MISSION, TEXAS (October 5, 2026) - When students arrive at school each morning, they see classrooms ready for learning, teachers prepared for the day and staff members in place to support them. What families may not always see is the constant coordination taking place behind the scenes to make that happen.
For Dr. Canales-Garcia, principal at Alton Elementary, keeping a school running smoothly means being aware of what is happening across the campus throughout the day — not from behind a desk, but by staying visible in hallways, classrooms and common areas.
“We have to be checking everywhere. Kind of be everywhere. And just be visible,” Canales-Garcia said.
Now in her 23rd year in education and her fourth year as principal at Alton Elementary, Canales-Garcia said that daily presence helps her identify needs, support employees and make sure students have an environment where learning can take place.
More Than Managing a Campus
A principal’s day involves much more than handling discipline, attending meetings or managing school events. Canales-Garcia spends time walking hallways, visiting classrooms, checking on students and teachers and conducting instructional walkthroughs. Those walkthroughs allow campus leaders to see how instruction is progressing and where teachers may need additional support.
The work also includes regular conversations with teachers about instruction, lesson planning, and student progress. During professional learning and collaboration time, Canales-Garcia and her team assess how teachers are doing and whether they have the time, resources, and support needed to be successful.
“That’s where we gauge a temperature check on how the teachers are doing,” she said. “We ensure that we support them, that they feel that we have the resources that they need and the time to collaborate with each other and internalize lessons.”
Those conversations may happen outside the view of students and families, but they are part of the daily work that keeps instruction moving forward.
Watching the Details
Running a school requires leaders to constantly keep track of multiple areas at once. Canales-Garcia said being visible allows her to check classrooms, connect with teachers, greet students and staff and make sure the different parts of the campus are functioning as they should.
That means noticing problems early and working with staff members to address them before they interfere with teaching and learning. Challenges are an expected part of the job, she said, and school leaders have to be ready to adjust.
“We have to pull through and not give up when a challenge comes along the way,” Canales-Garcia said. “Finding the ways or strategies to ensure that we overcome those challenges.”
She describes her approach as maintaining a "win-win mindset” when problems arise.
Supporting the People Who Support Students
Much of a principal’s work also involves making sure employees throughout the campus are able to do their jobs effectively. Teachers may be the most visible part of a student’s school day, but Canales-Garcia said operating a campus depends on people serving in many different roles.
“It takes a team to teach the children,” she said. “A principal could not do it by herself or himself.”
That team includes classroom teachers, administrators, custodial employees, cafeteria staff and others whose work contributes to the daily operation of the school.
“We depend on each other,” Canales-Garcia said. “From custodial staff to leadership to teachers, everybody would depend on everybody’s role and their expertise to ensure we achieve those goals together.”
For a principal, that means not only supervising employees but also understanding their strengths, building trust and helping different parts of the campus work together.
Keeping Instruction at the Center
Even with the operational responsibilities of leading a school, Canales-Garcia said the ultimate measure of success is whether students are learning and growing.
“One of the things that I’m most proud of by being a principal is just the difference that we make with our students and the growth that they make in their learning,” she said.
That requires tracking goals, monitoring progress and bringing together teachers, students and families to work toward shared targets.
“It takes a lot of hard work from the whole community, from the parents, from the students, from the teachers and ensuring that we track our goals and that we achieve our targets,” Canales-Garcia said.
Shaping the School Environment
Another responsibility that may be less visible to the public is the principal’s role in shaping the culture of a campus.
Canales-Garcia said school leaders help establish the expectations, environment and attitude that influence how employees work together and how students experience school.
“I think that leaders and principals really shape the culture,” she said.
That culture, she said, is built through teamwork, trust and recognizing that no single person has every strength a campus needs. For Canales-Garcia, keeping Alton Elementary running smoothly is a continuous process of checking, listening, supporting, adjusting and bringing people together around the same goal.
“We always want the best for our children,” she said. “As a principal, I always want the best for our kids and our students.”