The job of a principal involves a high level of stress and a multitude of responsibilities. The principal is ultimately responsible for the safety, welfare, and behavioral and academic performance of all students in his/her building. General leadership responsibilities involve setting goals and devising plans to meet these goals, making hundreds of decisions each day, and listening to and communicating with central office, teachers, students, parents, and community members. The principal must implement strategies to motivate teachers and students, lead and work with various committees and groups, resolve conflicts and issues, promote a positive culture and climate for learning, lead major changes, and evaluate procedures, programs, and faculty. The principal is accountable for adhering to fiscal and legal policy. This generally means budgeting for supplies and materials, purchase and maintenance of equipment, and facilities management. The principal ensures all practices comply with the law, that mandates are carried out, and that the rights of faculty, students, and parents are upheld. At the secondary level, numerous classes, clubs, and a host of extra-curricular programs require additional administrative fiscal and legal oversight. In many cases, personnel administration takes a majority of the principal's time. In large schools personnel can mean hundreds of teachers and thousands of students. For faculty and staff, this includes recruiting, hiring, placing, developing, and evaluating. Pupil personnel administration includes registration, attendance, class schedules, student records, and discipline. The principal is typically responsible for substitute teachers and parent volunteers. Principals are expected to be the voice of the school and the ear for concerns, complaints, and demands. Principals inform parents, community, central office and school board of the progress and events at their school. Additionally, community politics strongly influence the principal. Elected school board officials, influential community members, teacher organizations and parent organizations all are hopeful of influencing the principal to further their goals. In many districts, the principal is expected to take an active part in community and civic organizations. Yet, the most important job of the principal is to supervise instruction in the classroom. The article also includes a bibliography.