The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how teachers describe their experiences with school leadership in providing a positive and engaging work environment in sixth through eighth-grade classrooms in an urban public school in the Northeastern United States. Theories servant leadership and leader membership theory serve as a framework for this study. Guiding research questions were how teachers describe their experiences with school leadership in terms of providing a positive and engaging work environment and how do teachers think school leadership should provide a more positive and engaging work environment. The general sampling was 11 sixth grade through eighth-grade teachers, two middle school programs within an urban public school district in the Northwestern United States. Data were gathered through semi-structured face-to-face interviews and an online survey questionnaire. An inductive thematic analysis process was used to analyze data. The final themes emerged from data collected: teachers identified perception-based leadership performance, principal leader fidelity, and stoical fortitude, teacher to teacher-guided support, symmetry in community relations, and student priorities. Conclusions disclosed the impermanence of principal leadership's impact on quality leadership performance, related to the establishment of relationships with teaching staff for growth, development, and engagement in the school environment. [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.]