<p> The purpose of this study is to identify best leadership practices in retaining direct-care staff in residential treatment centers. While research exists on employee retention, there is a lack of research focused on employee retention in residential care. How leaders engage with direct-care staff members in residential care can have a significant influence on increasing employee retention rate. The literature review revealed transformational leadership theory as the theoretical framework, including 4 components: idealized influence, individualized consideration, inspirational motivation, and intellectual stimulation. </p><p> The design for this research was a qualitative case study. The residential treatment center was selected as the study case because of its exemplar performance reporting a 73% employee retention rate in contrast to the national retention rate of 40%. The theoretical framework served as a foundation for the purpose and research questions. Semistructured questions were developed to interview leaders at a residential treatment center in order to identify best practices. In combination with a thorough review of the literature, an expert panel of researchers established the validity of the interview instrument. Content analysis was applied to code themes and a 2nd reviewer provided reliability. </p><p> Participants responses revealed 9 best practices in 4 categories: 3 best practices linked to idealized influence, 2 best practices connected to individualized consideration, 2 best practices aligned with inspirational motivation, and 2 best practices specific to intellectual stimulation. In addition to correlating with the 4 components of transformational leadership, more than 100 authors supported the 4 theoretical components. The results of the study highlight the influence leaders can have on retaining employees. The identified best practices represent key approaches that health care leaders can apply. This study is helpful in identifying leadership practices in the health care field that will assist in increasing employee retention. Consequently, the results of this study can assist other residential treatment center leaders to consider these leadership practices in an effort to improve employee retention. </p>

<p> The following research highlights the impact of building a strong school culture in one successful urban Turnaround school. From changes to the environment to increased professional development, from the impact on student and parent engagement to the changes in professional expectations for staff, it seems there was no area of the school that wasn&rsquo;t positively impacted by focusing on improving the school&rsquo;s culture. It highlights a school that moved from being arguably the lowest performing elementary school in the state to a school that had measurable and steady improvements in student achievement over a four year span. This research presents a success story told through the lens of the culture-building that the seasoned leader prioritized and insisted was most critical to their Turnaround efforts. Despite massive reform and the pressures of accountability, the leader&rsquo;s insistence on shaping the culture in every aspect of the school paid off. The staff too experienced this improved culture as critical to their Turnaround and sustained success. Given the fact that this school generated steady success in one of the poorest neighborhoods in the state, this local story has much to teach like and unlike settings. Additionally, this Principal&rsquo;s ability to strengthen her school culture through the implementation of massive reform provides district and school-based leaders ways to couple culture-building and reform in effective ways. This research identifies and extrapolates the key findings that are replicable and urgently relevant to public schools everywhere that are struggling to find a balance between answering the call of heavy reform while creating school cultures that meet the needs of students and staff, and create lasting and sustainable school-wide improvement. Finally, this research provides an example of a successful leader who invested in the culture, despite pressures to focus on other urgent matters perceived to be more directly related to student achievement. This research provides an invitation to leaders who wish to build school cultures that will prove foundational to substantial and lasting success.</p>

Thesis (Ph. D.)--UCLA, 2009. / Vita. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Florida State University, 2003. / Advisor: Dr. C Aaron McNeece, Florida State University, School of Social Work. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Oct. 3, 2003). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Antioch University, 2008. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Aug. 4, 2008). Advisor: Carolyn Kenny. "A dissertation submitted to the Ph. D. in Leadership and Change program of Antioch University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy October, 2007"--The title page. Keywords: consciousness, leadership, poetry, aesthetics, emotion, group consciousness, poetic consciousness, theory. Includes bibliographical references (p. 200-208).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1993. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 130-151). Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1991. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 171-180).

<p> <b>Purpose.</b> The purpose of this qualitative multicase study was to examine how the leadership behaviors of California school superintendents influence the implementation of educational reform initiatives in the districts they serve. </p><p> <b>Methods.</b> The conceptual framework of this study centers on the interrelationship between the role of the superintendent, models of educational leadership, and the context of educational reforms. The constructs will link the elements of the research process and the influence of educational reforms on the behaviors of superintendents. The conceptual framework used Fullan and Quinn&rsquo;s (2016) coherence framework as a lens to examine the constructs and to determine whether superintendents are applying proven transformational and instructional leadership behaviors. </p><p> <b>Methodology.</b> A multicase qualitative study was used to explore how leadership behaviors of 7 superintendents influence educational reform in public school districts. The study was not bound by site or district; it investigated a contemporary phenomenon in depth and within a real-world context (Yin, 2014). Purposeful sampling was used to recruit acting superintendents in the Los Angeles and Orange County regions. The sampling criteria were (a) the superintendents served for a minimum of 3 years, (b) in a public school district, and (c) were referrals from trusted superintendent colleagues. Seven superintendents agreed to participate. </p><p> <b>Findings.</b> Examination of the qualitative data from the 7 interviews indicated superintendents&rsquo; leadership behaviors have influence in the implementation of educational reforms. To develop whole-system reform, superintendents must build a system for continuous improvement. Answers to 6 interview questions were carefully analyzed to provide an understanding of how superintendent leadership behaviors are influencing whole-system improvement. </p><p> <b>Conclusions and Recommendations.</b> The findings of this study were consistent with the coherence framework (Fullan &amp; Quinn, 2016), which specifically identified 4 integrated components (focusing direction, cultivating a collaborative culture, deepening learning, and securing accountability) for sustainable whole-system reform. It was concluded superintendents build coherence for reform by simultaneously implementing the 4 components. The data revealed educational reform requires leaders to think holistically about the framework. While district leadership is key to influencing the outcome of whole-system change, a culture of continuous improvement is achieved with coherency and collaboration at all levels.</p><p>

<p> <b>Purpose:</b> The purpose of this qualitative case study was to identify strategies related to the successful implementation of restorative justice practices and to uncover the extent to which the strategies decreased off-campus suspension rates and office discipline referrals in five public schools in the San Bernardino City Unified School District. </p><p> <b>Methodology:</b> In this qualitative case study, 10 research participants who were involved in the first three years of implementation of restorative justice practices at their school sites were interviewed. Face-to-face interviews utilizing open-ended questions were used to answer the research questions. </p><p> <b>Findings:</b> The data identified four major findings related to the implementation of restorative justice practices: (1) 100% of research participants indicated that having restorative conversations with students was a vital strategy that greatly contributed to lowering office discipline referrals and off-campus suspensions; (2) 90% of research participants stated that having district-provided professional development and support was necessary for effective implementation of restorative practices; (3) when comparing the suspension data for the five schools and the district, 80% of schools had significant decreases in the total number of suspensions; and (4) 80% of research participants indicated that adequate time to prepare for and implement restorative justice practices was a significant factor to consider when looking at implementing restorative practices. </p><p> <b>Conclusions:</b> Implementation of restorative justice practices can take many different forms. The data presented in this research study agreed with information found in the literature regarding implementation of restorative practices. Having an established restorative justice team, providing training on restorative practices, and assigning someone to support implementation were key components of effective implementation. </p><p> <b>Recommendations:</b> While the study brought to the surface several findings consistent with current literature, other areas in need of further research were identified. First, this study could be replicated on high school campuses to see the impact restorative practices may have on lowering suspension rates. Second, research could be conducted on district-level restorative practices like Youth Court. Third, principals&rsquo; perceptions regarding the effectiveness of restorative practices could be studied.</p><p>

<p> <b>Purpose.</b> The purpose of this phenomenological research study was to describe the behaviors exemplary municipal police chiefs and sheriffs practiced leading their organizations through conversation using Groysberg and Slind&rsquo;s (2012) four elements of conversational leadership: intimacy, interactivity, inclusion, intentionality. </p><p> <b>Methodology.</b> A phenomenology qualitative method was used to describe the behaviors of exemplary municipal police chiefs and sheriffs in southern California and their lived experiences related to conversational leadership. The study combined semi-structured interviews, observations, and artifact collection. These qualitative tools helped the researcher gain insight into participants&rsquo; conversational leadership behaviors. The researcher analyzed the data with the aid of NVivo software to reveal patterns and sort them into categories. </p><p> <b>Findings.</b> Examination of the data resulted in 20 themes and 574 references to the four elements of conversational leadership. Eight key findings were identified based on the frequency of references by study participants. </p><p> <b>Conclusions.</b> The eight key findings were summarized into four conclusions, one for each conversational element: (1) municipal police chiefs and sheriffs who want to provide an intimate, trusting environment must form comfortable conversational environments and create authentic, honest conversations to build trust; (2) municipal police chiefs and sheriffs committed to stakeholder interactivity and exchange of ideas create an environment for open dialogue and engage members in two-way dialogue; (3) municipal police chiefs and sheriffs committed to inclusion and sharing of ideas utilize effective conversation strategies for sharing, and create empowered internal stakeholders; (4) municipal police chiefs and sheriffs who want to ensure clarity of purpose with clear goals and direction should focus on methods to create clarity and purpose. </p><p> <b>Recommendations.</b> Further research is advised by replicating this study in other types of law enforcement organizations, as well as business, education, and possibly the military. Conduct a study to combine the results of this study with the peer-researchers in this thematic team to compare the results.</p><p>