Minnesota Principals Survey (MnPS)
What do Minnesota’s school leaders need to succeed? The Minnesota Principals Survey (MnPS) seeks to answer that by inviting every principal, assistant principal, charter school director, and charter school co-director in the state to share their perspective every two years. Supported by the Minneapolis Foundation and the Joyce Foundation, the 2021, 2023, and 2025 surveys have become a vital resource for policymakers and educators alike. View our full collection of findings and interactive data below.
About the Minnesota Principals Survey
It’s a comprehensive survey developed by and for school leaders and administered through the Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement (CAREI) at the University of Minnesota. The express intent of the survey is to elevate the voices of Minnesota principals and school leaders in decision making that bears on PK-12 education in the state.
The survey includes questions about the responsibilities of principals, their work environments, their ability to do their jobs, and what supports could enhance those abilities. General topics include preparation and development, leadership practices, school improvement, management and decision making, and culture and climate. The latest (2025) survey included a new section on successes and challenges with student behavior and an updated section on state-level policy.
The survey is intended for principals, assistant or associate principals, directors, co-directors, or those in some other school-level leadership role in a Minnesota publicly-funded elementary, middle, and/or secondary school. The survey is being sent to potential respondents from a statewide list of school leaders published by MDE and supplemented by MASSP and MESPA member lists. If you believe you are eligible to take the survey but did not receive a survey link, you can request one here.
Data collected via the survey will be kept private by a small team of professional researchers at CAREI using state-of-the-art software designed to store data securely. No information will be shared that will make it possible to identify you, your school, or your district.
Summarized, de-identified data from the 2021, 2023, and 2025 surveys were compiled into survey reports, recommendation guides, and policy and practice briefs, all of which can be found via the Minnesota Principals Survey homepage. You can also explore summarized MnPS data using our interactive Tableau dashboards. We report de-identified, summary-level results from the surveys in both static reports and interactive dashboards. Key findings and insights have and will continue to be shared via presentations with various stakeholders including MSBA, MASA, MESPA, MASSP, MDE, and policymakers.
We know your time is valuable. We make every effort to reduce participant burden while maintaining the comprehensiveness and utility of the survey. We estimate the survey will take most participants 25-30 minutes.
Publications and Data Tools
2025 Survey Results
Access Reports, Policy and Practice Briefs, and presentations featuring data gathered in November 2025.
2023 Survey Results
Access Reports, Policy and Practice Briefs, and presentations featuring data gathered in November 2023.
2023 Survey Results
Access Reports, Policy and Practice Briefs, and presentations featuring data gathered in November 2021.
Work with the Data
Anyone can access and work directly with de-identified survey data using Tableau, a data visualization tool.
Contact
Direct questions to Katie Pekel, Project Lead, at kpekel@umn.edu.
Stay informed
If you would like us to notify you via email when new reports and findings related to the Minnesota Principals Survey are released, provide your contact info here. We will not share your information with anyone.