Why I won't be signing again next year

# Context: I teach in a relatively small, suburban district, I'm beginning my 6th year teaching, 3rd year here.<br><br>Before I get into the substance of my post, I should mention that I hold my head high in the fact that my input, respect, and instruction consistently result in incredibly positive feedback from students.<br><br>I'm a resource teacher for middle school special education students at our school. I work with approximately 30 students across various subjects. I'm proud of the work I do and my students' parents are proud of my work as well.<br><br>This past week, I returned from summer break and my school had hired a new principal. As I watched other teachers who have been with the school for decades struggle to get answers and support about the new year, I decided to meet him and introduce myself.<br><br>It was odd, because my school has never been too keen on special education resource rooms. I don't know if it's because the students aren't in the mainstream classes, or because our school really doesn't "service" them to the best of our abilities, but I've always known that they don't care about our department. However, I'm always optimistic and try to keep an open mind. I asked him if he had any suggestions for me or how I could best serve students from his perspective this year.<br><br>He explained that he has no idea what special education is or how it functions. He told me he went to a training over the summer, but he wasn't quite sure about it, and he'd have to refer back to the training to answer any questions.<br><br>I asked him about the school's budget for the year and he told me he again had no idea, but was sure he'd be able to learn more when his superiors came to town at the end of the month.<br><br>I asked him how he was going to support students with high needs and he had no idea.<br><br>I asked him about how his district would handle the IEP process and he had no idea and wasn't familiar with the state department of education at all.<br><br>It's clear he has no intention to learn or care for any of my students. I'm sure he's going to be a fine principal for the general population of students at our school, but he's completely disregarding all of the students in our special education department.<br><br>As the district continues to hire principals and leaders who don't know the first thing about IEPs or supporting students with disabilities, I feel hopeless and useless. These people are supposed to be experts on what we do, and they have no clue.<br><br>I'm just so frustrated with special education at this point. It's not what I believed it would be and I'm starting to wonder if it's time to get out.<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>EDIT: I just got off the phone with my principal and he asked to revisit our conversation from yesterday. He told me that he's familiar with all of the laws and state regulations, he's just struggling to learn the nuances of the school we're at and has a lot of questions about how things operated in the past. He wants to meet with me once a week to chat about what I need and what he can do to support me and the department. I'm feeling a little more hopeful now, at least about my school.