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Assistant Principals Week was April 6-10 and Principal Appreciation Day is coming up on May 1. If you are a part of a school with an amazing admin team, like mine, you may want to do something to recognize the hard work they do all year long! You can do something special on your own, or to make an even bigger impact, get the rest of the school involved. This is easily accomplished by sending out a group email discluding the admin team, of course, that outlines the plan.
I recommend selecting a week in April. Another option is choosing the last week leading up to the first Friday in May, if it doesn’t coincide with Teacher Appreciation Week. Then, you will need a plan for what to do each day of the week that will show appreciation for your admin team’s hard work and support. That’s where this post comes in. Check out these simple, budget-friendly, yet heart-warming, ways to celebrate your admin team!
Celebrating Admin as a Staff
Getting the staff involved is the best way to show appreciation! Send an email a few weeks in advance describing the what and the why. Then, also, ask for donations for the celebratory week that can be given to you in cash or sent by Venmo (or whichever way you choose to accept donations). You can, also, ask if there are volunteers that would like to help you throughout the week with picking up supplies, submitting orders, picking up orders, etc. But be clear that participation is optional. Staff can choose to be as involved as they want, with no hard feelings. That way everyone can contribute as much or as little as they are comfortable with.
Keep reading below for ideas that have been utilized in the past at my school to show appreciation, along with a couple of my own.
Appreciation Ideas That Cost Money
1. Have the admin team fill out a survey a week or two in advance of the selected Appreciation Week. It can be on paper or a Google form. The survey will include information that will help to make what you do more personalized. Here are some suggestions based on the following ideas in this post.
- What is your preferred bottled/canned drink?
- What is your favorite candy or snack?
- What type of food do you like?
- Rank these restaurants based on order of preferance. (Add a list of 1-4 restaurants nearby that either deliver or someone can do a quick pick-up order)
- Where do you like to shop?
- What is your favorite color?
2. Deliver the team’s favorite drinks. You may even include a note such as “Sip, sip, hooray! Thanks for being amazing!”
3. Leave a favorite candy or snack, either in the admin team’s mailboxes or on their desks. Possible note, “Here’s some extra fuel for your day!”
4. Have an Admin Appreciation Potluck lunch. Staff can sign up to bring in main dishes, sides, drinks, and desserts. Arrange to have a room for the food to be out, perhaps an unused conference room. Make sure to puchase plates, cups, and utensils. Then, everyone can celebrate the admin team with a delicious lunch!
4. Plan a day for a lunch run. From the survey, hopefully, you’ll be able to select one restaurant near the school to order from. The day before, or morning of, show the team the menu and have them select their lunch order. Order lunch and deliver it to them.
5. For Friday, divy up the leftover money to purchase a gift card for each member of the team. Use the surveys for choosing which store or restaurant to get the gift card from.
Appreciation Ideas That Are Free
1. Have the students in each class make thank you cards for the admin team. These can be individual cards made by the students or a whole class card signed by each student.
2. Have everyone dress up on a certain day. Dress up ideas include: Dress like someone on the admin team, Wear the admin team’s favorite colors, Dress in school spirit wear.
3. Make a special thank you video to post on the News Show, if your school has one.
4. Decorate the admin team’s offices with handmade posters and decorations leftover from other events.
Celebrating the Admin Team on Your Own
If you choose to show appreciation on your own, you may only want to do it on one day. Most of the ideas from the previous section can be done on your own. You may have to spend a little more to use them though.
Here are a few more to add to your arsenal.
1. Bring flowers or a potted plant for each member of the admin team. Flowers/plants are a thoughtful gift that can be kept in their offices or taken home to enjoy.
2. Write a personalized note of appreciation and leave in their mailboxes or on their desks.
3. For the extroverts, or brave introverts, tell them in-person how much you appreciate all that they do. Share a few specific examples of how they have supported you, inspired you, or how you have seen them support others in the school. Let them know that what they do does not go unnoticed!
Final Notes
Whatever you choose to do, I am sure your admin team will be thrilled! They do so much for the school and give so much time after hours to make sure everyone is taken care of. It’s time to give back and fill their cup to overflowing! Share any ideas you have below in the comments.
If you enjoyed this post and with Teacher Appreciation Week right around the corner, check out this post 7 Simple Money Saving Tips for Teachers.