This study explored perceptions of teacher retention from the lens of veteran teachers in an effort to examine why teachers remain in the classroom. According to Carver-Thomas and Darling- Hammond (2017), teacher turnover negatively impacts student achievement and the efforts to replace teachers puts school districts in a financial bind. Through…

Job satisfaction remains a constant topic of discussion in teacher workrooms and a popular area for research across the United States. In the United States, teachers are plagued with various issues that seem to desecrate their level of job satisfaction despite notable attempts to improve our educational system. The purpose of this study was to…

The increasing role of the secondary school administrators in schools created a lack of proper work/life balance. Due to minimal literature related to secondary school administrators' perceptions on work/life balance, the purpose of this basic, qualitative interpretive study was to understand the perceived susceptibility, severity, benefits, and…

Teacher job satisfaction is important to retaining high-performing teachers. This study aims to investigate the effects of certain factors, such as age, gender, and years of experience, on overall job satisfaction. This study involved over 400 teachers from a West Tennessee school district, where the Job Satisfaction Survey was distributed. The…

Instructional leaders are vital to the success of a school given the impact their leadership behaviors can have on teacher retention. This quantitative study investigated the connection between teachers' perceptions of instructional leaders and teacher retention. Furthermore, this study explored which factors had the most significant impact on…

This multi-case study analyzed the formal and informal development of adaptive capacity in fire service leaders within the context of increasingly complex situations driven by urbanization and climate change. Triangulating interviews, observations, and documentation review, this study included two urban fire service cases impacted by past complex…

The purpose of this study was to provide an examination of the relationships between general education teachers, special education teachers, and paraprofessionals and the influences of these relationships on students with disabilities. This study was conducted through the process of semistructured interviews with general education teachers,…

Teachers of color often work in schools with few colleagues from the same racial or ethnic background. This racial isolation may affect their work experiences and important job outcomes, including retention. Using longitudinal administrative and survey data, we investigate the degree to which Tennessee teachers who are more racially isolated are…

This phenomenological study captured the experiences of elementary educators with the purpose of gathering their perceptions of the use of restorative practices and positive behavior supports in their schools with a particular focus on how these programs influenced school climate, their professional efficacy, and their job satisfaction. Results of…

K-12 principals are held increasingly accountable for school success, yet their direct impact on students is negligible. Principals must thus work to positively impact teachers in order to indirectly impact student achievement. Transformational leaders are able to utilize intellectual stimulation in order to impact those who work under them. The…

This qualitative phenomenological study focused on the lived experiences of novice superintendents in Tennessee. Novice superintendents were operationally defined as superintendents within their first 3 years of performing the responsibilities and duties of the role. The researchers also examined the role the Tennessee Organization of School…

Educational leaders throughout the United States have repeatedly emphasized the importance of increasing the number of Black and Latinx teachers in American schools. Prior qualitative work suggests that Black and Latinx teachers who are demographically isolated in their schools often report negative experiences. Drawing on theories of proportional…

Teachers of color often work in schools with few colleagues from the same racial or ethnic background. This "racial isolation" may affect their work experiences and important job outcomes, including retention. Using longitudinal administrative and survey data, we investigate the degree to which Tennessee teachers who are more racially…

We develop a unifying conceptual framework for understanding and predicting teacher shortages at the state, region, district, and school levels. We then generate and test hypotheses about geographic, grade level, and subject variation in teacher shortages using data on teaching vacancies in Tennessee during the fall of 2019. We find that teacher…

This program evaluation explored whether the transitional vocational rehabilitation program at a non-profit organization in Tennessee, named Thistle Farms, was effective in improving trauma-related mental health symptoms and in increasing the sense of empowerment among female survivors of intimate partner violence. The study additionally evaluated…