| MESPA Home > Honors > National Outstanding Assistant Principal > MESPA Outstanding AP History |  | | MESPA Home > Honors > National Outstanding Assistant Principal > MESPA Outstanding AP History | | 2012, Frank H. Catchings, Jr.
 | | Frank H. Catchings, Jr. |
Frank H. Catchings, Jr., assistant principal of Burroughs Community School in the Minneapolis Public Schools, and a member of the Minnesota Elementary School Principals’ Association (MESPA), is Minnesota’s 2012 National Outstanding Assistant Principal. MESPA and the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) present the prestigious award, which has corporate sponsorship from Pearson.
The National Outstanding Assistant Principal program was established in 2011 to honor assistant principals who are doing a superb job in their roles. NAESP is committed to preparing assistant principals to step into the principal role. This program promotes educational excellence for pre-kindergarten through eighth grade (PreK-8) schooling and calls attention to the fundamental importance of the assistant principal. NAESP will share their successes and best practices in a practical document for other principals to utilize.
“I want students to know and understand that ‘they are somebody’,” said Catchings. “They are valued and heard and it is my hope that this will leave an impression on their lives that will last for an eternity.”
“MESPA is honored to be represented by Frank,” said P. Fred Storti, MESPA executive director. “He has been both a community builder and a capacity builder at Burroughs Community School. Within MESPA, Frank has raised the bar, setting a high standard for Minneapolis principals to be engaged in their professional association.”
MESPA President-Elect Matt Dorschner (principal, Eastern Carver County), chair of the award selection committee, elaborated: “Frank Catchings represents the best in public education leadership. What is imminently clear in comments from his supervising principal is Frank’s deep commitment to utilizing relationships with adults in the school to capitalize on opportunities for the students. One of the greatest testaments to his leadership comes from a teacher’s letter of recommendation that stated, ‘I am invariably inclined to say yes to his requests to teach an after school class or summer school, simply because it is him doing the asking.’ This commitment to education is what great leaders are able to elicit from their staff. I am proud to say Frank Catchings, Jr. is our Minnesota National Outstanding Assistant Principal of the Year.”
Speaking to his most significant accomplishments as an assistant principal, Catchings focused on:
- The extended day program he established that has helped move ELL students from the 30th to the 70th percentile in reading and math ability.
- The “Eagle Award” for teachers and the “Caught in the Act” award system for students that he established to regularly honor teachers and students for their hard work.
- The need to have a clear understanding of the difficulties homeless, highly mobile, and high poverty students experience on a daily basis.
Of the latter situation, Catchings said: “In many cases, school is the last thing on their minds. The word survival is more significant. I wanted our teachers and support staff to have a chance to begin developing this understanding, and so I arranged a tour of the north side of Minneapolis. We visited two homeless shelters and volunteered our services in whatever way we could to support these unfortunate families many of whom were our students.”
“I also encouraged our teachers to do home visits to introduce themselves to the families,” Catchings continued. “One teacher asked me ‘Well what should I do or say?’ I instructed the person to walk up, knock on the door and say ‘Hello. I am your son or daughter’s teacher and I want to talk with you about expectations for this school year.’ Then, if you are invited to have a meal with them, graciously accept. The relationships that were established were awesome. We increased our parent conferences by 50-70%. Behaviors decreased because teachers were able to connect with parents and parents knew, by name, who was working with their children.”
Frank Catchings, Jr., has been an educator since 1973, starting as a music teacher in Chicago, IL. Since 1993, he has been a vital presence in Minnesota education – throughout Minneapolis: middle school teacher, Benjamin Banneker, 1993-1994; intern assistant principal, Benjamin Banneker, 1994-1997; intern assistant principal, Ramsey IFAC, 1997-1998; assistant principal, Broadway Community School, 1998-1999; assistant principal, West Central Academy, 1999-2002; assistant principal, Lucy Laney Community School, 2002-2005; Burroughs Community School, 2005-today.
Catchings received his: Bachelor of Science in Education, Chicago State University, Chicago, IL; Master of Arts degree, University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN; Educational Administration license, St. Mary’s University, Winona, MN.
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“I want students to know and
understand that ‘they are somebody.' They are valued and
heard and it is my hope that this will leave an impression on their lives that
will last for an eternity.” --Frank Catchings, Jr.
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| | The National Association of Elementary School Principals and MESPA are
committed to preparing assistant principals to step into the principal
role. With the help of the Pearson Foundation, we honor PreK-8 assistant
principals who are doing a superb job in their roles.
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