Educators, policymakers, philanthropists, and others have worked for decades to improve education by implementing new policies and practices to better serve students. But the desired improvement has been elusive -- more sporadic (and anecdotal) than systemic. Success can be difficult to sustain, and what works in one school may not work on the…

This case study explored the impacts of school shootings on K-12 school principals. Eleven school principals and assistant principals from rural, suburban, and urban areas in all regions of the United States were interviewed. The study answered two research questions: What impact do school shootings have on school principals? and What do…

In recent years, within the United States and globally, workforce members who directly and tangentially treat and serve traumatized individuals have begun to experience an additional occupational hazard in the form of compassion fatigue. Consistent school leadership can be a critical factor in increased student achievement and school-based…

The rate of principal turnover has been a concern in the United States since the 1980's (Wilson & Heim, 1984). The COVID-19 pandemic drastically impacted the role of the principal. The 2021 National Principal Survey revealed that 38% of current principals will likely quit the profession by 2025 (NASSP, 2021). The concern of an upheaval of…

Despite a growing body of turnover literature, much remains unknown about the factors predicting career transitional behaviors of school principals. To bridge this gap, we examined variations in principal, school, and district characteristics influencing administrator leaver and mover behaviors, using Hierarchical Generalized Linear Modeling. Our…

The role of school leader is increasingly complex, and the impact of the pandemic made these jobs almost impossible at times. Principal burnout is often high, and morale is often low. Retaining and supporting strong principals, who have a measurable impact on the success of their students, is a priority for the field. This case study describes how…

This study aimed to identify the relationship among variables, as identified from the literature (stress, emotional exhaustion as a symptom of burnout, job satisfaction, and practices of self-care) that correlate with perceived work-life balance in public school building-level administrators in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Additionally, this…

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…

Life as a school principal is intense. Burnout and high turnover are realities for many principals. Student deaths, school shootings, and other emotionally heavy scenarios can be challenging for administrators to navigate. Throughout this article David Luongo shares his personal encounters with burnout. Principal Luongo makes the claim that the…

The purpose of this study was to explore the strategies districts use to retain principals in their complex roles through the framework of culturally responsive district leadership. This qualitative case study explored how district leaders in one Massachusetts school district focused on principal retention and whether their actions influenced a…

While research illustrates the significance of trust in education, school leaders may often overlook the importance of trust building between teachers and administrators. In this study, five school leaders were studied to learn how they influence trust levels between teachers and administrators. The literature review investigates the effects of…

The significance of the role of school administrator has been shown in recent years to be second only to the influence of the classroom teacher in terms of increasing student achievement and improving the climate and culture of a school. In recent years, teachers and administrators alike have been leaving the educational profession in large…

This study aimed to contribute to the empirical literature related to student discipline's influence on teacher job satisfaction. Further, this research aimed to explore the correlation between student discipline and teacher job satisfaction while controlling for the contributing factors of job satisfaction). Also, this research study's results…

The purpose of this Action Research study was to investigate and improve teacher retention at Southside Public Schools, an urban public school district in Massachusetts. Participants and data collected in Cycle 1 consisted of an interview with the school district's superintendent, a focus group that included Southside's director of human…

Purpose: This study builds on research scrutinizing school autonomy in policy and school governance by shifting the focus from a formal structural view of autonomy to examining how principals negotiate autonomy in their daily work. Drawing on multiple dimensions of autonomy and street-level bureaucracy, this study examined how principals, as both…