Listen to the full conversation between Dr. Jackie Wilson and Angelica Romero on the AASA Principal Supervisor Podcast Series. You’ll hear how San Antonio ISD is transforming leadership development to serve every student, every day.
Creating a Leadership Definition Rooted in Access and Opportunity
In San Antonio Independent School District, leadership development is no longer left to chance. Angelica Romero, Director of Leadership Development, shares how her team has worked to clearly define what school leadership means—and what it must deliver.
“We built our leadership definition with input from across the district,” Romero explains. “It’s not just about managing buildings. It’s about leading people and driving instruction.”
Speaking with Dr. Jackie Wilson, Romero outlines how the district created a shared vision that ties directly to student outcomes and reflects the community it serves.
Designing Pipelines with Demographic Realities in Mind
San Antonio ISD serves a diverse student population, many of whom are multilingual learners. Romero emphasizes that any leadership pipeline must reflect and respond to the district’s context.
“San Antonio ISD is a majority Latino district. We are about 92 percent Latino, about 12 percent of our students are identified as emergent bilinguals. We are also a high-poverty district, about 87 percent of our students are economically disadvantaged.That definitely influences how we build leadership and support our campuses.”
By aligning their leadership strategies with their student demographics, Romero and her team are intentional about recruiting leaders who understand and reflect the students they serve.
Selecting Future Leaders through Access and Opportunity-Focused Processes
The district has revamped its selection process to ensure aspiring leaders are identified based not only on experience but on mindset, commitment, and potential.
“We don’t just post a job,” Romero explains. “We have development days, shadowing experiences, and an apprentice principal model. It’s about readiness, not just résumé.”
Dr. Wilson notes how this proactive model helps combat common access and opportunity gaps in traditional selection practices.
Coaching and apprenticeships as developmental levers
Romero highlights that professional development doesn’t stop once a leader is hired. In San Antonio ISD, coaching is embedded, continuous, and aligned with district priorities.
“Our apprentice principals have real responsibility,” she says. “They co-lead with a principal mentor and receive coaching that’s grounded in our leadership definition.”
This ensures that future leaders are trained not just in theory, but in real-time, context-specific decision-making.
Sustaining the Work Through Central Office Alignment
One key to success has been ensuring coherence between the central office and schools.
“We created systems to collect feedback from principals, and we use that feedback to adjust,” says Romero. “There’s no leadership pipeline without strong central office support.”
Dr. Wilson echoes this point, underscoring how leadership development must be a system-wide priority.
Leading with Both Vision and Lived Experience
Romero’s personal connection to the work—having served in San Antonio ISD for years—brings authenticity to her leadership.
I’m a product of this system,” she shares. “And I want our leaders to see that you can rise through the ranks when you’re supported and when systems are built with intention.”
The Takeaway: Leadership Pipelines Aren’t Optional—They’re Urgent
In this AASA School Leadership Podcast episode, Angelica Romero offers a compelling look at how one district is rethinking every stage of the leadership lifecycle—from recruitment to retention.
As Dr. Wilson concludes, “If we want sustainable school improvement, we need sustainable school leaders. And that starts with building the pipeline right.”
AASA, with support from the Wallace Foundation, produced this series featuring school system strategies that serve to enhance the leadership pipeline.