School principalship matters. With 10% of K-12 public school principals resigning in 2020-2021, we need a nuanced understanding of principalship's systemic and individual dynamics. Teachers' perceptions of their principal may inform how they evaluate efficacy. While many education reform policies emphasize principals' roles, my quantitative study examines factors shaping teachers’ perceptions of principal efficacy. Using CritQuant and intersectionality frameworks, I apply multilevel linear models (MLM) to data from the 2020-2021 National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS) to investigate how measures of principals' identity and the frequency with which they enact instructional leadership relate to teachers' perceptions of their efficacy (Ɲ=29,160). My findings reveal that principals’ self-reported frequency of instructional leadership did not significantly influence teachers' perceptions of their efficacy. However, a principal’s race was associated with teachers' perceptions of their efficacy. Teachers serving under principals of Color, mainly Black, Asian, and American Indian principals, reported lower perceptions of their efficacy. Further, teachers in schools with higher shares of students in poverty, students with disabilities and students of the racial/ethnic minority, as well as teachers in secondary (i.e., middle, junior high, and high) schools, reported lower perceptions of principal efficacy. My study highlights evidence that a principal’s race and school context are associated with teachers' perceptions of their efficacy.

Keywords: K-12 schools, principal efficacy, educational leadership, equity, instructional leadership, educational policy, multilevel modeling