Purpose/Objectives: The purpose was to explore issues associated with school nutrition (SN) programs in large school districts. Specific objectives were to identify operational issues and practices SN directors encounter and describe characteristics of SN directors and their programs. Methods: A panel of seven SN professionals from large school…

Leadership programs routinely offer candidates self-assessment instruments such as the Myers-Brigg Type Indicator to help them identify their probable leadership traits, leadership styles and other personality constructs. One routinely overlooked yet crucial component of school leadership programs is self examination that includes the development…

Evidence collected over the last 30 years suggests that effective school leaders significantly influence student learning and other aspects of school performance. Documented experience also indicates that individual leaders in failing organizations in various sectors, including education, can effect rapid, dramatic improvements. School turnaround…

This article reports the findings of two studies focused on the personal and professional values of school administrators. Two themes were employed as general organizers for the research: the influence of personal preference and trans-rational principles on the problem solving actions of school administrators and the value conflicts that…

The field of early care and education is continually seeking to determine factors that contribute to the overall quality of the education for young children. Individual characteristics of teachers, including education level, have been associated with classroom quality. Program demographics, including turnover rate for teachers, also have had…

Schoolwide support for higher achievement is essential. Students need a nurturing environment where they feel secure about learning, where the goal is success for every student and where students are confident they will receive mentoring and encouragement to prepare for their futures. Many schools are reinventing themselves to motivate students to…

Although rectors of Mexican public universities play an important role in their institutions, we know very little about them. This article first describes the different election processes in Mexican public universities for selecting a rector. These varied processes reveal the ambiguity of the concept of "autonomy" as applied to rectors,…

Since joining her city's first flat-track roller-derby league more than a year ago, the author relates that she discovered some surprising, interesting things about her university's tolerance for its employees' "second lives." To be taken seriously, the author relates that she offsets any possible concerns about her professional legitimacy by…

The leadership roles of pro-vice-chancellors (PVCs) in the United Kingdom and elsewhere have evolved markedly over the last three decades while universities have been encouraged to shift towards more executive styles of leadership and decision-making. The change does not only reflect changing institutional needs, however, but an accommodation of…

The impending retirements of many community college leaders creates a need to better understand who the chief academic officers (CAOs) are and the paths they followed to become CAOs. Nonetheless, researchers have paid relatively little attention to this important leadership position. To address this gap in the literature, the authors undertook a…

This research attempts to explore the key social characteristics and demographics of Australian chancellors to determine who they are and where they come from. The chancellor of an Australian university wields an enormous amount of power, from overseeing the appointment of the Vice-Chancellor (VC) to fulfilling various statutory requirements.…

Presents case histories of four fictitious superintendents to exemplify a few personal characteristics that can lead to failure. (Author/IRT)

With reference to the "Columbus principle" of innovative boldness endorsed in the article immediately preceeding this one, this columnist observes that, historically, Columbus may have been a good navigator but was a failure in management and died broke. (TE)