The head of a school or a preschool has the following responsibilities within the educational institution, as regulated by the Law on the Education System Foundations and theinstitution’s statute: 

• Planning and organising the implementation of education and care programmes and activities, and developing the institution’s internal quality assurance system; 

• Managing quality assurance, self-evaluation and accomplishment of achievement standards; 

• Managing the implementation of the institution’s development plan; 

• Deciding on the use of funds from the financial plan and ensuring their appropriate use, in accordance with the law; 

• Cooperating with local authorities, organisations and associations; 

• Supporting entrepreneurial education; 

• Providing opportunities for continuing professional development of teachers; 

• Organising pedagogical assessment and evaluation of teaching quality and the implementation of professional development and improvement plans; 

• Ensuring the regularity of all examinations in the institution; 

• Taking action in cases of law violations and other forms of employee misconduct; 

• Implementing the instructions of education inspectors and advisors; 

• Ensuring timely and accurate data collection and entry; 

• Ensuring timely informing of staff, pupils/students, parents and authorities on all relevant matters; 

• Convening and chairing meetings of educational, teaching and pedagogical boards; 

• Establishing expert bodies and teams and coordinating their work; 

• Cooperating with parents and supporting the work of the parent board; 

• Reporting on their own work and the work of the institution to the school authorities, at least twice a year; 

• Adopting the general act on organisation and operation; 

• Deciding on the rights, duties and responsibilities of pupils/students and school staff, in accordance with the law; 

• Cooperating with pupils/students and the student parliament; 

• Deciding on appeals against decisions of the recruitment committee regarding the selection of candidates; 

   

The governing board in preschools and the school board in schools are bodies responsible for managing the institution, together with the head. Board members include teachers or other school staff, representatives of parents and representatives of local authorities. The board consists of nine members appointed for a four-year term. Its responsibilities include: 

• Adopting the statute, rules of conduct and other general acts and approving the bylaw on organisation and operation; 

• Adopting the preschool or school programme, development plan and annual work plan, and monitoring their implementation; 

• Preparing a proposal for the financial plan; 

• Adopting the financial plan of the institution; 

• Adopting work and teaching reports; 

• Announcing the call for the election of the institution’s head; 

• Giving an opinion and proposing a list of candidates to the Minister for the election of the institution’s head; 

• Concluding a contract with the institution’s head on their rights, obligations and responsibilities; 

• Deciding on the rights and obligations of the institution’s head; 

• Deciding on the expansion of the institution’s activities; 

• Evaluating compliance with general principles, the attainment of educational objectives and achievement standards, and taking measures to improve working conditions andeducational activities; 

• Adopting the staff professional development plan; 

• Deciding on appeals regarding decisions made by the institution’s head  

Requirements for Appointment 

According to the Law on the Education System Foundations, all school staff, including school management, must fulfil general requirements for employment: 

• appropriate education; 

• psychological, physical and medical fitness to work with children and students; 

• no prior criminal convictions; 

• citizenship of the Republic of Serbia; 

• proficient knowledge of the language of instruction. 

   

These requirements are verified during the selection process and reassessed during employment. Any violation results in dismissal. Specific requirements apply to each position. 

To become the educational institution’s head, a person must: 

• hold a higher education degree from an undergraduate programme lasting at least four years or a Master’s degree; 

• hold a work license; 

• have passed the professional exam for educational institutions’ heads; 

• have at least 8 years of experience in an educational institution. 

   

Exceptionally, a person with a Bachelor’s degree (three-year programme) may be employed as a head, provided they have at least 10 years of work experience in an educational institution, while other requirements remain the same. A person may be employed as a head without the license and/or the required exam, provided that they obtain these withinthe first two years of employment. 

Heads of institutions, like other employees, are obliged to apply competency standards in self-evaluation and in planning their continuous professional development. This requirement is defined by the Bylaw on Continuous Professional Development of School Teachers, Preschool Teachers and Non-teaching Professionals. 

The educational institution’s head is expected to possess a broad range of professional competencies that enable effective leadership and the continuous improvement of educational quality. There are seven competences precisely defined by top-level authorities. One of them includes the ability to lead the process of children’s development and learning in early childhood education institutions (Competency D1), as well as managing the teaching and learning process in schools (Competency D2). In addition, the educational institution’s head is responsible for planning, organizing, and supervising the work of the institution (Competency D3), while also monitoring the performance of staff and supporting their professional development and improvement of practice (Competency D4). An important competence is also developing and maintaining cooperation with parents or legal guardians, the governing body of the institution, representative trade unions, and the wider community (Competency D5). Furthermore, the educational institution’s head is responsible for the financial and administrative management of the institution (Competency D6), ensuring the efficient use of resources and the organization. Finally, the institution’s head must ensure that the institution operates in accordance with legal regulations and established standards, thereby ensuring the legality of its work and activities (Competency D7). 

An assistant head may be a teacher or education specialist already employed at the institution. Assistant head continues with other duties (e.g. teaching) while assisting the head with realisation of education programmes, coordination of expert bodies and other affairs. 

The secretary of the institution performs legal affairs of the institution. Conditions of employment for the secretary are: 

• graduated from at least 4 years long undergraduate Law programme; 

• passed a professional exam for the secretary (the exam has to be passed during the first two years of the employment). 

Conditions of Service 

According to the Law on the Education System Foundations, preschool or school head candidates are proposed to the minister by the managing/school board on a competitive basis, after obtaining the opinion of the educational and teacher council. The Minister then revises the proposal, elects the director and decides on his appointment. 

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development is responsible for determining all conditions on selection of new heads and conditions on their employment, as well as for all regulations regarding the professional exam and license.  

The managing/school board dismisses the institution’s head in the following cases: 

• fails to meet the requirements of related institution’s head education; 

• refuses to undergo a medical examination at the request of the managing authority or the minister; 

• the institution does not implement the education or training program or does not take measures to achieve the principles, goals and standards of achievement; 

• fails to implement measures of safety and protection of children and pupils; 

• due to omissions in the prevention of discrimination; 

• fails to assure timely and accurate data entry and maintenance; 

• fails to provide institution’s data, documentation and records in accordance with the law; 

• fails to pass the professional exam and obtain the licence during the first two years of the employment; 

• fails to act on the authority or competent authority to remedy the deficiencies and irregularities; 

• criminal offense or misbehaviour; 

• during his term of office, the school has been assessed two consecutive times with the lowest grade for quality of work; 

• did not provide conditions for inspection, pedagogic supervision and external evaluation; 

• interferes with the work of management and employees, incomplete, timely and inaccurate disclosure; 

• did not provide timely and accurate entry and maintenance of the database of institutions within the unique information system of education as well as control of data entered; 

• has made a mistake in implementing the process of electing new employees in accordance with the law; 

• fails to process processing of employee misdemeanors; 

• committed other offenses in accordance with the law.