This case study describes the complex relationships between nonprofit boards of directors and executive directors, especially when the executive director is the organization's founder. The case takes the perspective of an MPA student, with limited professional experience, who is asked to serve on a board of a new nonprofit. It is an exciting…

Strategic planning is a process utilized by numerous organizations, including K-12 school boards, intent on improvement and reform. A thoughtful strategic planning process can help develop a board's desired future driven by goals and strategies aimed at progress. However, improvement processes such as strategic planning are challenging. In fact,…

This must-have study offers a definitive look at the state of school leadership in the United States. It provides a detailed picture of the men and women leading the nation's schools, based on a representative sample of school leaders nationwide. The American Association of School Administrators has conducted an authoritative "State of the…

For more than a century, school boards have endeavored to govern America's schools and school systems. Collectively, the nation's nearly 14,000 school boards are responsible for the well-being of 52 million children, the expenditure of $600 billion per year, and the supervision of six million employees. Despite the magnitude of this…

A bargaining process, begun over 10 years ago, is based on problem-solving rather than on adversarial confrontation and uses elements of participative management. It has resulted in outstanding benefits for two school districts. Called "Theory Z bargaining," the process follows a procedure based on each side treating the other with…

This article examines external support for school leaders, and focuses on the relationship between head teachers and other professionals who play the role of their 'critical friends'. Most existing research in this area concentrates upon the activity of the critical friend without reference to the role partner, thereby losing the dynamic in the…

This book was written for teachers and principals committed to instituting shared governance and more democratic forms of leadership and to help understand today's principalship and what it means to administer a shared-governance school. The data were derived from a study of successful principals in schools affiliated with the League of…

Intended to help vocational instructors and administrators involve local advisory councils in improving the quality of vocational programs, this handbook provides information on the role of councils and makes specific suggestions on how administrators and instructors can prepare for council meetings and obtain feedback from council members. The…

Qualitative-interpretive research methods were used to examine the board-president relationship in three British Columbia (Canada) community colleges. Five major reasons for which the relationship is important emerged: board and administrator influence in both the campus and external communities; value compatibility; self-images; and reflection of…

This case involves overturning a 35-year-old program of weighted grading that defined a school's identity. Examination of the practice revealed a curriculum that was discriminatory toward students and teachers with deep-seated values and beliefs among an elite group of core teachers perpetuating that discrimination. Further examination revealed…

Participatory management (PM) is discussed in this step-by-step guide that shows how PM can be made to work effectively on a daily basis in academe. Suggestions are offered for helping higher education administrators consult efficiently with representatives of campus groups--faculty, other administrators, advisory board members, policy council…