Public elementary schools in the state of Missouri often include both general education students and special education students. If the building principal is to lead efforts to ensure the success of students with disabilities, he/she must have the training to do so effectively. The problem presented in the investigation is elementary school principals are not prepared to handle issues related to special education. As a result, school districts and school officials, particularly building principals, are exposing themselves to possible legal actions that could affect the school district and/or the principal. Furthermore, principals have an ethical duty to ensure that all students within their buildings receive an appropriate education. Based on the results of the investigation, the researcher believes that elementary school principals (who received their principal degrees in Missouri) did not receive proper training; and therefore most are not adequately equipped to deal with issues in the area of special education. Data for the investigation was collected through a questionnaire sent to elementary school principals in Missouri. Data was also collected through interviews with elementary school principals. The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate Missouri's elementary principals' knowledge of evidence based practices regarding special education leadership, and the principals' perceptions about their preparation to implement these practices. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]