Today's public schools are failing to educate not only disadvantaged students, but average students as well. The public education system in America faces twin dilemmas: In the current changing national economy and labor market, schools are inadequately preparing students to be self-sufficient adults; and the population of disadvantaged youth is…

Chapter 7 of a revised volume on school leadership, this chapter advocates the use of participative decision-making (PDM) at the school site level, outlines implementation guidelines, and describes the experiences of some schools with PDM systems. A cornerstone of a reform movement to make organizational operations more democratic and less…

This Digest advocates alternative educational programs as ways to reduce dropout rates, increase academic and personal satisfaction and achievement, provide real options for struggling students, and generate improvement in all grade levels. The study discusses five concerns in relation to alternative school programs: (1) issues raised regarding…

The Yosemite Community College District's comprehensive planning process involves a year-round cycle of activities. The cycle begins in September after the budget for the current year has been approved, the prior year's activity has been closed out, and the primary planning document, "The Atlas," has been completed. The district…

This paper discusses "moral imagination" or vision by strong-minded task-oriented contemporary educational leaders like New Jersey's Joe Clark. These are principals and superintendents who will challenge traditional assumptions about the nature of the school's relationships with its internal and external publics in favor of their own…

Although female teachers have dominated education, relatively few women have pursued administrative positions. In 1988, women in Ohio held only 4.5 percent of all superintendencies. The state generally lags behind the lackluster national average, according to a 1985 Project on Equal Education report. Because of changing U.S. demographics, future…

This report is comprised of brief summaries of various research-based and theoretical concepts and techniques--taken mostly from business management--that might improve educational administration. The topics discussed include (1) a list of successful business practices identified by the book, "In Search of Excellence"; (2) Theories X, Y,…

Public school superintendents consider situational and organizational variables when determining whether to involve others in decision-making processes. A sample of 240 superintendents from Washington, Oregon, and Idaho were sent the Situational Administrative Decision-Making Inventory. The sample was evenly divided geographically and by district…

The Staff Development Team of the Columbus City Schools (Nebraska), composed of three teachers and three administrators, emphasizes the need for long-range planning in its design of an inservice model for the school district. Emphasis was placed on identifying and addressing the unique needs of teachers within the school district. The model also…

A study was conducted to determine whether participation in self-evaluations as part of the accreditation process of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools produced a change in the role perceptions of participant teachers. An experimental group of 30 elementary teachers from Pleasant Valley school and a control group of 30…

The Saginaw Successful Schools Project (SSSP) is a structured process through which school staffs can cooperatively identify and address their most needed areas for improvement. It is a structured approach that integrates group process principles of participation in decision making with solid research on instructional and school effectiveness.…

The College of Education at Northern Arizona University was organized along traditional lines with a dean, department chairs for curriculum and instruction, educational administration, etc. In the past decade the College had begun to isolate itself from other colleges and departments within the University. Also, programs of teacher preparation had…

One of the tasks of school principals in some districts is to provide for an appropriate staff development program. From his own experiences the author argues that adopting commercial marketing techniques is not necessary when convincing the staff of the need for staff development. Instead, making the identification of staff needs and the…

This paper discusses the guidelines applied by the Ohio Board of Regents (OBR) for executive involvement in the development and implementation of information systems. It is a case study of how the OBR successfully designed, installed, and used an information system based on six guidelines developed in "Administrative Data Processing: The Case…

This paper discusses MacCrimmon's general theoretical framework for collective decisions, reveals the modeling for collective decisions, and presents selected descriptive research in the general area of collective decisionmaking. The intent is to stimulate research or provide insight that could have practical implications for management…