This monograph reports the results of a three-part study of the assistant principalship that attempted to delineate the nature, function, and relative status of the position. The study types used were (1) normative, (2) career, and (3) shadow. Data for the first two studies were gathered from questionnaires completed by over 1,200 assistant principals, while shadow study data stem from observations of assistant principals at work. From the shadow studies, researchers discovered that it is essentially the assistant principal who makes the school go. The normative study revealed that some disharmony exists between the way an assistant principal understands the range and character of his duties and the way a principal sees them. The career study disclosed that most assistant principals, male and female, derived much less satisfaction from their tenures as assistant principals than from their years spent in other assignments. Researchers concluded that a reexamination of the entire process of administrative selection needs to take place, that educational training programs should be established, and that a more systematic procedure should be developed to deal with the selection and career progression of those in educational leadership roles. (Author/EA)