Aussie public school principals reveal job's trauma toll

Public school principals are developing PTSD, diabetes and alcohol problems after being forced to handle a range of terrifying and traumatic situations.

Parkville College executive principal Anne-Maree Kliman said they were constantly expected to stay calm whenever there was a crisis.

Public school principals have “stood guard” over dead bodies, become human shields between violent students and performed CPR on dying colleagues – all while being expected to return to their office to continue “business as usual”.

Damning new research has revealed underfunding coupled with complex community needs have state school leaders feeling more like first responders than educators as critical incidents escalate.

Consequently, they’re developing stress-induced illnesses such as diabetes, PTSD and alcohol abuse under the weight of the “invisible” emotional load that comes with the job.

More than 250 school leaders offered confronting testimonies on critical incidents for the four-part study led by Monash University.

Parkville College executive principal Anne-Maree Kliman said she was verbally abused by a parent who had road rage while dropping their child at school.

“They weren’t happy with something their child said and they came in and started yelling abuse at me,” she said.

“I didn’t do anything wrong but we have to wear that … We’re constantly expected to stay calm whenever there is a crisis.”

Ms Kliman says she was verbally abused by a parent with road rage.

Ms Kliman said principals often had to hold “brave faces”.

“We’re absorbing stress that comes from our staff, families and our students,” she said.

“You are constantly having to listen and hold a brave face and help them navigate through what’s happening in their lives.”

One rural Victorian principal said she felt “hopeless” after her community was left reeling following a student suicide, with the only support coming from what she described as “fly-in, fly-out” wellbeing workers.

“I reached out to (the Department of Education) and had no support … all I could do was listen and try to comfort as best I could,” she said.

“I learned that no-one was going to rescue me, or my school or the community.”

A retired inner-Melbourne principal said one of the biggest challenges in her two decades of leadership was the pandemic.

“I would regard that as a critical incident that extended over 18 months to two years,” she said.

“And when an incident like that comes up, it’s not like any of your other work goes away … it adds to the burden because you’re trying to do business as usual and manage something really complex at the same time.”

Outside of Victoria, one metro-based principal recounted how they kept curious parents and students away from a deceased person on campus.

“I had to stand with the body waiting for emergency services to arrive. I wasn’t allowed to cover it in case it was a crime scene,” she said.

Another principal compared the responsibilities of his role to “juggling 10 chainsaws”, while a sixth school leader said their alcohol intake tripled in the week following an incident.

Lead researcher Professor Jane Wilkinson said principals were “picking up the pieces” of governments cutting services – in turn increasing their busy and mentally draining workloads.

“They have to deal with murder. They have to deal with kids suiciding on the school site … family violence is also a big issue that comes up,” she said.

“But their workload is also huge … they’re spending a huge amount of time doing all the accountability work and that takes them away from their really crucial work.”

Australian principals are developing stress-induced illnesses such as diabetes, PTSD and alcohol abuse under the weight of the “invisible” emotional load that comes with the job.

Co-author Professor Lucas Walsh added the report highlighted how such challenges were exacerbated in regional and rural communities.

“(These principals) often work in isolation with a lack of resources around but still have to deal with community-wide trauma,” he said.

“They’re often under-resourced or under-supported in addressing those challenges.”

Victorian Principals Association president Andrew Dalgleish said schools must have healthy leadership for strong student outcomes.

“When school leaders and educators are feeling overwhelmed and burnt out, it can impact on the whole school,” he said.

“The wellbeing toll means people can’t flourish and can’t be the best version of themselves.

“We certainly want school leaders to turn up and give the best that they can for that next generation of young people coming through.”

Three key recommendations were drawn from the report – an urgent review of principal role descriptions, the establishment of peer support networks and increased provision of specialist roles.

Further recommendations will be made in another two reports, due to be released in the coming months.

Originally published as Aussie public school principals reveal job's trauma toll