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High school principal vs director of special services

The differences between high school principals and directors of special services can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a high school principal and a director of special services. Additionally, a high school principal has an average salary of $96,329, which is higher than the $81,779 average annual salary of a director of special services.

The top three skills for a high school principal include student achievement, curriculum development and staff development. The most important skills for a director of special services are social work, business development, and mental health.

High school principal vs director of special services overview

High School PrincipalDirector Of Special Services
Yearly salary$96,329$81,779
Hourly rate$46.31$39.32
Growth rate5%5%
Number of jobs61,94870,868
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 53%Bachelor's Degree, 57%
Average age4747
Years of experience44

High school principal vs director of special services salary

High school principals and directors of special services have different pay scales, as shown below.

High School PrincipalDirector Of Special Services
Average salary$96,329$81,779
Salary rangeBetween $70,000 And $131,000Between $56,000 And $117,000
Highest paying CityEast Palo Alto, CA-
Highest paying stateWashington-
Best paying companyJo-Ann Stores-
Best paying industryEducation-

Differences between high school principal and director of special services education

There are a few differences between a high school principal and a director of special services in terms of educational background:

High School PrincipalDirector Of Special Services
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 53%Bachelor's Degree, 57%
Most common majorEducational LeadershipBusiness
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaNorthwestern University

High school principal vs director of special services demographics

Here are the differences between high school principals' and directors of special services' demographics:

High School PrincipalDirector Of Special Services
Average age4747
Gender ratioMale, 64.1% Female, 35.9%Male, 41.7% Female, 58.3%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 4.4% White, 66.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 13.8% Asian, 4.3% White, 66.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage16%16%

Differences between high school principal and director of special services duties and responsibilities

High school principal example responsibilities.

  • Facilitate teacher lead PBIS committee to implement effective school wide discipline campaigns and activities for students.
  • Create a PBIS system for teachers on how to manage behavior on a daily basis and reward positive outcomes.
  • Lead counselor meetings, IEP's, conduct parent/teacher meetings.
  • Assist in coordinating, developing, monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of the IEP.
  • Co-Design kindergarten readiness program that will bring in-home and wrap around services to academically at-risk kindergarten students.
  • Result in international interest in available ESL programs.

Director of special services example responsibilities.

  • Develop and manage a capital budget of $200K, an operational budget of $100K and 50 FTE's.
  • Coordinate Medicaid billing for the district.
  • Direct the administrative and clinical operations of rehabilitation services for a two-campus 325-bed acute-care hospital and hospital-base home health agency.
  • Maintain and supervise all clinical performance improvement systems for JCAHO accreditation.

High school principal vs director of special services skills

Common high school principal skills
  • Student Achievement, 8%
  • Curriculum Development, 7%
  • Staff Development, 6%
  • Instructional Program, 6%
  • Professional Growth, 6%
  • Student Learning, 6%
Common director of special services skills
  • Social Work, 10%
  • Business Development, 8%
  • Mental Health, 8%
  • Securities, 7%
  • Treasury, 7%
  • Staff Development, 7%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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