The purpose of this correlational study is to test the theory of servant leadership that relates the servant leadership characteristics of school principals to student achievement in Southwest Virginia schools. The primary independent variable was principals' servant leadership characteristics as derived from a self-assessment survey (SASL). The dependent variable was student achievement as measured by students' scores on the Virginia Department of Education Standard of Learning achievement tests in math and reading. Other variables tested were principal total experience in education, principal total experience in administration and principal education level. The data analysis chosen for this research is the Pearson Product-Moment Correlation Coefficient, which is more commonly known as either Pearson's correlation or Pearson's r. However, because 3 out of 6 variables failed normality tests, Spearman's rho, a nonparametric test, was chosen as the best analysis for the monotonic data. The results of analysis yielded a significant positive correlation of principal servant leadership characteristics and reading achievement scores. There were no other significant findings among other variables tested. [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.]