Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the democratic nature of collaboration and related principal influences in one successful Southern Arizona elementary school in a changing demographic and border context in the US Southwest and where the principal did not share the same ethnic identity/cultural background.…

Our nation's schools are faced with numerous critical challenges and problems; meeting federal and state mandates, state standards, elevating academic achievement, increasing parental involvement, and violence in the schools (Gould, 2011; Kowalski & Cangemi, 2011; Simpson, LaCava, & Graner, 2004). Violence in many U.S. schools continues to…

With roots in community development and the work of Dewey, a compelling case has been made for universities to be involved in urban school reform. Further, with increasing demands placed on universities to become responsive to community needs, university partnerships with K-12 schools are one means by which institutions of higher education have…

The purpose of this research was to explore why some elementary ETS benefited from professional development in terms of increased students' outcomes, while other ETS did not produce the same gains. The aim of this research was to analyze the degree of satisfaction and effectiveness of professional development by interviewing coaches,…

This study of one mid-sized Canadian school district employed a case study approach to uncover and document the influences of organizational socialization, sensemaking, and perceptions of self-efficacy on the development of administrators' role identities. Findings describe formal and informal socialization processes experienced by administrators,…

While the importance of effective principals is undisputed, few studies have identified specific skills that principals need to promote school success. This study draws on unique data combining survey responses from principals, assistant principals, teachers, and parents with rich administrative data to determine which principal skills correlate…

This paper presents the results of a study of interviews (N = 17) conducted with members of a community of practice (CP) comprised of school principals, vice principals, and department heads responsible for teacher supervision in their respective schools. This CP met once a month over the course of 2 years to work on adapting the New Brunswick…

Historically Native American women have experienced barriers in their rise to Pk-12 educational leadership positions. There is limited research available on Native American women in educational leadership. Therefore, the purpose for this survey study was to discover what inspired current Pk-12 Native American women educational leaders to choose…

This qualitative multiple case study concerned how school principals in charter, private, and public school settings experience autonomy, based on the schools' governance structures and accountability systems. Principal autonomy was defined as the authority that school principals exercise to lead staff effectively, to make decisions based on…

School leaders are familiar with the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, but they also need to be legally literate about Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. This need is particularly pressing in the wake of significant recent changes in Section 504 as a result of the Americans With Disabilities Amendments Act. This case illustrates the…

This research investigates the challenges faced in enacting instructional models that previous research has found to foster student learning. In order to complete this study, the researcher documented, through a strategy of reflective practice, his return to teaching high school science after having served for a time as a science specialist and…

This article presents an interview with Melissa Shindel, assistant principal of Patuxent Valley Middle School in Jessup, Maryland, and 2009 NASSP/Virco National Assistant Principal of the Year. In this interview, Shindel shares her philosophy and experience.

Educational administration is the weakest program that schools of education offer...most (principal preparation programs) vary in quality from inadequate to appalling. Their shortcomings include irrelevant and incoherent curricula, low admission and graduation standards, inadequate clinical instruction...(and) degrees that are irrelevant to the…

The purpose of this study was to explore and describe public high school assistant principals' reports of self-efficacy (Bandura, 1997) in performing their professional job responsibilities in accordance with the Educational Leadership Constituency Council's (ELCC) Standards for Advanced Programs in Educational Leadership (National Policy Board…

This qualitative phenomenological research study focused on eight deans of students at the high school level and three administrators who were instrumental in creating or reestablishing and supervising the position of dean of students within their high schools. The purpose of the study was to define the roles and responsibilities of the high…