<p> The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the experiences and perceptions of principals whose schools were granted innovation status in accordance with the <i>Colorado Innovation Schools Act of 2008</i> (CISA). The CISA created a statewide system that allowed individual schools and entire districts to increase autonomy and flexibility in areas such as staffing, scheduling, educational programming, and resource allocation. </p><p> The data were collected from interviews with principals and a rural superintendent and from an examination of the School Innovation Plans. Data were refined into common themes, and a rich narrative was created. The conclusions indicated that successful principals of innovation schools understand the change process, focus on instructional leadership, promote a positive school culture, require autonomy, implement exemplary leadership strategies and qualities, and tailor innovation plans to the needs of the school. The conclusions also indicated that successful superintendents tailor innovation plans to the needs of the district. </p><p> This research is important because education reform in the United States is in need of school reform models that result in increased academic achievement. The implications for positive change are that schools given the autonomy and flexibility to operate may have the potential to increase academic achievement. In addition, the CISA model has the potential to be replicated for application in other states. The experiences and perceptions of principals of innovation schools provided a window into the leadership role principals have in implementing the <i>Colorado Innovations Schools Act of 2008</i>.</p>

<p> District and school leadership are essential to the success of our students and our schools. While extensive conceptual literature describes leadership characteristics, there are few empirical studies that address the daily reality of schools. In addition, additional research is needed describing how principals maneuver within the context of schools and school districts. This phenomenological study explored how one elementary school principal understands and enacts leadership and to what extent she employs intentional strategies to facilitate change. The purpose of the study was to offer a rich profile of one elementary school principal's practice to understand how a principal constructs meaning, deploys action, and employs strategies to affect change. The results reveal this principal uses vision, the intentional strategies of expectations, modeling, decision-making processes, reflection, authentic conversations, and stories to facilitate change within her school. In addition, she maintains a human resource focus establishing relationships and building capacity in others as leadership strategies. The principal did not employ the same intention or strategies in relationship to the district or community, however. Results further indicated the district is also acting as a barrier to the implementation of leadership for change. Results of this study have implications for practitioners and future research. Practitioners can employ similar strategies as well as gaining awareness of the importance employing intention and political skill with the district. The results also highlight the need for additional leadership research as well as research investigating the role of the district in support of schools.</p>

<p> This study's purpose was to investigate new site administrators' perceptions of the term <i>community involvement,</i> of their role to engage the local community members as partners in their school, their preparation and support to work with their communities, and their challenges on-the-job with community engagement. This study also examined new site administrators' perceptions and needs to better understand what tools are necessary to help them create thriving community partnerships. </p><p> Thirty new site administrators across 4 counties of Southern California participated in a semi-structured 45-minute interview. All were employed less than 4 years and represented the gender, age and ethnic diversity of these counties. These individuals initially responded that parents were the community, not noting businesses, churches, health and the many other entities that surround and should be involved in school life. Each stated in some fashion that the role of the site administrator was to interface with the community beyond the site faculty and staff. All perceived that their academic preparation lacked any knowledge and skills to work with parents and the community although that is 1 of 6 required components for an administrative license in California. In addition, none indicated formal on-the-job professional development opportunities; 2 in the same district mentioned superintendent support of community involvement. </p><p> The first year administrators shared their sense of feeling overwhelmed in their new leadership position for a school staff and the myriad of policies/procedures. New site administrators in their second&ndash;fourth years commented on the struggle to find time to deal with community partnerships, the lack of district support, and limitations created by policies/procedures. </p><p> The respondents expressed interest in working with community groups, noting the many benefits to the school. All suggested ways that school districts, counties, colleges, department of education, professional associations, accrediting agencies, and policymakers could provide required training in the knowledge and skills to develop sustaining community partnerships.</p>

<p> Abstract of Dissertation Principal Socialization in One Virginia School District: A Phenomenological Investigation This phenomenological investigation examines the lived experiences of school principals to discover how principals hired from within their school division perceive and make meaning of their organizational socialization experiences&mdash;their thoughts, feelings, beliefs, values, and assumptive worlds. Nineteen public school principals participated in the study. All of the principals worked within the same school district, a school district that historically hires 99% of its school principals from within the division. Principals in the study not only served as assistant principals within the division, but they also served in other roles such as teacher, specialist, and coordinator, thus experiencing spiral socialization.</p><p> The researcher conducted semi-structured interviews lasting 90 minutes over a 3-month period. Moustakas' (1994) phenomenological research model was used to analyze data, allowing the researcher to examine what and how the phenomenon was experienced by each participant. Additionally, it allowed the researcher to uncover essential themes and describe the total essence of the phenomenon.</p><p> Results revealed two themes that emerged from the analysis about how principals who were hired from within their school division perceive and make meaning of their organizational socialization experience: (a) A Sense of Family and Familiarity and (b) A Sense of Preparation and Continuous Training. The essence of the experience presented a summary of the participants' stories. Being hired to the principalship within their school division presented feelings of being connected, groomed, and supported. For the 19 principals in this study, principal socialization begins with leaders who are ready, willing, and able to build relationships and pour into those who desire to lead and those in whom they recognize leadership potential.</p><p> While most socialization research seeks to offer recommendations, this study provides possibilities for awareness regarding the organizational socialization of school principals. This awareness may prove beneficial to organizations that prepare school administrators and school divisions as they consider recruiting, hiring, retaining, and training school principals for an ever changing, demanding role.</p>

<p> There is a need to address behavior discipline problems in special and general education setting classrooms. Disruptive behaviors are a major concern as they create excessive stress and demands for classroom teachers and school administrators to address them. Effective interventions are needed to properly address them. Moreover, classroom disruptions affect the instructional process and learning outcomes. Disruptive behaviors do not just occur in regular school classroom settings, but in After School Program (ASP) classrooms as well. After school program classrooms that operate on regular school sites are important to students, school staff, and parents. Educational researchers found that there is a lack of evidence based interventions for ASP staff to address the behavior issues that impact the quality of the service that they provide students. The purpose of this study was to assess an evidence base intervention (EBI) called the Daily Behavior Report Card (DBRC) in an ASP classroom to address disruptive behaviors and academic disengagement. A single-subject multiple baseline methodology design was used to conduct a four week intervention study of the DBRC. Three students in a third grade after school program class were observed at different times during the intervention and the ASP instructor provided behavior ratings on a report card of the student's behavior. Analysis of the study consisted of a visual inspection of direct behavior observations and DBRC rating graphs to determine if the DBRC intervention changed behavior. Study results revealed that the DBRC intervention had some impact on the participants' behavior overall but did not result in decreasing disruptive behaviors of students in the third grade after school classroom. Interviews were also conducted after the study with the participants and the ASP teacher. However, results of the qualitative data showed positive attitudes towards the DBRC as a tool for communication and collaboration among parents and school staff in the ASP setting in the future.</p>

<p> Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) provide the basis for meeting the challenges and expectations in today's educational environment. Effective PLCs provide the framework for school improvement and ultimately impact student academic success. School leadership is fundamental in this process (Bennis, 2009; Buffum, Mattos, &amp; Weber, 2009; Carter, 2007; Day, Leithwood, &amp; Sammons, 2008: DuFour &amp; Eaker, 1998; Fullan, 2001; Leithwood, Harris, &amp; Hopkins, 2008; Leithwood, Mascall, Strauss, Sacks, Memon, &amp; Yashkina, 2007; Marzano &amp; Waters, 2009; Spears, 2005; Steiner, Hassel, &amp; Hassel, 2008) and the building principal is the central figure. This project explored district-wide implementation of school level PLCs and the role school administration played in implementing a PLC culture. This mixed-methods study examined how district level administrative support helped establish a PLC culture of continuous improvement through quality professional development, role modeling, and observed expectations. Faculty members and administrators from a geographically diverse Eastern Idaho district participated in this PLC research study in an effort to answer the following questions: To what extent are the foundational principles of PLCs established throughout the district? What differences between elementary and secondary schools exist in the implementation of PLCs? What differences in teacher and principal perception exist regarding the implementation of PLC in a building?</p>

<p> The higher education environment is currently in a state of transition and uncertainty; institutions must locate, train, and maintain talented individuals in key administrative positions. Against this backdrop, the definitions and responsibilities of individual positions are being altered. Many mid-level administrators now are being expected to assume increasing leadership responsibilities as well as maintain managerial duties. The higher education registrar is a mid-level administrative role that is undergoing this type of transformation. The position of registrar typically is a mid-level administrative position, and the 21st-century registrar is considered to have both management and leadership responsibilities. The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the management and leadership role of the higher education registrar and the skills needed to fulfill that role, as perceived by registrars, senior-level administrators, and faculty leaders at private, 4-year institutions of higher education in California. For this qualitative ethnographic study, data were collected through registrar job descriptions from 6 institutions and through in-depth interviews with 6 higher education registrars, 6 senior-level administrators, and 6 faculty leaders. All participants perceived the registrar as both manager and leader within the department, but there was disagreement regarding the registrar's role as the institutional leader. Participants identified a variety of factors that were considered to impact the registrar's role as a campus leader. Three management skills (articulate communicator, organized, knowledgeable about higher education) and 2 leadership skills (demonstrates interpersonal skills, visionary and able to see the big picture) were perceived by the study sample as particularly important for the role of the registrar. Each subgroup of participants identified additional skills as particularly crucial. The findings of the study may be used by institutions of higher education to define the registrar's role in the institutional governance structure and to strengthen their human capital. Additionally, the identification of desired skills allows for the development of training programs for current registrars to maximize their potential and succession planning for future registrars to be suitably prepared for this complex administrative role.</p>

<p> Community integration and involvement is the overarching goal in planning for the transition from high school to adulthood for students with disabilities. The provision of a continuum of services, based on each student's individual needs is, the cornerstone of special education and transition services. The focus of this study was on how educational leaders in the coastal region of a South Atlantic state ensure that the transition requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 (IDEA) are implemented. The study included the identification of specific methods and practices used in that region. The researcher, driven by a desire to know more about the uniqueness of the case, interviewed educational leaders including school-based administrators, a division-based administrator, and a guidance counselor. Information was collected by surveying transition coordinators (<i>N</i> = 64) from the school divisions in the coastal region of a South Atlantic state with regard to career and vocational opportunities offered in the school divisions, transition planning practices within the school divisions, and the demographics of the participants. The researcher solicited the opinions of the participants concerning their knowledge base and their division transition practices. The researcher reviewed archival documents maintained at the state level pertaining to transition practices and transition outcomes for each school division included in the study. This was an intrinsic case study focusing on a specific group that is unique in geographic location, organization, and collaboration. The study was not intended to extend theory. The findings from the study identified (a) the proficiency of educational leaders in regard to their knowledge of transition practices and service delivery in their respective schools or school divisions, (b) the perceived education and training needs for educational leaders with regard to the transition practices and service delivery in their respective schools or school divisions, and (c) the specific transition practices and service delivery models utilized by the region's school divisions when reporting on the state indicators. Additionally, the findings added to the current research addressing a variety of approaches to transition planning for students with disabilities.</p>

<p>In the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, principals are often ill prepared for the demands of the job. According to Baxter (2012), every year in the Archdiocese approximately 30 principal vacancies are filled. Many of the Pastors who hire for these vacancies do not have an educational background, nor do they have much experience in hiring practices. With the increase of lay educators leading Catholic schools, not only are competent principals needed, but principals who can be Pastoral, educational, and managerial leaders (Manno, 1985). To increase the probability of hiring strong candidates for the principal vacancies in schools across the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, a hiring protocol is needed to standardize the process, while encouraging collaboration and input from multiple stakeholders. This case study implemented and evaluated a hiring protocol at one school site within the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The protocol was designed to help Catholic schools hire qualified principals, and its development was guided by previous research on effective hiring procedures for such positions. The case-study data collected provides insight into the benefits and of using this specialized hiring protocol while also identifying potential changes to further strengthen the protocol. The results of the case study will be shared with the Department of Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles to provide a framework for a principal hiring protocol that can be used at all school sites.

<p> Across state lines, budget cuts in education are a reality, especially for those in remote and rural areas. With less financial support, some districts are looking to their state departments to be models of good practice for how to leverage and work within budgetary means, while also keeping up with the advancement in education seen around the world. The history of American schools has defined itself by keeping up globally to ensure its students can be global competitors. In order to continue on the path of educational excellence, there is a need to find innovative ways to continue to be supportive of one another through embedded, professional development and systemic thinking. This concurrent mixed-methods research study looked to one state's coaching project over the last seven years. This state utilized its own coaches as a means to grow and develop leadership capacity for system improvement, even when budget woes were at an all-time high. This study found three key findings: (a) all participants demonstrated positive levels of agreement that the coaches had the skill-set identified by the researcher, engaged in actions that align to effective professional development, and that coaches were perceived to have an impact on leadership; (b) administrators and administrative coaches had the highest levels of agreement with all survey items, and their views were consistently in agreement with no statistical difference; and (c) school staff who were further removed from formal leadership roles were less aware of the skill-set, actions, and effects of the coach, and although they had positive levels of agreement, the levels of agreement were statistically lower than that of the administrators and coaches. Essentially, staff members who served in some type of leadership capacity perceived to benefit from the administration receiving state coaching support, than those who did not. These findings will help this rural state to reexamine its structure not only to strengthen the project, but to be the model for other divisions within the department attempting to utilize state coaches throughout the state. Themes presented will also allow other state agencies to better assess their needs of implementing a statewide coaching project, especially for those from rural states.</p>