Materials
Relevant IS Interview Questions
with homophobic slurs on his car and in his mailbox at school. What
would be your plan of action? How would you follow up with the
individual teacher as well as the broader school community around this
issue? What do you think is the role of administrators in communicating
about sexual orientation with students, staff and parents?
 What kind of input will you seek from students and staff to ensure the
school environment is open and accepting of diversity? How will you
gather this information and report it back to the larger group?
Page 6 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
SPSAC Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Cultural and Equity
Leadership, Indicator CEL3:
Leads in Equity Pedagogy for
the success of all students
toward college readiness
Principal Behaviors
Leader is aware of, speaks openly about, and
celebrates differences and diversity (racial, socioeconomic, sexual orientation, linguistic, disability,
age, or other social and academic differences)
among students, families and staff, and in society.
Relevant SPSAC Interview Questions
 Let’s talk for a minute about diversity: about race, gender, class, sexual
orientation, or people with disabilities. Can you give us an example of a
time where you led a dialogue around these issues in your school
community? What was the short- and long-term outcome? What, if
anything, would you do differently to improve the outcome in the future?
Leader understands and publicly draws attention
to all equity gaps that exist for various groups of
students and staff with plans to address their
elimination.
 What are the student achievement levels in your current school (or
classroom/ grade level if they are still teaching)? What have you and your
colleagues done to increase those levels? Has it worked? Why or why
not?
Leader proactively engages in courageous
conversations about race and creatively
implements ways to eradicate these inequities
within the school; leader is willing to make difficult
decisions in the best interest of closing
achievement gaps in the school.
 How do you engage your school community in courageous conversations
around racial and socio-economic inequities?
Leader creates a college and career going culture
for all students in the school.
 To your mind, what are the key characteristics of a school committed to
preparing its students for college and a career of their choice? How would
you see it if you visited a campus and spoke with its students, teachers,
parents, and community members
 What do you see as the key drivers for low college enrollment and
graduation rates? As a principal, how would you ensure that all of our
students are able to graduate high school ready for the college or career of
their choice?
DPS Principal Selection Candidate Interview Materials
Page 7 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader moves forward with innovative solutions
that address inequities with a sense of extreme
urgency toward college and career readiness.
Relevant SPSAC Interview Questions
 When you review and analyze your student achievement data, what
patterns do you see in terms of achievement gaps? Are there particular
groups that struggle and what have you done to work with them
specifically? What strategies work best in raising achievement levels for all
students?
 What have you done in the past in your work as a teacher and/or
administrator to ensure a strong career and college-going culture among
your students? What is the role of the principal, teachers, students, and
parents/family members to make sure those efforts are a success?
Leader discusses and sets up structures for
ongoing conversations for the expectation of
college readiness with all groups of students and
their families.
 How would you communicate with parents of different socio-economic,
cultural and/or ethnic groups to help them understand the vision of
college- and career-readiness?
Leader guarantees school environment is free
from discriminatory behavior and discriminatory
practices toward students and staff.
 What do you feel are the key discrimination challenges facing children in
our schools today? What would you plan to do as a DPS principal to
protect the needs of all students?
 What do you feel are the key safety concerns facing children in our schools
today? What do you, as a principal, plan to do to combat them?
Leader seeks input from staff and students to
ensure the school and work environment is open
and accepting of diversity.
 What kind of input will you seek from students and staff to ensure the
school environment is open and accepting of diversity? How will you
gather this information and report it back to the larger group?
Questions Related to a Specific School Community
 Based on your understanding of our school’s achievement results, what do
you feel are the challenges and areas of opportunity around ensuring high
levels of achievement? As principal, how would you work with each
member of our community (students, families, teachers, staff) to increase
achievement and college/career readiness for all students?
 Based on the demographics of our school (race, socio-economic status,
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 8 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Relevant SPSAC Interview Questions
home language, population of students with identified disabilities, etc.),
what would you do to ensure that all students, families, and community
members feel connected to and comfortable in the school?
 What kinds of events, celebrations, individual/small group student
conferences and other gatherings would you want to plan for our school
community on a regular basis? Would any of these include celebrations of
our rich racial, cultural and ethnic diversity? If so, how would you plan
them and ensure that all students and families felt comfortable
participating?
 Based on your understanding and experience of our school to date, how
would you support our teaching staff’s efforts to increase achievement
and ensure a college- and career-ready culture for all students? What
kinds of individual and group professional development activities do you
think would best suit their needs in this area?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 9 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Interview Notes:
IL1, Instructional Leadership
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Rating Scale (Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership):
1
2
3
Not meeting expectations
Approaching
Effective
Key Indicators
Evidence Collected During Interview
4
Distinguished
Probes – Areas for Follow-up
Rating
(circle one for each
category)
Instructional Leadership,
Indicator IL1:
Drives instructional decisions
with student achievement data
1
Domain
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
2
3
4
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
Page 10 of 54
Expectation
INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP
Indicator
Observable
Evidence
IL 1: Drives instructional decisions with student achievement data
Principal
Behaviors
Not Meeting
Approaching
Effective
Distinguished
 Leader does not use data to focus
school community on student
achievement or staff does not
recognize achievement gaps
 Leader does not support teachers
with the use of data to make
instructional decisions
 Leader does not use data when
making decisions on instructional
strategies
 Leader is not well-versed in accessing
and using district online data
resources (principal/teacher portals)
and likewise, has low expectations for
teachers in this regard
 Leader regularly discusses student
achievement with staff and community,
but does not set clear, rigorous datadriven targets for improvement and not
all staff is aware of achievement gaps
within the school
 Leader occasionally use data for
urgency in change or celebration, does
not use data consistently or struggles to
balance the use of data for both change
and celebration
 Leader does not know how to support
teachers with use of data and does not
create systemic collection of or
protocols for use of data by staff
 Leader may look at data when making
decisions on instructional strategies, but
mostly bases these decisions on
personal or stakeholder opinion
 Leader occasionally uses district data
resources (principal/teacher portals)
and occasionally shares this data with
teachers
 Leader maintains a laser-like focus on
student achievement and the narrowing
of achievement gaps by setting
rigorous, data-driven targets for
improvement in student learning
 Leader regularly uses multiple sources
of data to support urgency for change
and celebration for success; leader’s use
of data supports his/her “can do”
attitude
 Leader understands current research
and adjusts decision making based on
research
 Leader is a competent user of district
data resources (principal/teacher
portals)
 Leader expects that teachers will
likewise be competent users of district
data and provides needed support and
professional development to meet this
expectation
 Leader uses progress monitoring data to
make incremental next steps in a
continuous improvement cycle
In addition to “Effective”:
 Leader works with staff to create
cycles of action research, where
data is used to test hypothesis,
and discover new strategies, and
reduce achievement gaps
 Leader shares his/her use of data
and strategies for supporting
staff with data driven decisions
with other leaders within the
district, outside of his/her school
 District online data resources
(principal/teacher portals) are
regularly accessed, discussed and
used both by leader and teachers
to inform school-wide decision
making and to differentiate
student instruction



School-wide instructional decisions only sometimes are made with current
research, school data and best practice in mind
Staff is unaware of achievement gaps
Data is not used regularly in school meetings, or is only used by the principal and
not used regularly with and by teachers and/or students to guide interventions
and instruction
School Behaviors
DPS Principal Selection Candidate Interview Materials
 Data analysis processes are in place and are prioritized and implemented with
fidelity and commitment
 School-wide instructional decisions are based on school data that reflect the high
achievement of all students; best practices; and current research
 Meaningful and relevant data is reviewed at most all school meetings in order to
set next steps for improvement
 Teachers are part of data review with principal and consider this data, along with
and use their professional expertise as part of decision making
 Timely data is used regularly at the classroom, grade level/department and
school level to make instructional decisions
 Teachers can discuss data, reasons behind the data, and strategies for improving
achievement
 Students use data to understand their progress toward individual goals, grade
level standards and college readiness
Page 11 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
Instructional Superintendent Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Instructional Leadership,
Indicator IL1:
Drives instructional decisions
with student achievement
data
Principal Behaviors
Leader maintains a laser-like focus on student
achievement and the narrowing of achievement
gaps by setting rigorous, data-driven targets for
improvement in student learning.
Relevant Interview Questions
 Tell us about your collection and use of student achievement data as a
teacher and/or administrator? This can include formal and informal
assessment measures.
 Do you feel there is a role for individual students and their families to
review their own achievement results with teachers and other school staff
members? If so, how have you seen this done effectively? How would you
relate achievement data and other metrics to students’ college career
readiness?
 What kinds of data should be shared out with the whole school
community? How frequently? In what way?
Leader regularly uses multiple sources of data to
support urgency for change and celebration for
success; leader’s use of data supports his/her “can
do” attitude.
 How is your school doing in terms of meeting its goals? What information
do you use to gauge its progress? Who collects this information and how
is it shared out to various stakeholders (teachers, students, families, other
community members)?
 Aside from achievement metrics, what other kinds of data do you think is
important to collect at the student, classroom, and/or school level? How
should this information be used once it is collected? Who should be given
this information and what expectations would you have for their use of it?
Leader understands current research and adjusts
decision-making based on research.
DPS Principal Selection Candidate Interview Materials
 What is important about the collection of data? What mistakes do you
think are most common in the collection and dissemination of data in
schools?
Page 12 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader is a competent user of district data
resources (principal/teacher portals).
Relevant Interview Questions
 To your knowledge, what are the key metrics that are collected by the
district data system? How do you access these resources? What are the
best ways of ensuring that teachers are accessing and using data collected
at the district and school level?
Leader expects that teachers will likewise be
competent users of district data and provides
needed support and professional development to
meet this expectation.
 What would you see as the role of achievement data and other key metrics
in teacher professional development and other staff conversations around
student learning? What do you feel are the most effective ways of
collecting and sharing out data to improve student learning outcomes?
 Scenario: One of your teachers asks to speak with you about the new
assessment process you are rolling out. He says that he receives the
printouts and other information about student data but has not been
successful in using that data to improve student learning outcomes in his
class. When you review his data with him, you see that he has not been
able to make any headway on improving achievement over the past year.
o
Leader uses progress-monitoring data to make
incremental next steps in a continuous
improvement cycle.
DPS Principal Selection Candidate Interview Materials
Talk us through your plan to work with him to help him improve.
What actions would you take? What resources might you provide? If
there were a number of teachers with this challenge at your school,
what would your PD plan look like over the next few months? What
strategies do you find most effective in supporting teachers to improve
their data-driven instruction practice? (IS/AS)
 What processes exist in your school to gather, analyze and share out
student achievement data and other key metrics? How have you changed
them over the past year? How do you think they can be improved?
Page 13 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
SPSAC Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Relevant Interview Questions
Leader maintains a laser-like focus on student
 What kinds of data should be shared out with the whole school
Instructional Leadership,
achievement and the narrowing of achievement
community? How frequently? In what way?
Indicator IL1:
gaps by setting rigorous, data-driven targets for
improvement in student learning.
Drives instructional decisions
with student achievement
data
Leader regularly uses multiple sources of data to
support urgency for change and celebration for
success; leader’s use of data supports his/her “can
do” attitude.
 How is your school doing in terms of meeting its goals? What information
do you use to gauge its progress? Who collects this information and how
is it shared out to various stakeholders (teachers, students, families, other
community members)?
 How do you involve parents and students in the review of school
achievement data? Do you feel there is a role for public, whole group
events? If so, how would you organize them?
Leader understands current research and adjusts
decision-making based on research.
 What is important about the collection of data? What mistakes do you
think are most common in the collection and dissemination of data in
schools?
Leader is a competent user of district data
resources (principal/teacher portals).
 To your knowledge, what are the key metrics that are collected by the
district data system? How do you access these resources? What are the
best ways of ensuring that teachers are accessing and using data collected
at the district and school level?
Leader expects that teachers will likewise be
competent users of district data and provides
needed support and professional development to
meet this expectation.
 How do you work with teachers and other staff to set targets for student
learning in your school? How do these targets relate to your achievement
goals? How do you ensure that the goals you set are data-driven and
maintain a high bar for success?
DPS Principal Selection Candidate Interview Materials
Page 14 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader uses progress-monitoring data to make
incremental next steps in a continuous
improvement cycle.
Relevant Interview Questions
 What processes exist in your school to gather, analyze and share out
student achievement data and other key metrics? How have you changed
them over the past year? How do you think they can be improved?
Questions Related to a Specific School Community
School Data Scenario
Note to Committee: For this exercise to be effective, candidate should receive
school data in advance of the interview so they have time to digest it and
develop a preliminary plan of action. Ideally they would all receive it 24-48
hours ahead of their interview time. If this is not possible, organize the
interview time so that each candidate receives at least 30-60 minutes to
review the data before speaking about it with the broader committee and no
candidate has more time for review than any other (i.e. each candidate gets
the same amount of time).
Interview with Candidate
In the packet of information you received about our school in advance of this
conversation, you should have found a summary of our school’s student
achievement results and other key metrics. We would like to spend a few
minutes now talking through this data and your conclusions and proposed plan
of action for the school.
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials

What does the data tell you about student achievement in our school?
What other key indicators would you focus on in your review of our
school’s data?

Based on your findings, what would be your plan of action during your first
two months as principal? How would you work with different stakeholders
(teachers, parents, students, staff) to help them understand your
understanding of the data and subsequent conclusions?

What challenges/barriers do you anticipate and how would you address
those challenges?

What happens if your plan does not work? Let’s say it’s December and
your interim assessment results do not show any changes or improvement
in achievement levels or other key metrics. What will you do next? How
Page 15 of 54
Key Indicators
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Principal Behaviors
Relevant Interview Questions
will you communicate the current state and your proposed actions to the
school’s stakeholders?

How will you ensure that your teachers and other instructional staff are
effective in meeting the needs of all students? Based on your review of
our current data, where do you perceive gaps or areas for improvement in
instructional practice?

At the end of the day, what are your measures of success? How will you
know if you have met your goals?
Page 16 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Interview Notes:
IL3, Instructional Leadership
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Rating Scale (Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership):
1
2
3
Not meeting expectations
Approaching
Effective
Key Indicators
Evidence Collected During Interview
4
Distinguished
Probes – Areas for Follow-up
Rating
(circle one for each
category)
Instructional Leadership,
Indicator IL3:
Actively supports teachers in
implementing high quality
instruction
1
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
2
3
4
Page 17 of 54
Domain
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
Expectation
INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP
Indicator
Observable
Evidence
IL 3: Actively supports teachers in implementing high quality 21st century* instruction
Principal Behaviors
Not Meeting
Approaching
Effective
Distinguished
 Leader does not create
systems to allow for
reflective feedback
conversations; systems are
not fully functional
 Leader rarely uses classroom
observation data to guide
decisions about individual
and group professional
development
 Leader does not identify
teacher leaders
 Leader does not fully
comprehend available PD
resource supports for
teachers
 Leader does not ensure that
every classroom is outfitted
with basic instructional
technology resources and
leader does not support
teachers in how to use these
resources in ways that
positively impact student
learning
 Leader attempts to create systems to
allow for reflective feedback
conversations regarding instructional
best practices, but systems are not
fully functional, and some teachers
may not receive this opportunity
 Leader may look at classroom
observation data, but may not be
strategic in using that data to drive
decisions around individual and
school professional development
 Leader may provide feedback to
teachers, but this process may be
more “top down” and less focused on
allowing teachers to reflect on their
practice
 Leader may identify teacher leaders,
but may select them by simply asking
for volunteers to be teacher leaders,
and/or may not provide clarity to
teachers leaders and staff regarding
the role of teacher leadership within
the building
 Leader may identify teachers
struggling with instruction, but may
not provide opportunities for
improvement, nor hold teachers
accountable to those improvements
 Leader may encourage PD for
teachers, but may not provide explicit
ideas, based on what district PD or
other PD opportunities exist
 Leader provides funding support for
classroom instructional technologies,
but provides few opportunities for
teachers to become adept at using
these resources.
 Leader participates in conversations about
instruction with groups of teachers and
through ongoing reflective feedback
conversations
 Leader understands the rigorous instruction
required for the Common Core State
Standards and Colorado Academic
Standards, and ensures through support and
PD that teachers understand how to deliver
instruction that supports student success
with these standards.
 Leader uses classroom observation data to
understand strength and growth areas in
school-wide instructional practice and uses
this data to guide decisions about schoolwide professional development
 Leader effectively identifies teacher leaders
and creates systems within which teacher
leaders can share their expertise and
learning with colleagues
 Leader effectively identifies teachers
struggling with instruction, provides
immediate opportunities for improvement,
and supports growth with urgency through
explicit goals and next steps
 Leader is knowledgeable about PD resource
supports for teachers (both district and
other) and strategically aligns these supports
to teachers’ areas of growth
 Leader provides curricular resources and
materials necessary for implementing high
quality instruction
 Leader actively supports teachers in
implementing high quality 21st century
instruction
 Leader ensures the incorporation of
student-based technologies in
instructionally impactful ways.
In addition to “Effective”:
 Leader creates systems for teachers to
engage in structured reflective
feedback conversations with one
another
 Leader ensures teachers have multiple
opportunities to observe other
teachers to learn and discuss
instructional practice with one
another
 Leader expects teachers to share their
areas of expertise with other teachers,
and provides systems for this to occur
 Leader empowers teacher leaders as
instructional experts in the school
building
 Leader develops high levels of in
school expertise on the instructional
uses of technology and 21st century
learning resources and provides ample
opportunities for teachers to learn
from one another
 Leader is a strong and visible, personal
user of technology and 21st century
resources for communication,
collaboration, data gathering, and
presentations
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 18 of 54
Domain
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
Expectation
INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP
Indicator
IL 3: Actively supports teachers in implementing high quality 21st century instruction
Observable Evidence
Not Meeting




School Behaviors
Approaching
Inconsistent instructional practices exist from classroom to
classroom (e.g., some teachers regularly engage in writing across
content areas, while other teachers do not prioritize this practice)
Teachers do not have the opportunity to engage in conversations
about their practice
Teachers do not have the opportunity to engage in reflective
feedback conversations with the principal, or these conversations
exist for only certain teachers, not all teachers
Teachers are unaware of district resources to support their
instructional practice (either curricular resources, or professional
development resources)
Effective











DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Distinguished
Evidence of consistent instructional practice exists from classroom to classroom
Teachers engage in reflective feedback conversations and apply learning from this
process to their instruction
Instruction in classrooms engages students in practice with 21st century skills (Critical
thinking and reasoning; Information literacy; Collaboration; Self-direction; Invention
Teachers regularly discuss their practice with one another
Teachers work together to norm and hold high expectations for grading and assessment
of student progress
Systems for teachers and principals are in place to discuss instructional practices and
lessons throughout the school year, with an emphasis on continuous improvement
Staff members regularly seek professional development opportunities based on the
observation and feedback process
District support resources are used strategically to support teachers in improving
instructional practice; teachers know what supports to take advantage of
Common Core State Standards and Colorado Academic Standards are used to align and
plan for grade level and content expectations and set a bar for rigorous, relevant and
appropriate instruction for all students
Teachers are regularly observed using technology in classrooms to enhance instruction,
as well as outside of instructional time to engage in meaningful data analysis and
collaboration with one another
Students are regularly observed using technology resources to engage in learning
Page 19 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
Instructional Superintendent Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Instructional Leadership,
Indicator IL3:
Principal Behaviors
Leader participates in conversations about
instruction with groups of teachers and through
ongoing reflective feedback conversations.
Relevant Interview Questions
 How would you organize your teacher “teams” at your school? What
would be their role/function and how would they interact with you as
principal and each other? Would you hold each team accountable for
individual teacher and student results?
Leader understands the rigorous instruction
required for the Common Core Standards and
Colorado Academic Standards and ensures
through support and PD that teachers understand
how to deliver instruction that supports student
success with these standards.
 What is your understanding of the Common Core Standards? What about
the Colorado Academic Standards? When have you reviewed these
standards and how have you used them? What do you think is the role of
standards in school-based instruction?
Actively supports teachers in
implementing high quality
instruction
 Do you think it is important to align classroom instruction to state and
national standards? If so, how would you go about doing that? What are
some of the challenges that can come about when pursuing that course of
action?
 Tell us about a time when you successfully improved outcomes for hardto-serve students. (S, IS/AS)
o
o
o
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
What strategies did you implement that led to better outcomes? Be
specific.
What were the improved outcomes? Where did students start and
end?
How did you help students who struggled the most? What
interventions did you find most effective for these students, as well as
for your class/school as a whole?
Page 20 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader uses classroom observation data to
understand strength and growth areas in schoolwide instructional practice and uses the data to
guide decisions about school-wide professional
development.
Relevant Interview Questions
 Tell me about a time you observed a teacher and gave him/her feedback
to help them improve their instructional practice. What was your
relationship to the teacher? Was s/he receptive to your feedback? Did you
efforts result in changes to their practice and/or improvements in their
student achievement performance? Why or why not?
Leader effectively identifies teacher leaders and
creates systems within which teacher leaders can
share their expertise and learning with colleagues.
 Would you appoint teacher leaders on campus? What would be their roles
in relation to the school and other teachers? Do you see a place for
teachers to observe, give feedback and coach each other on how to
improve their instructional practice? What models do you feel are most
effective for this kind of interaction?
Leader effectively identifies teachers struggling
with instruction, provides immediate
opportunities for improvement, and supports
growth with urgency through explicit goals and
next steps.
 When you walk into a teacher’s classroom, what are five things you look
for to indicate whether s/he understands the principles of high-quality
instruction? If you observed a sample lesson from that teacher, what
kinds of indicators would you look for in determining his/her level of
instructional rigor?
Leader is knowledgeable about PD resource
supports for teachers (both district and other) and
strategically aligns these supports to teachers’
areas of growth.
 As a principal, what would your role be in supporting teachers to improve
their instructional practice? How would you do this effectively? How
would you determine if you have been successful in these efforts?
Leader provides curricular resources and materials
necessary for implementing high-quality
instruction.
 Give me an example of some of the resources and tools you have found
most effective in moving teacher practice to increase student
achievement. How would you implement these practices in your school as
principal? What are some of the challenges you have seen in
implementing these practices and how would you overcome them?
Leader actively supports teachers in implementing
high quality, 21st Century instruction.
 As principal, would you establish a set of instructional “non-negotiables”
for your teachers and staff? If so, what would they be? How would you
work with staff to build their buy-in and consensus for these steps? What
would you do if your staff did not believe in or implement these practices
consistently in their classrooms?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 21 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Relevant Interview Questions
Leader ensures the incorporation of student-based  How do you see the potential of technology to impact teaching and
technologies in instructionally impactful ways.
learning within your school? What is an example of using technology, data,
or software to improve student outcomes?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 22 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
SPSAC Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Instructional Leadership,
Indicator IL3:
Principal Behaviors
Leader participates in conversations about
instruction with groups of teachers and through
ongoing reflective feedback conversations.
Relevant Interview Questions
 What does the phrase “community of practice” mean to you in relation to
a school’s teaching team? What are the most effective ways for teachers
to work together in support of each other’s efforts to improve
instructional practice and increase student achievement?
Leader understands the rigorous instruction
required for the Common Core Standards and
Colorado Academic Standards and ensures
through support and PD that teachers understand
how to deliver instruction that supports student
success with these standards.
 Do you think it is important to align classroom instruction to state and
national standards? If so, how would you go about doing that? What are
some of the challenges that can come about when pursuing that course of
action?
Actively supports teachers in
implementing high quality
instruction
 Tell us about a time when you successfully improved outcomes for hardto-serve students.
o
o
o
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
What strategies did you implement that led to better outcomes? Be
specific.
What were the improved outcomes? Where did students start and
end?
How did you help students who struggled the most? What
interventions did you find most effective for these students, as well as
for your class/school as a whole?
Page 23 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader uses classroom observation data to
understand strength and growth areas in schoolwide instructional practice and uses the data to
guide decisions about school-wide professional
development.
Relevant Interview Questions
 Tell me about a time you observed a teacher and gave him/her feedback
to help them improve their instructional practice. Did you efforts result in
changes to their practice and/or improvements in their student
achievement performance?
Leader effectively identifies teacher leaders and
creates systems within which teacher leaders can
share their expertise and learning with colleagues.
 How would you empower teachers to take on leadership roles and
improve their instructional leadership abilities? What are the best ways for
them to develop their skills in coaching and giving constructive feedback to
one another?
Leader effectively identifies teachers struggling
with instruction, provides immediate
opportunities for improvement, and supports
growth with urgency through explicit goals and
next steps.
 When you walk into a teacher’s classroom, what are five things you look
for to indicate whether s/he understands the principles of high-quality
instruction?
Leader is knowledgeable about PD resource
supports for teachers (both district and other) and
strategically aligns these supports to teachers’
areas of growth.
 As a principal, what would your role be in supporting teachers to improve
their instructional practice? How would you determine if you have been
successful in these efforts?
Leader provides curricular resources and materials
necessary for implementing high-quality
instruction.
 Give me an example of some of the resources and tools you have found
most effective in moving teacher practice to increase student
achievement. How would you implement these practices in your school as
principal? What are some of the challenges you have seen in
implementing these practices and how would you overcome them?
Leader actively supports teachers in implementing
high quality, 21st Century instruction.
 As principal, would you establish a set of instructional “non-negotiables”
for your teachers and staff? If so, what would they be? How would you
work with staff to build their buy-in and consensus for these steps?
Leader ensures the incorporation of student-based  How do you see the potential of technology to impact teaching and
technologies in instructionally impactful ways.
learning within your school? What is an example of using technology, data,
or software to improve student outcomes?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 24 of 54
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 25 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Interview Notes:
HRL2, Human Resources Leadership
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Rating Scale (Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership):
1
2
3
Not meeting expectations
Approaching
Effective
Key Indicators
Evidence Collected During Interview
4
Distinguished
Probes – Areas for Follow-up
Rating
(circle one for each
category)
Human Resources Leadership,
Indicator HRL2:
Applies teacher and staff
performance management
systems in a way that ensures a
culture of continuous
improvement, support and
accountability
1
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
2
3
4
Page 26 of 54
Domain
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
Expectation
HUMAN RESOURCE LEADERSHIP
Indicator
Observable
Evidence
HRL 2: Applies teacher and staff performance management systems in a way that ensures a culture of continuous improvement, support and accountability
Principal Behaviors
School Behaviors
Not Meeting
 Leader accepts status quo
regarding state of the learning
environment, and has not
established methods for meeting
with teachers, sharing
expectations, or providing
feedback to teachers regarding
performance
 Leader organizes the learning
environment with staff
convenience in mind; the leader
does not establish clear and
consistent expectations for staff
performance and accountability
 Leader rarely utilizes observation
evidence informatively and
effectively to identify instructional
success, student outcomes, and
professional patterns. Leader
does not identify areas for growth
for teachers, nor pathways for
improvement.

Approaching
Effective
Distinguished
Leader attempts to create an
environment of learning and creates
multiple methods for meeting with
teachers, sharing expectations,
providing feedback, and checking for
understanding
 Leader deliberately organizes the
learning environment with staff
accountability in mind; the leader
establishes clear expectations for staff
performance
 Leader sometimes utilizes observation
evidence to identify instructional
success, student outcomes, and
professional patterns. Leader
sometimes uses observation in
formation and instructional
framework to identify areas for
growth for teachers
 Leader sometimes coaches
instructional staff for improvement in
delivery of instructional content, but
may not have an established process
for doing so.
 Leader provides opportunities for
differentiated professional development
according to teachers’ needs
 Leader facilitates reflective feedback
conversations with teachers in order that
teachers articulate their strengths and
discover their areas for growth; principal
adjusts the direction and questioning in
reflective feedback conversations
according to teacher’s level of selfreflection
 Leader uses performance management
system to identify high performing
teachers who can share best practice and
expertise with others
 Leader aligns school professional
development plan to data collected
through performance management
process
 Leader makes certain that performance
conversations and aligned professional
development prepare and give teachers
the tools to meet the needs of all diverse
learners, including linguistically diverse
students, students with disabilities, and
gifted and talented students.
 Leader understands and ensures that new
teachers need advice/support/modeling
throughout the school year from mentor
teachers who has expertise in similar
areas.
In addition to “Effective”:

Leaders creates systems for
teachers to provide feedback to
one another and to discuss their
strengths and areas of growth
with one another, not just the
principal

Teacher leaders are either not identified or, if identified, their role is unclear
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials

High performing teachers are often identified for teacher leader roles
Page 27 of 54




to both teacher leaders themselves, and other teachers in the school
Teachers who are struggling with instruction may not be aware that they are
struggling, may not have clearly outlined and timely goals for improvement
and/or may not receive targeted support for improvement
Teachers are unwilling to support one another with improvement, or if
willing, they do not have the systems/structures to engage in support of one
another
High performing teachers may feel as if they are confined to only one type of
instructional practice and may feel unable to try new, innovative practice in
order to grow and learn as professionals
School’s instructional area of focus may be unclear to teachers and/or
connections not made to the school’s strategic plan
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials





Teacher leaders have clearly defined role around support for teacher colleagues
and systems are in place for teacher leaders to engage in leadership and support
activities
Teachers who are struggling with instruction receive timely support and clearly
know next steps for their practice
Teachers regularly support one another in moving forward with quality practice
High performing teachers are encouraged to try new and innovative instructional
practice
Teachers understand the school’s instructional area of focus aligned to the
school’s strategic plan
Page 28 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
Instructional Superintendent Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Human Resources
Leadership, Indicator HRL2:
Applies teacher and staff
performance management
systems in a way that
ensures a culture of
continuous improvement,
support and accountability
Principal Behaviors
Leader provides opportunities for differentiated
professional development according to teachers’
needs.
Relevant Interview Questions
 Would you differentiate the support and resources you provide to the
teachers on your campus? If not, why not? If so, how do you envision
doing this effectively?
Leader facilitates reflective feedback
conversations with teachers in order that teachers
articulate their strengths and discover their areas
for growth; principal adjusts the direction and
questioning in reflective feedback conversations
according to teacher’s level of self-reflection.
 Tell me about a time you observed a teacher and gave him/her feedback
to help them improve their instructional practice. What was your
relationship to the teacher? Was s/he receptive to your feedback? Did you
efforts result in changes to their practice and/or improvements in their
student achievement performance? Why or why not?
Leader uses performance management system to
identify high performing teachers who can share
best practice and expertise with others.
 Are you familiar with the DPS teacher and staff performance management
systems? How have you used/interacted with them in the past? What is
your impression of them? In which areas do you feel comfortable and
where would you want additional support and development as a DPS
principal?
Leader aligns school professional development
plan to data collected through performance
management process.
 What would you see as the role of performance management data and
other key metrics in teacher professional development and other staff
conversations around student learning? How would you share this data
with staff and use it to guide professional development activities with the
goal of improving student learning outcomes?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 29 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader makes certain that performance
conversations and aligned professional
development prepare and give teachers the tools
to meet the needs of all diverse learners, including
linguistically diverse students, students with
disabilities, and gifted and talented students.
Relevant Interview Questions
 How will you ensure that teacher performance conversations and
professional development give them the tools and resources they need to
effectively meet the needs of all students? What supports will you give
teachers to prepare them to meet the needs of diverse learners, including
linguistically diverse students, students with disabilities, and gifted and
talented students?
Leader understands that new teachers need (and
ensures they receive) advice, support and
modeling throughout the school year from mentor
teachers with expertise in similar areas.
 How will you monitor the progress of your new teachers and ensure they
are receiving the resources and supports they need to be successful?
What types of mentoring opportunities would you set-up for more
experienced teachers to work closely with newer teachers in their areas of
expertise?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 30 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
SPSAC Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Human Resources
Leadership, Indicator HRL2:
Applies teacher and staff
performance management
systems in a way that
ensures a culture of
continuous improvement,
support and accountability
Principal Behaviors
Leader provides opportunities for differentiated
professional development according to teachers’
needs.
Relevant Interview Questions
 Would you differentiate the support and resources you provide to the
teachers on your campus? If not, why not? If so, how do you envision
doing this effectively?
Leader facilitates reflective feedback
conversations with teachers in order that teachers
articulate their strengths and discover their areas
for growth; principal adjusts the direction and
questioning in reflective feedback conversations
according to teacher’s level of self-reflection.
 Tell me about a time you observed a teacher and gave him/her feedback
to help them improve their instructional practice. Did you efforts result in
changes to their practice and/or improvements in their student
achievement performance?
Leader uses performance management system to
identify high performing teachers who can share
best practice and expertise with others.
 How would you use the performance management system to identify
highly effective teachers? Once identified, how would you empower these
teachers to take on leadership roles and improve their instructional
leadership abilities? What are the best ways for them to develop their
skills in coaching and giving constructive feedback to one another?
Leader aligns school professional development
plan to data collected through performance
management process.
 What would you see as the role of performance management data and
other key metrics in teacher professional development and other staff
conversations around student learning? How would you share this data
with staff and use it to guide professional development activities with the
goal of improving student learning outcomes?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 31 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader makes certain that performance
conversations and aligned professional
development prepare and give teachers the tools
to meet the needs of all diverse learners, including
linguistically diverse students, students with
disabilities, and gifted and talented students.
Relevant Interview Questions
 How will you ensure that teacher performance conversations and
professional development give them the tools and resources they need to
effectively meet the needs of all students? What supports will you give
teachers to prepare them to meet the needs of diverse learners, including
linguistically diverse students, students with disabilities, and gifted and
talented students?
Leader understands that new teachers need (and
ensures they receive) advice, support and
modeling throughout the school year from mentor
teachers with expertise in similar areas.
 How will you monitor the progress of your new teachers and ensure they
are receiving the resources and supports they need to be successful?
What types of mentoring opportunities would you set-up for more
experienced teachers to work closely with newer teachers in their areas of
expertise?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 32 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Interview Notes:
SL1, Strategic Leadership
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Rating Scale (Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership):
1
2
3
Not meeting expectations
Approaching
Effective
Key Indicators
Evidence Collected During Interview
4
Distinguished
Probes – Areas for Follow-up
Rating
(circle one for each
category)
Strategic Leadership, Indicator
SL1:
Leads school’s vision,
mission and strategic goals
to support college readiness
for all students
1
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
2
3
4
Page 33 of 54
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
Domain
Expectation
Indicator
Observable
Evidence
Principal Behaviors
SL 1: Leads the school’s vision, mission and strategic goals to support college readiness for all students
Not Meeting
Approaching
Effective
Distinguished
 Leader inconsistently uses data to
develop vision and mission of
what the school hopes to
accomplish with students over
time, or fails to use data to
inform conversations and
decisions
 Leader may not recognize or be
able to identify problems or areas
of concern
 Leader develops his/her own
vision for preparing children to
enter the changing world in the
21st century and may not
understand the connection
between the UIP and the vision,
values and goals of the school
 Leader rarely articulates shared
values and goals
 Leader understands the statutory
requirements of the Unified
Improvement Plan but may
develop a plan in isolation or with
little stakeholder involvement
 Leader may use a limited portfolio of
data to develop shared vision and
mission of what the school hopes to
accomplish with students over time
 Leader leads and implements
processes for developing a shared
vision and goals that reflect high
expectations for students and staff in
preparing for the 21st century
 Leader supports development of
strategic school improvement plan
that outlines data, root cause analysis,
goals, milestones against the goals,
and clearly aligned action plan but may
develop a plan with the support of a
limited body of stakeholders
 Leader occasionally creates milestone
goals aligned to vision and mission of
the school, but might not be
transparent about these milestone
goals with stakeholders
 Leader articulates shared values and
goals and occasionally aligns actions
with stated values and goals
 Leader uses quantitative and
qualitative data to understand the
school’s current reality (trends and
gaps for all student groups
represented at the school) and
collaboratively develops a motivating,
shared vision and mission that is the
driving force behind initiatives that
help students acquire 21st century
skills
 Leader leads the development of the
Unified Improvement Plan as living
documentation for the vision, values,
and goals of the school and facilitates
collaborative development of a
strategic plan that aligns to these goals
and includes all state required
components
 Leader expects stakeholder input and
students, staff, families, and
community members are clear about
their roles and responsibilities toward
meeting goals
 Leader ensures the alignment of
professional development to the
vision, mission and UIP
 Leader regularly and strategically
aligns actions with values and goals
and makes actions transparent; Helps
others align actions with values and
goals and initiates changes to the
vision and UIP goals based on data
In addition to effective…
 Leader ensures that the schools
identity (vision, mission, values,
beliefs and goals) drive decisions and
inform the culture of the school
 Leader engages broad representation
of stakeholders in problem-solving
and strategic planning
 Leader creates a sense of coaccountability for the achievement of
goals that leads to shared
responsibility across all stakeholders
for outcomes
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 34 of 54
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP
Domain
Expectation
Indicator
Observable
Evidence
School Behaviors
SL 1: Leads the school’s vision, mission and strategic goals to support college readiness for all students
Not Meeting
Approaching
 Only the school leadership seems clear about the vision and mission of the
school; others are unable to pinpoint or articulate a vision or mission statement.
 There is no tangible evidence of a vision or mission and nothing is posted or
written that gives stakeholders a sense of the direction of the school
 The work of committees and/or programs feels disconnected and disjointed and
there is limited communication between committees/teams as a result of lack of
clarity around the school’s direction
 The UIP is developed in isolation or by a small group of school leaders resulting
in lack of acceptance or co-accountability in achieving the goals
 Committee work done in isolation from the UIP and members are unable to
articulate how decision-making supports the UIP goals, milestones and action
plan
 Work to measure, revisit, and update the UIP document is rarely evidenced in
agendas, meetings or conversations and may only occur when required by
district or state requirements
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Effective
Distinguished
 All school stakeholders are able to talk about the vision and mission of the school
(students, school team members, and community members) and hold a sense of
ownership and accountability in achieving the goals
 School mission and vision are visible around the school and are present in school
level conversations
 All school members understand their individual contributions that will lead to the
collective success of the school and school committees have responsibility for
guiding the core work of the school that exemplifies the mission/vision/core values
and UIP goals of the school.
 Use of multiple sources of data (student outcome data, teacher/parent input data,
demographic data, etc.), are valued and used in whole group, small group and
individually on a consistent basis to drive the vision of the school
 Measurable outcomes to the work may include: low staff turnover, stable and
increasing enrollment, leadership team engagement, and high volunteerism.
 Stakeholders understand the Unified Improvement Plan as living documentation
for the vision, values, and goals of the school and use it as a guide for goal setting
and action planning and school committees, the School Leadership Team, and the
Collaborative School Committee use the UIP as a guiding document on a regular
basis without initiation by the Principal
 Stakeholders feel co-accountable for the school’s strategic goals and the
milestones they are working toward, and understand their roles and
responsibilities in reaching the goals as evidenced by alignment of personal goals
and data team focus areas to the broader school goals
Page 35 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
Instructional Superintendent Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Strategic Leadership,
Indicator SL1:
Leads school’s vision, mission
and strategic goals to
support college readiness for
all students
Principal Behaviors
All Sample Questions for This Indicator Are Based
on a Particular School, Given the Community
Specific Nature of Vision and Mission
Relevant Interview Questions
Leader uses quantitative and qualitative data to
 For you, what are the most important beliefs and values to be
understand the school’s current reality (trends and
incorporated in a school vision and/or mission? Are there certain
gaps for all student groups represented at the
elements you feel must be included in any school vision and mission?
school) and collaboratively develops a motivating,
shared vision and mission that is the driving force
 To your mind, what is the role of data and school-specific metrics in the
behind initiatives that help students acquire 21st
vision-setting process? What school-specific factors should influence the
Century skills.
development and content of its mission and vision? What measures
should be used over time to gauge if a school is on target with meeting the
objectives laid out in its vision and mission?
Leader leads the development of the Unified
Improvement Plan as living documentation for the
vision, values, and goals of the school and
facilitates collaborative development of a strategic
plan that aligns to these goals and includes all
state-required components.
 Tell me/us about a time where you had to plan for and manage the
implementation of a large project. What were your objectives and time
frame for design and implementation? Who were you working with to
accomplish this task? What were your measures of success and how were
they determined? Did you achieve them? What did you learn from the
experience that might be applicable to this role?
 Are you aware of the DPS Unified Improvement Plan process for schools?
How would you lead the development of this plan in your new school
community?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 36 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader expects stakeholder input and students,
staff, families, and community members are clear
about their roles and responsibilities toward
meeting goals.
Relevant Interview Questions
 In your mind, who are this school’s stakeholders? How should they be
involved in the development of a school vision and mission? How would
you make the vision and mission-setting process inclusive and help people
feel a sense of buy-in and ownership?
Leader ensures the alignment of professional
development to the vision, mission and UIP.
 How would you align teacher development work to the school vision and
mission? What kind of data would you use to ensure that the mission and
vision are aligned to instructional strategy?
Leader regularly and strategically aligns actions
with values and goals and makes actions
transparent; helps others align actions with values
and goals and initiates changes to the vision and
UIP goals based on data.
 Why do you want to be principal of this school? What are the guiding
principles or beliefs that drive you to this work? What specific elements
(culture, instruction, etc.) and behaviors would you expect in a school that
subscribed to those particular guiding principle?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 37 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
SPSAC Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Strategic Leadership,
Indicator SL1:
Leads school’s vision, mission
and strategic goals to
support college readiness for
all students
Principal Behaviors
All Sample Questions for This Indicator Are Based
on a Particular School, Given the Community
Specific Nature of Vision and Mission
Relevant Interview Questions

Leader uses quantitative and qualitative data to
 For you, what are the most important beliefs and values to be
understand the school’s current reality (trends and
incorporated in a school vision and/or mission? Are there certain
gaps for all student groups represented at the
elements you feel must be included in any school vision and mission?
school) and collaboratively develops a motivating,
shared vision and mission that is the driving force
behind initiatives that help students acquire 21st
Century skills.
Leader leads the development of the Unified
Improvement Plan as living documentation for the
vision, values, and goals of the school and
facilitates collaborative development of a strategic
plan that aligns to these goals and includes all
state-required components.
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
 Tell me/us about a time where you had to plan for and manage the
implementation of a large project. What were your objectives and time
frame for design and implementation? What did you learn from the
experience that might be applicable to this role?
 When you enter our school as principal in the fall, based on what you
know about us to date, what would be your top priorities? What
additional information would you seek to be able to develop a strategic
plan for the school year? Walk us through the process of developing that
plan, including your measures of success.
Page 38 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
o
Leader expects stakeholder input and students,
staff, families, and community members are clear
about their roles and responsibilities toward
meeting goals.
Relevant Interview Questions
What would you do first? Second?
o
What would be your process for getting feedback on your plan? From
whom? In what timeframe?
o
If your first draft of a plan were met with strong resistance, what
would you do then? Who would you engage and/or what additional
information would you want to gather to be able to revise your plan?
 In your mind, who are this school’s stakeholders? How should they be
involved in the development of a school vision and mission? How would
you make the vision and mission-setting process inclusive and help people
feel a sense of buy-in and ownership?
 How should a school mission and vision be communicated to its
stakeholders and the broader community? How would you, as principal,
ensure that the vision and mission are clearly understood and consistently
present in our school?
Leader ensures the alignment of professional
development to the vision, mission and UIP.
 How would you align teacher development work to the school vision and
mission? What kind of data would you use to ensure that the mission and
vision are aligned to instructional strategy?
Leader regularly and strategically aligns actions
with values and goals and makes actions
transparent; helps others align actions with values
and goals and initiates changes to the vision and
UIP goals based on data.
 Why do you want to be principal of this school? What are the guiding
principles or beliefs that drive you to this work? What specific elements
(culture, instruction, etc.) and behaviors would you expect in a school that
subscribed to those particular guiding principle?
 Was there a moment where you felt you really wanted to be a principal?
Tell us about that time and how your desire to be a principal generally
relates to your application for this position specifically.
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 39 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Interview Notes:
ML3 and EDL1, Managerial and External Leadership
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Rating Scale (Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership):
1
2
3
Not meeting expectations
Approaching
Effective
Key Indicators
Evidence Collected During Interview
4
Distinguished
Probes – Areas for Follow-up
Rating
(circle one for each
category)
Managerial Leadership,
Indicator ML3 and External
Leadership, Indicator EDL1:
Systematically communicates
with all stakeholders and leads
family and community
involvement and outreach
1
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
2
3
4
Page 40 of 54
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
MANAGERIAL LEADERSHIP
ML 3: Systematically communicates with all stakeholders
Domain
Expectation
Indicator
Observable Evidence
Principal Behaviors
Not Meeting
Approaching
Effective
Distinguished
 Leader rarely
communicates with
students, staff, parents,
and community outside
of necessary interactions
 Leader does not know all
staff members well
enough to publicly
acknowledge individual
contributions
 Leader has no evidence
of functional processes
for gathering and
transmitting information
from and to stakeholders
 Leader is unaware of
language barriers that
exist in the school
 Leader fails to check for
mutual understanding,
and does not regularly
solicit feedback from
others in the learning
community
 Leader’s presentations
are rarely organized,
logical, meaningful, or
relevant; leader does not
have established
methods for capturing or
responding to audience
feedback
 Leader communicates with
students, staff, parents, and
community, but interactions
may not be purposeful or
create a sense of
approachability
 Leader knows all staff members
but may not interact on a
personal level or publicly
acknowledge individual
contributions
 Leader is still developing
functional processes for
gathering and transmitting
information from and to
stakeholders and systems may
not be consistent or reliable in
transmitting information
 Leader may recognize language
barriers in the school, but may
not plan for them, such that
certain community groups are
disconnected Leader
sometimes checks for mutual
understanding, but does not
regularly solicit feedback from
others in the learning
community
 Leader’s presentations are not
always organized, logical,
meaningful, or relevant; leader
does not have established
methods for capturing or
responding to audience
feedback
 Leader communicates with all staff members on both a personal and
professional level in order to build a sense of community and
belonging
 Leader ensures visibility, accessibility and approachability by
minimizing time in the office and intentionally and purposefully
interacting with students, staff, parents, and community to engage
stakeholders in the goals of the school and to create a sense of
shared ownership in the success of the organization
 Leader develops meaningful processes for creating two-way
communication systems with stakeholders and is committed to
upholding communication timelines and protocols, and to using a
variety of media to communicate
 Language barriers are considered and proactively planned for to
ensure equitable communication across all families
 Leader’s communication is clear, concise, relevant, and appropriate
for intended audience. Leader recognizes communication styles
unique to cultural norms and adjusts his/her style accordingly to
meet needs; frequently and deliberately checks for mutual
understanding and solicits feedback from others
 Leader’s presentations are organized, logical, meaningful, and
relevant, and regularly include purposeful analysis of information.
Leader provides clear and specific responses to audience feedback
 Leader knows when to empower others to communicate on behalf of
the school or decision-making committee
 Leader understands the importance of communicating with diverse
communities
 Leader is able to communicate with parents and students including
knowing when translation is needed
 Leader provides and promotes welcoming and hospitable school
culture and climate
In addition to effective…
 Leader creates a
school-wide culture in
which all parties
make themselves
accessible and
approachable to
families, students and
community members
through inclusive and
welcoming behaviors.
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 41 of 54
School Behaviors
 Communications structures and timeframes such as weekly
folders, newsletters or websites may be inconsistent or only in
English resulting in a lack of understanding by the community on
how to access information from the school.
 All stakeholders may not understand how and when to access
school leadership resulting in a feeling that the leader is
unapproachable or unavailable for communication.
 Language barriers exist in the school.
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
 All stakeholders have equal access to information and have a voice in the community despite
language or other communication barriers.
 Students understand the value of communication and feely and appropriately interact with adults
at the school.
 Families understand how to obtain information, have access through their home language when
possible, and feel comfortable using the communication structures used by the school.
 Teachers see the value in two way communication with and utilize a variety of mechanisms to
open up communication with families including using translators for phone calls, conferences, and
home communication.
 Stakeholders understand how to access school leadership because systems are clear, posted and
communicated. Leadership is visible and available formally and informally throughout the day.
Page 42 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
Instructional Superintendent Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Managerial Leadership,
Indicator ML3
Principal Behaviors
Leader communicates with all staff members on
both a personal and professional level in order to
build a sense of community and belonging.
Relevant Interview Questions
 As principal, what would be your style and methods of communicating
with different school stakeholders (students, staff, families, etc.)? Would
your medium and message vary based on the intended audience? How
would you take account of language and cultural differences?
Leader ensures visibility, accessibility, and
approachability by minimizing time in the office
and intentionally and purposefully interacting with
students, staff, parents, and community to engage
stakeholders in the goals of the school and to
create a sense of shared ownership in the success
of the organization.
 What is your vision of how active you will be in the school on a daily and
weekly basis? How will you ensure that you are visible, accessible and
approachable to all stakeholders?
Leader develops meaningful processes for creating
two-way communication systems with
stakeholders and is committed to upholding
communications timelines and protocols, and to
using a variety of media to communicate.
 As principal, what would be your style and methods of communicating
with different school stakeholders (students, staff, families, etc.)? Would
your medium and message vary based on the intended audience? How
would you take account of language and cultural differences?
Language barriers are considered and proactively
planned for to ensure equitable communication
across all families.
 In your opinion, how and when should teachers communicate with
families and other community members? How would you as principal
ensure that this communication is taking place, and that it is two-way (i.e.
teachers getting information and feedback as well as parents and other
family members)?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
 How would you ensure that all community members have a common
understanding of the school’s culture, vision, and goals? How would you
rely on other stakeholders to “sell” the vision, mission and success of your
school to the general community?
Page 43 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader’s communication is clear, concise, relevant,
and appropriate for intended audience(s). Leader
recognizes communication styles unique to
cultural norms and adjusts his/her style
accordingly to meet needs; frequently and
deliberately checks for mutual understanding and
solicits feedback from others.
Relevant Interview Questions
 As principal, what would be your style and methods of communicating
with different school stakeholders (students, staff, families, etc.)? Would
your medium and message vary based on the intended audience? How
would you take account of language and cultural differences?
Leader’s presentations are organized, logical,
meaningful and relevant, and regularly include
purposeful analysis and information. Leader
provides clear and specific responses to audience
feedback.
 Scenario: It is the first week of school and you are addressing this group,
representative of the school community as a whole, to tell us about your
plan for communicating with and receiving feedback from stakeholders
during the year. Tell us a little bit about the key messages you would want
to get across and how you would communicate them.
o
In this example, if committee members are comfortable, they could ask
follow-up questions related to what the candidate says about their
communication style, methods and how they would listen to and
incorporate stakeholder feedback into their decision-making process.
Leader knows when to empower others to speak
on behalf of the school or decision-making
committee.
 In which situations would you want other stakeholders to speak about or
on behalf of the school? How would you ensure that all community
members have a common understanding of the school’s culture, vision,
and goals? How would you rely on other stakeholders to “sell” the vision,
mission and success of your school to the general community?
Leader understands the importance of
communicating with diverse communities.
 Given what you know of this school so far, how would you stay in touch
with different members of the school community? How and what would
you want to communicate with them on a regular basis? What would be
your ways of seeking feedback and ensuring transparency in
communication and decision-making?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 44 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader is able to communicate with parents and
students including knowing when translation is
needed.
Relevant Interview Questions
 Given what you know of our school so far, how would you stay in touch
with different members of the school community? How and what would
you want to communicate with them on a regular basis? What would be
your ways of seeking feedback and ensuring transparency in
communication and decision-making?
Leader provides and promotes welcoming and
hospitable school culture and climate.
 How would you ensure that all stakeholders feel comfortable and share a
sense of ownership in the success of this school? What would roles would
you want other community members (students, staff, families, etc.) to
take in developing and implementing your school vision and goals?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 45 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
SPSAC Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
Managerial Leadership,
Indicator ML3
Principal Behaviors
Leader communicates with all staff members on
both a personal and professional level in order to
build a sense of community and belonging.
Relevant Interview Questions
 As principal, what would be your style and methods of communicating
with different school stakeholders (students, staff, families, etc.)? Would
your medium and message vary based on the intended audience? How
would you take account of language and cultural differences?
Leader ensures visibility, accessibility, and
approachability by minimizing time in the office
and intentionally and purposefully interacting with
students, staff, parents, and community to engage
stakeholders in the goals of the school and to
create a sense of shared ownership in the success
of the organization.
 What is your vision of how active you will be in the school on a daily and
weekly basis? How will you ensure that you are visible, accessible and
approachable to all stakeholders?
Leader develops meaningful processes for creating
two-way communication systems with
stakeholders and is committed to upholding
communications timelines and protocols, and to
using a variety of media to communicate.
 As principal, what would be your style and methods of communicating
with different school stakeholders (students, staff, families, etc.)? Would
your medium and message vary based on the intended audience? How
would you take account of language and cultural differences?
Language barriers are considered and proactively
planned for to ensure equitable communication
across all families.
 In your opinion, how and when should teachers communicate with
families and other community members? How would you as principal
ensure that this communication is taking place, and that it is two-way (i.e.
teachers getting information and feedback as well as parents and other
family members)?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
 How would you ensure that all community members have a common
understanding of the school’s culture, vision, and goals? How would you
rely on other stakeholders to “sell” the vision, mission and success of your
school to the general community?
Page 46 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader’s communication is clear, concise, relevant,
and appropriate for intended audience(s). Leader
recognizes communication styles unique to
cultural norms and adjusts his/her style
accordingly to meet needs; frequently and
deliberately checks for mutual understanding and
solicits feedback from others.
Relevant Interview Questions
 As principal, what would be your style and methods of communicating
with different school stakeholders (students, staff, families, etc.)? Would
your medium and message vary based on the intended audience? How
would you take account of language and cultural differences?
Leader’s presentations are organized, logical,
meaningful and relevant, and regularly include
purposeful analysis and information. Leader
provides clear and specific responses to audience
feedback.
 Scenario: It is the first week of school and you are addressing this group,
representative of the school community as a whole, to tell us about your
plan for communicating with and receiving feedback from stakeholders
during the year. Tell us a little bit about the key messages you would want
to get across and how you would communicate them.
o
In this example, if committee members are comfortable, they could ask
follow-up questions related to what the candidate says about their
communication style, methods and how they would listen to and
incorporate stakeholder feedback into their decision-making process.
Leader knows when to empower others to speak
on behalf of the school or decision-making
committee.
 In which situations would you want other stakeholders to speak about or
on behalf of the school? How would you ensure that all community
members have a common understanding of the school’s culture, vision,
and goals? How would you rely on other stakeholders to “sell” the vision,
mission and success of your school to the general community?
Leader understands the importance of
communicating with diverse communities.
 Given what you know of our school so far, how would you stay in touch
with different members of our school community? How and what would
you want to communicate with us on a regular basis? What would be your
ways of seeking feedback and ensuring transparency in communication
and decision-making?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 47 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader is able to communicate with parents and
students including knowing when translation is
needed.
Relevant Interview Questions
 Given what you know of our school so far, how would you stay in touch
with different members of our school community? How and what would
you want to communicate with us on a regular basis? What would be your
ways of seeking feedback and ensuring transparency in communication
and decision-making?
Leader provides and promotes welcoming and
hospitable school culture and climate.
 How would you ensure that all stakeholders feel comfortable and share a
sense of ownership in the success of our school? What would roles would
you want other community members (students, staff, families, etc.) to
take in developing and implementing your school vision and goals?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
Page 48 of 54
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
EXTERNAL LEADERSHIP
Domain
Expectation
Indicator
EDL 1: LEADS FAMILY AND COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT AND OUTREACH
Observable
Evidence
Not Meeting
Approaching
Effective
Distinguished
Principal
Behaviors
 Leader does not find ways to
communicate the successes
of the school to the broader
community. There is little
evidence of outreach the
surrounding community
 Leader may interact with and
acknowledge that
parents/guardians and
community members have a
critical role in developing
community engagement,
support and ownership of
the school but may not have
strategies to enlist their
support
 Leader rarely engages in
interactions with family and
community; leader makes no
visible attempt to create
processes for gathering and
transmitting information to
stakeholders and does not
solicit stakeholder input
 Leader does not attempt
strategies to grow
enrollment
 Community partnerships are
not evident or are nonexistent.
 Leader does not have
community outreach or
inclusion of all communities
is not clear.
 Leader finds ways to communicate the successes
of the school to the broader community but may
do so inconsistently. Celebrations of student
learning may be limited to direct reporting and
the school-community partnership does not
appear to be mutually beneficial
 Leader interacts with and acknowledges that
parents/guardians and community members
have a critical role in developing community
engagement, support and ownership of the
school and is beginning to develop systems to
engage the broader community in the vision of
the school
 Leader has begun to welcome families of all
backgrounds and integrate them into the
community but has done so inconsistently
without ensuring that participation is expected
or preferred
 Leader engages to some degree in interactions
with family and community; leader attempts to
create processes for gathering and transmitting
information to stakeholders and may welcome
stakeholder input, but has not established
structures for accepting and utilizing feedback
 Leader seeks to increase student enrollment but
may not have a comprehensive plan or
strategies for outreach
 Leader demonstrates interest and first steps to
engage community through a variety of
organizations but has not yet been able to
establish partnerships
 Leader provides for some family gatherings but
does not have a variety of meaningful outreach.
 Leader actively finds ways to communicate the
successes of the school to the broader community
and creatively partners to bring in additional time,
people and resources to the school.
 Leader communicates regularly with family and
community members, and models attention, time,
and respect; leader demonstrates awareness of
public and political nature of position and establishes
processes and procedures to engage stakeholders
 Leader ensures that parents of linguistically diverse
students are welcomed and an integral part of the
school community including them in vision, goals, and
decision-making structures
 Leader values families and community as partners
and works to gather feedback that is focused on
improving student and school performance; leader
communicates feedback and actions for next steps
 Leader uses innovative ideas to increase student
enrollment (as appropriate) using a comprehensive
marketing plan, as well as planned activities for
outreach at various points in the school year
 Leader engages the community especially at public
gatherings and seeks to understand DPS’ diverse
communities
 Leader is knowledgeable of best practice in outreach
and forms partnerships with community
organizations (i.e. Spring Institute, Catholic Charities,
Jewish Community Center) so as to be inclusive.
 Leader understands the value of consistent and
meaningful outreach through frequent school based
events (Family Literacy, Math nights, Computer Lab
nights, Science Fair, etc.) as well as culture
celebrations.
In addition to effective…
 Leader shares
responsibility for
community outreach
and all staff members
feel a sense of coaccountability for
generating and
participating in efforts
to create community
partnerships
 Leader models a sense
of pride in the school
that staff, students and
parents share and
want to communicate
to the broader
community
 Community
partnerships, which
reflect a variety of
backgrounds, know
and understand the
mission of the school
and actively support its
vision within the
school and in the
greater community.
School
Behaviors
 Neighboring businesses have little interaction with the school and student work is
rarely seen posted around the community
 When asked about the school parents may have little to say about the benefits of
the school and seem neutral or uninformed about its merits
 Families that enroll in the school are a result of boundaries and not because of a
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
 Footprints of the school, student progress, and support of their families can be
seen throughout the community and partnerships between the school and
community demonstrate two way benefits
 Parents proactively communicate the attributes of the school to new families and
community members and can articulate the values, goals and mission of the school
Page 49 of 54
desire to be there
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
 New students to the school are often a result of recruitment by currently enrolled
families. Numbers of students who choice in may be high
 Neighbors to the school are invested in the success of the school regardless of
whether they have school-aged children
Page 50 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
Instructional Superintendent Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
External Leadership,
Indicator EDL1
Principal Behaviors
Leader actively finds ways to communicate the
successes of the school to the broader community
and creatively partners to bring in additional time,
people and resources to the school.
Relevant Interview Questions
 In which situations would you want other stakeholders to speak about or
on behalf of the school? How would you ensure that all community
members have a common understanding of the school’s culture, vision,
and goals? How would you rely on other stakeholders to “sell” the vision,
mission and success of your school to the general community?
Leader communicates regularly with family and
community members, and models attention, time,
and respect; leader demonstrates awareness of
public and political nature of position and
establishes processes and procedures to engage
stakeholders.
 What kind of one-on-one or small group communication would you see
yourself having with students, teachers and other school staff, families,
and other community members? When and how frequently would these
conversations occur? What would be your goals in engaging different
community members on an individual or small group basis?
 What are the key messages you would want to communicate to students,
teachers and other staff, and families? How would you communicate
these messages to the different audiences?
Leader ensures that parents of linguistically
diverse students are welcomed and an integral
part of the school community, including them in
vision, goals, and decision-making structures.
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
 How would you ensure that all stakeholders feel comfortable and share a
sense of ownership in the success of our school? What would roles would
you want other community members (students, staff, families, etc.) to
take in developing and implementing your school vision and goals?
Page 51 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader values families and community as partners
and works to gather feedback that is focused on
improving student and school performance; leader
communicates feedback and actions for next
steps.
Relevant Interview Questions
 In which decisions would you want other stakeholders to have a say? How
would you make clear to them the places where you wanted input versus
places where they had decision-making power? How would you check for
understanding and gather feedback from your school community on a
regular basis?
Leader uses innovative ideas to increase student
enrollment (as appropriate) using a
comprehensive marketing plan, as well as planned
activities for outreach at various points in the
school year.
 Scenario: A new parent has responded to your community outreach efforts
by arranging a time to speak with you about enrolling their child in this
school. Given that they only have a few minutes to talk with you, what
would you want to make sure to say to them and how would you
communicate these messages to ensure they were received?
Leader engages the community, especially at
public gatherings, and seeks to understand DPS’
diverse communities.
 How would you engage our school community in your primary goal of
ensuring that all stakeholders have high expectations for academic
achievement for all students? How would you communicate these
expectations to different audiences?
Leader is knowledgeable of best practice in
outreach and forms partnerships with community
organizations (i.e. Spring Institute, Catholic
Charities, Jewish Community Center) so as to be
inclusive.
Leader understands the value of consistent and
meaningful outreach through frequent schoolbased events (Family Literacy, Math nights,
Computer Lab nights, Science Fair, etc.) as well as
cultural celebrations.
 How will you maintain relationships and form strong partnerships with a
variety of nonprofits, community based organizations and other local
partners?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
 How would you engage our school community in your primary goal of
ensuring that all stakeholders have high expectations for academic
achievement for all students? How would you communicate these
expectations to different audiences?
Page 52 of 54
Denver Public Schools Principal Selection Candidate Interview Questions:
SPSAC Questions
Candidate:
Interviewers:
Question Bank: Based on Denver Public Schools’ Framework for Effective School Leadership
Key Indicators
External Leadership,
Indicator EDL1
Principal Behaviors
Leader actively finds ways to communicate the
successes of the school to the broader community
and creatively partners to bring in additional time,
people and resources to the school.
Relevant Interview Questions
 In which situations would you want other stakeholders to speak about or
on behalf of the school? How would you ensure that all community
members have a common understanding of the school’s culture, vision,
and goals? How would you rely on other stakeholders to “sell” the vision,
mission and success of your school to the general community?
Leader communicates regularly with family and
community members, and models attention, time,
and respect; leader demonstrates awareness of
public and political nature of position and
establishes processes and procedures to engage
stakeholders.
 What kind of one-on-one or small group communication would you see
yourself having with students, teachers and other school staff, families,
and other community members? When and how frequently would these
conversations occur? What would be your goals in engaging different
community members on an individual or small group basis?
 What are the key messages you would want to communicate to students,
teachers and other staff, and families? How would you communicate
these messages to the different audiences?
Leader ensures that parents of linguistically
diverse students are welcomed and an integral
part of the school community, including them in
vision, goals, and decision-making structures.
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
 How would you ensure that all stakeholders feel comfortable and share a
sense of ownership in the success of our school? What would roles would
you want other community members (students, staff, families, etc.) to
take in developing and implementing your school vision and goals?
Page 53 of 54
Key Indicators
Principal Behaviors
Leader values families and community as partners
and works to gather feedback that is focused on
improving student and school performance; leader
communicates feedback and actions for next
steps.
Relevant Interview Questions
 In which decisions would you want other stakeholders to have a say? How
would you make clear to them the places where you wanted input versus
places where they had decision-making power? How would you check for
understanding and gather feedback from your school community on a
regular basis?
Leader uses innovative ideas to increase student
enrollment (as appropriate) using a
comprehensive marketing plan, as well as planned
activities for outreach at various points in the
school year.
 Scenario: A new parent has responded to your community outreach efforts
by arranging a time to speak with you about enrolling their child in this
school. Given that they only have a few minutes to talk with you, what
would you want to make sure to say to them and how would you
communicate these messages to ensure they were received?
Leader engages the community, especially at
public gatherings, and seeks to understand DPS’
diverse communities.
 How would you engage our school community in your primary goal of
ensuring that all stakeholders have high expectations for academic
achievement for all students? How would you communicate these
expectations to different audiences?
Leader is knowledgeable of best practice in
outreach and forms partnerships with community
organizations (i.e. Spring Institute, Catholic
Charities, Jewish Community Center) so as to be
inclusive.
Leader understands the value of consistent and
meaningful outreach through frequent schoolbased events (Family Literacy, Math nights,
Computer Lab nights, Science Fair, etc.) as well as
cultural celebrations.
 How will you maintain relationships and form strong partnerships with a
variety of nonprofits, community based organizations and other local
partners?
DPS Principal Selection Interview Materials
 How would you engage our school community in your primary goal of
ensuring that all stakeholders have high expectations for academic
achievement for all students? How would you communicate these
expectations to different audiences?
Page 54 of 54