This qualitative study examined how 12 principals view their role as challengers of the propensity for social reproduction in the poor communities in which they work. The primary data sources were interviews with principals who work in rural, suburban, and urban schools that receive Title 1 funding. Review of school documents, community demographics and history, as well as observations were used to study the culture of the school and community that each principal works within. There are high costs to individuals and our society at large in providing substandard education and low levels of economic access. However, the social bifurcation of American society is at its highest level since the turn of the 20th century. Indeed, the Gini Coefficient, which is defined by PovertyNet as the most commonly used measure of fiscal inequality, is the highest it has ever been recorded in America. The Gini Coefficient identifies complete equality with the variable of 0 and complete inequality with the variable 1, currently places America’s level of inequality at a .46 (U.S. Department of Labor, Census Bureau Income). This qualitative study strived to determine how principals in poor communities see their role as challengers of the propensity of social reproduction in their communities. The federal Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS) summarizes the direct connection between education and success, “National policymakers and the public at large have increasingly recognized that the prosperity of the United States depends on the successful functioning of the American education system” (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2005, p. 21). Although the ECLS notes a clear connection between education and socio-economic success, the study goes on to report more than a million American students, whose families make less than $85,000 a year, start out a the top of their class but “fall off the college track on the way to high school” (as cited in Carnevale, 2007). Social reproduction theorists argue this overrepresentation of low-income students demonstrating low levels of school success is in large part due to a lack of social, political, and educational capital, which results in low-income and minority students being denied complete access to educational resources (Braddock & McPartland, 1987; Wilson, 1987; Bourdieu & Wacquant, 1992). Research has shown principals have an enormous impact on the effectiveness of schools, and ultimately, student outcomes (Grift & Houtveen, 1999; Marzano, Waters, & McNulty, 2005; Gurr, Drysdale, & Mulford, 2006). The impact of the principal can be pervasive throughout a student’s education. This impact includes, but is not limited to, the classroom, the school, as well as the community. Barth (1990) reports principals comprehensively affect their students as well as the community they work within, both inside and outside the school building. As it is clear principals have a significant impact on school, and specifically, student success, it is reasonable to assume they could also impact the likelihood for social reproduction among their students, especially those coming from poor communities. The findings of this study suggest an increased likelihood for principals working in poor communities to engage in challenging social reproduction if they apply a more nuanced understanding and application of the multiple ethical paradigms as well as consistently prioritize the building of positive relationships with stakeholders. The pattern that resulted from the conclusions indicate that principals who engaged in sophisticated ethical problem solving as well as consistent positive relationship building were also more likely to pursue extensive formal education, specifically doctoral degrees in educational administration. / Educational Administration

Nel Noddings’ 1984 publication, Caring: A Feminine Approach to Ethics and Moral Education was the first formal introduction of the concept of an “ethic of care”. It is a concept that stresses the importance of compassion in any relationship. For the purpose of this dissertation, the ethic of care was studied in a specific educational community. This research focused on the role of care ethics in a secondary school (The Ransom School for Boys) from 1903 to 1974. The researcher identified this school as one that operated with an ethic of care and collected and analyzed data from historical school documents as well as from 60-90 minute individual interviews with six alumni, five retired faculty, and two administrators. The case study addressed how students and faculty experienced care ethics within the school and how it has been maintained throughout the adult lives of alumni. An a priori coding rubric was used to examine the presence of care ethics at the Ransom School for Boys and in the adult lives of its alumni. This rubric was generated using information taken from the literature review and encompasses 36 different words to identify the presence of care ethics. The primary research question was: How have alumni incorporated care ethics into their personal and professional lives? Secondary questions included: How did the ethic of care present itself over the span of 71 years? Was character education part of the formal curriculum at the Ransom School? Was character education part of the hidden curriculum at the Ransom School? Did the presence of care ethics support the values being taught in the home? While there has been research done on the importance of care ethics in an educational institution, the research is void of direct evidence associated with care ethics in a school community, specifically, an all-boys, private school. Through deductive analysis, care ethics was found to be present and utilized at the school. The interviews and historical documents suggested that moral education was an integral part of the informal curriculum and helped to integrate the ethic of care within the community.

This case study investigated the ethic of the profession, one of the four ethical frameworks used for ethical decision-making in education. Typically, this line of research is applied to school administrators; however, this investigation extended this research to teacher leaders by examining their daily practice. Out of a pool of thirty-six respondents, nine teachers were chosen to participate in the study. These teacher leaders were employed in urban, exurban, and suburban school districts, with experience levels varying from three to thirty-three years. Participants were required to complete the following: the Self-Assessment to Assess Readiness for Leadership, creation of personal code of ethics, and the creation of professional code of ethics. An in-depth interview to discuss the codes, and clashes between codes was conducted, as well as a second interview to address an ethical dilemma identified by the participants. Categorical analysis was used to recognize recurring themes. A conceptual model of the decision-making process was developed to explain the phenomena observed in these data. In addition, recurring themes were identified through analysis of the interview data. Themes included a prevailing concern for fairness, student welfare, educational equality, safety, and student discipline. When responding to critical events that triggered ethical dilemmas, these participants habitually used their personal and professional codes of ethics to determine a course of action. Participants exhibited a sophisticated decision-making approach which moved participants past the reliance on one ethical frame of justice, critique, or care, into the use of multiple paradigms to solve ethical dilemmas. In the final analyses, the ethic of the profession was demonstrated by these nine teacher leaders through reflection and reliance on personal and professional codes of ethics, and by placing students at the center of the ethical decision-making process. / Educational Administration

In 2003, Mid-County North High School (pseudonym), a large suburban, rather affluent school did not make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) under the No Child Left Behind Act. The school's special education population was unable to meet the proficiency requirements of the Mid-County's state, and as such received a "failing" label from the state. The irony in this is that North High School (NHS) and the Mid-County District have a documented legacy of excellence -even on the very assessments upon which the "failing" assessments were based. This single-site, qualitative case study, was designed to investigate the real-life dilemmas, ethical, professional, and personal, that the school leaders at NHS and in the Mid-County School District encountered after the school did not make AYP. The perceived internal pressures caused by the possible competition of a school leader's personal and professional values, as well as the necessity for leaders to guide their school toward making AYP, were investigated. In addition to internal pressures, the study attempted to uncover the perceived pressures faced by the leaders within the organizational structure of the school and school district, from the community, media and government. In addition, the study was designed to unveil school leaders' reactions to these perceived pressures. This study used semi-structured interviews with 12 school leaders, including central office and building level leaders, as well as teachers, a parent, and a school board member. In addition to interviews, pertinent documents, and artifacts were analyzed. The interview and document data were then coded using a qualitative analysis program, TAMSAnalyzer. The constant comparative method (Glaser and Strauss, 1967) was used to analyze the data in terms of the study's two theoretical frameworks: Turbulence Theory (Gross, 1998) and Multiple Ethical Paradigms (Shapiro and Stefkovich, 2001). The data revealed three dominant themes: (a) Turbulence Happens: School Leaders Are Forced to Respond to Externally Imposed Accountability in the Era of NCLB and AYP; (b) Flight School: School Leaders' Ethical Codes and Experience Prepare them to Navigate Through Turbulence; (c) Pilot to Co-Pilot: School Leaders Communicate, Collaborate, and Innovate to manage the Turbulence of Not Making AYP. / Educational Administration