The Virginia Association of Secondary School Principals (VASSP)/National Principals Association (NPA) – a unified membership organization – serves middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, supervisors, and other administrators throughout the commonwealth of Virginia. VASSP/NPA understands the obstacles that administrators like you face every hour of every day. Your professional associations are working harder and faster than ever before to give you practical, peer-tested solutions to these daily challenges.
In an education climate of greater demands and fewer resources, Virginia’s school administrators must be heard. VASSP provides you with the inspiration and support to guide improvements in your school and a strong voice to reach your state and national government leaders, legislators, and media.
With the help of an experienced team of lobbyists, we communicate directly with legislators and state agency administrators to enhance education policy and ensure the success of your schools.
Whether you’re a new or veteran administrator, you can make a difference for your school, for our state, for our nation. If you want to change legislators’ minds about what’s really happening and what’s really needed in education, join the VASSP/NPA team today. There’s power in numbers and we need your professional participation. From the classroom to the statehouse to Capitol Hill, we are changing minds where it really counts.
VASSP is a unified affiliate of the National Principals Association. There are four classifications of membership, which include:
- Professional Membership –Available to practicing secondary school administrators or supervisors; persons having supervision of educational personnel as a major responsibility; persons serving in an administrative position in a regional, state, or national educational agency or association, college or university; teachers preparing others for a professional career in education; and members not currently employed in the field of education but who are receiving compensation from the Virginia Retirement System.
- Special Membership– Includes Honorary Life Membership, awarded by the VASSP Board of Directors to persons who make outstanding contributions to education, and Complimentary Membership, granted to Association staff upon appointment.
- Associate Membership– Available to individuals not eligible for professional or special membership, including members reassigned to classroom or other duties, outside administration/supervision; individuals meeting certification requirements for membership but who have not yet been employed in a position qualifying them for professional membership; and individuals who are graduate students verified as being enrolled in programs of educational administration leading to administrative certification in an accredited higher education institution.
- School Service Membership– Available to those companies or corporations involved in the field of education.
Membership in VASSP consists of the following categories:
- Institutional Membership – $817
Provides one complete membership to the person named, includes VASSP’s premier resources and services, school membership in the Virginia Student Councils Association (VSCA) and Virginia Association of Honor Societies, and an Administrative Assistant Subscription – for up to three administrative assistants in the school building – plus membership to the National Principals Association (NPA). Membership is owned by the school, but in the name of an individual. - Professional+ – $617 Annual
This is an institutional membership to the person named, includes VASSP’s premier resources and services, plus membership to the National Principals Association (NPA). Membership is owned by the school, but in the name of an individual. - Professional – $617 Annual
This is an individual membership that provides VASSP’s premier resources and services, plus membership to the National Principals Association (NPA). - Associate – $100
Stay in the know. Associate membership is open only to aspiring administrators, central office personnel, and full-time graduate students. Does not include associate membership in NPA. - Retired – $100
Current members who are planning to leave the professional can transition to retired member status to maintain their link to the field and years of earned NPA legal coverage. Includes retired membership to the National Principals Association (NPA).
VASSP offers the following four convenient methods of membership payment: Full Payment with school or personal check, Credit Card, ACH monthly deduction from your bank account, or Payroll Deduction.
Why join the VASSP/NPA?
Professional membership will enhance your career and provide you with a number of needed services. Specifically, your investment in VASSP/NPA will give you a return for your money in the following ways:
- Legal assistance, mediation service, and legal protection plan.
- Personal, professional assistance from the VASSP staff.
- Monitoring of job related lawsuits in order to assure local board of education compliance with provisions of Virginia’s Sovereign Immunity Law.
- Peer recognition programs for principals and assistant principals.
- Job opportunities and career advancement.
- Continuing education and professional development opportunities at a substantially lower fee than that paid by nonmembers.
- A voice in the Governor’s Office, Virginia General Assembly, Virginia Board of Education, and related organizations.
- Professional representation at board meetings, grievance hearings, suspension appeal hearings, and other meetings in which a member desires advocacy.
- Timely publications with up-to-date information that is important to your career.
- A professional network of colleagues from around Virginia.
Summary of Benefits
- Legal consultation
- Professional representation
- Legal defense fund accessibility (up to $20,000 for 10 consecutive years of membership in VASSP/NPA)
- 3 million in principal/assistant principal professional liability insurance
- Professional development opportunities
- Legislative representation at state and national levels
- Current/archived publications
- Access to on-line job vacancies
- Voting privileges at VASSP and NPA elections
- Ability to serve on VASSP and NPA committees and appointments to VDOE committees
- Ability to hold state and national office/serve on the boards of directors
For more information on benefits from the NPA office, please visit NPA Member Benefits