Beyond the “Seat at the Table”: Why Principal Presence in Special Education is Non-Negotiable

By Deanna Wellens, Principal, Silver Spring Intermediate School

As school leaders, we often talk about “all students,” but the true test of that philosophy lies in how we lead our special education systems. In my seventh year as principal at Silver Spring Intermediate, I’ve come to realize that the most impactful work we do to close the achievement gap happens when we bridge the divide between the main office and the specialized learning environment. When we integrate our most vulnerable learners into the core of our leadership vision, we move beyond “management” and into true advocacy. 

I must acknowledge my own bias: prior to entering administration, I spent ten years as a school psychologist. That decade “in the trenches” of evaluations and IEP meetings shaped my conviction that special education is not a separate department - it is the heartbeat of a school’s commitment to equity. However, you don’t need a background in psychology to be a champion for all students; you simply need to be present and have the courage to remain engaged. In practice, this means being physically visible in the spaces where the work happens - walking into small group instruction in progress, pulling up a chair in co-planning meetings, and being the first one through the door during a crisis call. It looks like setting aside the laptop to truly listen during an IEP meeting and asking the brave questions that push a team to move beyond legal compliance toward true student independence. 

From Compliance to Connection: Leading with Active Participation 

Strong leadership in special education requires moving beyond being a passive “seat at the table” in order to check a box for legal compliance to something much more engaged and thoughtful. Our teams need to see us as active, engaged problem-solvers. This means carving out time to be physically and actively present in special education department meetings, co-planning meetings, and within all environments where students receive SDI throughout the building. 

When a principal is in the room, the conversation shifts. We provide the “balcony view” of how specialized instruction aligns with our building-wide MTSS data-based decision-making. Our presence is especially critical during crisis intervention with our highest-need students. Being “highly responsive” doesn’t just mean showing up when a radio call goes out; it means being part of the proactive planning that prevents the crisis from occurring in the first place. 

High Support, High Expectations 

In his book Culturize, Jimmy Casas writes, “it’s not enough to just have a vision; we must have the courage to protect it” (Casas, 2017, p. 102). To truly “culturize” our schools, we must have the courage to protect the quality of instruction for our most vulnerable learners by refusing to settle for “good enough.” 

High-level support for our special education teams must be matched by high expectations and accountability. As leaders, we must hold the bar high for what “quality” looks like. This involves:

• Eliminating Silos: We must move past the language of “your students” and “my students.” Every student with a 504 or IEP is a general education student first. It is the administrators job to ensure every member of a school community operates with that as the foundation for programming.

• Active Accountability: We must hold case managers, specialists, and paraprofessionals accountable for delivering consistent, high-quality services. This isn’t about “gotcha” leadership; it's about ensuring the rights of our students are met with excellence. When that isn’t present, providing the ongoing coaching, learning, and supervision is an essential role of school leaders. 

• Meaningful Feedback: High-quality IEP meetings don’t happen by accident; they are the result of clear expectations established at the start of the year regarding meeting protocols and student-centeredness. By setting these standards early, we can then provide real-time and actionable feedback to case managers and specialists related to the agenda, inclusion of students' voices, and how goals connect back to grade-level standards and student independence. 

The Integration of Expertise

Quality leadership in this arena only comes from a deep understanding of other systems within the school. We cannot lead special education in a vacuum. It requires a firm grasp of our current Tier 1 resources and curriculum as well as the relational expertise we build with each team and student. When we know a student’s story and we know the system’s data, we can advocate for independence rather than enabling a culture of over-prompting. We are not just administrators; we are the keepers of the vision. 

At Silver Spring Intermediate, we view special education as the place where all systems come together to support the growth of students who have the most gains to make. When we lead with presence, lean into difficult conversations, and insist on high-quality services, we aren’t just managing a program - we are protecting the vision of excellence for every child. What a unique honor to stand at the intersection of a student’s greatest challenges and their most remarkable breakthroughs. Lucky us. 

Casas, J. (2017). Culturize: Every student. Every day. Whatever it takes. Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc.