<p>  </p> <p>Food safety educators and specialists are committed to closing the food safety education gap among different actors in the supply chain, from farm to fork. To accomplish it, they have to understand the needs of the target population to disseminate information and develop interventions. This thesis is divided into three case studies to explore needs assessments (Ch. 1 and 2) and program evaluation (Ch. 3). The first needs assessment (Ch.1) was developed due to a recent multistate outbreak linked to dried wood ear mushrooms. This study evaluated YouTube video content on the preparation of different wood ear mushrooms dishes and investigated the food safety risk associated with the handling practices. Practices such as rehydration procedures were identified as key food safety risk factors that need future exploration. The second needs assessment (Ch.2) was developed due to the impact of small- and medium-sized farms on USA agriculture. This study aimed to understand consumers’ perceptions and expectations of produce from small- and medium-sized farms and their desire to pay a premium price for food safety information. The findings showed that consumers perceived the produce from these farms to be fresher and of higher quality. Also, they considered food safety as a minimum quality standard and valued produce safety information. Finally, multiple needs assessments have shown that low-income populations, including minority groups, have unique barriers to adopting food safety practices. The third study (Ch.3) evaluated a dialogue-based virtual food safety program for English- and Spanish-speaking low-income populations using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Findings suggest that the TPB helped to discern the behavior change intentions of this population and showed that the intervention was able to increase participants’ knowledge, attitudes toward the behavior, perceived behavioral control (PBC), subjective norms, and behavior change intentions. Future work could modify the program to fit other minority populations in the USA.</p>

Over the last ten years there has been a significant increase in environmental certification of buildings in the world. More and more people are getting aware of the fact that buildings use a lot of energy and affect the wellbeing of the community and our planet. The research has the last 15 years therefore produced several studies investigating different options available to decrease buildings environmental impact. Through the following report a summary is done reviewing the many opinions in the field. The goal with this Bachelor of Science thesis is thus to investigate the issue “Why should property owners and tenants choose environmentally certified buildings? What are the benefits and drawbacks for respective part?” To answer this question an extensive literature review over available materials in this field were made, both internationally and in Sweden. A closer investigation was then conducted through interviews for the market in Sweden to fill in gaps in information. The interviewed parties were all active within the field and had different perspectives representing both property owners and tenants. In our results can we see several benefits for property owners in possessing environmentally certified buildings. Some of the more significant of these benefits are potentially higher rental levels, market values, lower vacancies and energy savings resulting in better net operating income. Add thereto a competitive advantage against other property owners and a decreased risk of being deselected by tenants. Motivating why the tenant should be located in certified real estate is not as simple though, which in Sweden might be because of the high standards in many buildings and that it is hard to directly connect several of the benefits to the certification. Though, generally seen because of that the demand still is high should reasons as better indoor climate, increased productivity and quality assurance be strong arguments to choose environmental certified buildings. Furthermore could the disagreement in the business be solved with more transparency about the cost situation and clearer conformity between the different environmental certification systems. / De senaste tio åren har det kunnat observeras en markant ökning av antalet miljöcertifierade byggnader runt om i världen. Fler och fler blir medvetna om att byggnader använder mycket energi och påverkar hur både människor och vår planet mår. Forskningen har de senaste 15 åren därför producerat många studier som utreder flertalet av de alternativ som finns för att sänka byggnaders miljöpåverkan. Genom följande rapport görs en sammanställning av en del av det brus och åsikter som finns om ämnet. Tanken med kandidatarbetet är således att utreda frågeställningen ”Varför ska fastighetsägare och hyresgäster välja miljöcertifierade fastigheter? Vad finns det för fördelar och nackdelar för respektive part?”. För att kunna svara på denna fråga genomfördes en utförlig litteraturstudie av tillgängligt material inom området, både internationellt och i Sverige. En närmare undersökning har sedan gjorts med hjälp av intervjuer för att komplettera och fylla ut bilden av miljöcertifieringssystem i Sverige. De intervjuade tillhör intressenter som är verksamma från olika perspektiv för fastighetsägare eller hyresgäster. Vi kan i resultaten se att det finns flera fördelar för fastighetsägare i att äga miljöcertifierade fastigheter. Några av de tydligare av dessa är bättre driftnetto på grund av energibesparing, potentiellt högre hyresnivåer och marknadsvärden samt lägre vakans. Lägg därtill ett konkurrensmedel mot andra fastighetsägare och minskad risk för att bli bortvald av hyresgäster. Ur hyresgästperspektiv är det svårare att motivera varför de ska vara lokaliserade till miljöcertifierade fastigheter, vilket i Sverige i många fall beror på att byggnader redan har hög standard samt att det är svårare att knyta fördelar just till själva miljöcertifieringen. Men generellt sett i och med att efterfrågan ändå är stor borde anledningar som bättre inomhusklimat, ökad produktivitet och kvalitetssäkring vara kraftiga argument för att välja miljöcertifierat. Vidare skulle oenigheten i branschen kunna lösas med mer transparens i kostnadsfrågan och en tydligare överensstämmelse mellan de olika miljöcertifieringssystemen.

The present thesis investigates the demands for follow-ups determined within the largest four environmental certification systems in Sweden, BREEAM-SE, LEED, Miljöbyggnad, and GreenBuilding. This study was narrowed down to only include environmental certifications of newly developed commercial constructions. Furthermore, the different problems and risks that can occur alongside follow-up demands within an environmental certification will be discussed as well as the positive effects of such a follow-up. There has been a significant increase in the classification of constructions in the last decade. Today, the majority of large construction projects undergo an environmental certification. The certification of newly developed buildings start with the planning documents and has a large impact on how buildings are constructed, built, and maintained. The certification process is often intricate and involves many different parties such as engineers, architects, and constructions workers. Demands for follow-ups will vary in both layout and scope depending on the environmental certification system after it has been commissioned. Controlling and ensuring that the project plans have been met after commissioning allow buildings to, at a greater extent, live up to expectations and classification grades. Thereby, the risk of having a misleading certification grade even in the management phase is reduced. A supervised and planned commissioning as well as demands on a new certification of the building, which confirms an acquired grade, strengthens the recognition of the building on the market. / Denna kandidatuppsats behandlar de uppföljningskrav som ställs inom Sveriges fyra största miljöcertifieringssystem; BREEAM-SE, LEED, Miljöbyggnad och GreenBuilding. Rapporten har avgränsats till miljöcertifiering av kommersiella byggnader vid nyproduktion. Vidare behandlas olika problem och risker som kan uppstå i samband med uppföljningskrav av en miljöcertifiering, samt de positiva effekter en uppföljning bidrar till. Det har skett en betydande ökning av klassningsarbetet av byggnader det senaste decenniet, majoriteten av stora byggprojekt genomgår idag en miljöcertifiering. Certifiering av byggnader i nyproduktion utgår från projekteringshandlingar och har stor inverkan på hur byggnader konstrueras, byggs och underhålls. Certifieringsprocessen är ofta invecklad och involverar många parter såsom ingenjörer, arkitekter och byggare. Uppföljningskraven som respektive miljöcertifieringssystem ställer inom sina certifikat efter idrifttagandet varierar i både utformning och omfattning. Kontroll och säkerställning av att projekteringsvärden i drift gör att byggnader i större utsträckning lever upp till förväntningar och erhållet certifieringsbetyg. Därigenom minskar dessutom risken för att certifieringsbetyg, som kvarstår även i förvaltningsskedet, ska bli missvisande. Ett övervakat och planerat idrifttagande, samt krav på en ny certifiering av byggnader i drift som bekräftar ett erhållet betyg, stärker byggnaders erkännande på marknaden.

Nobia AB i Tidaholm tillverkar kompletta kök till privatpersoner och byggprojekt. I samhället har hållbarhetstänket ökat markant vilket betyder att kunderna ställer högre krav på det de konsumerar. För att producera hållbara kök med hänsyn till miljö och människor i enlighet med deras affärsstrategi krävs det att verksamheten är certifierad. De certifikat som är av intresse är Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) och Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC).  För att erhålla ett certifikat krävs det att vissa krav uppfylls och att spårbarhet finns i verksamheten. För att erhålla ett av certifikaten måste bristerna identifieras och förslag på åtgärder tas fram. För spårbarheten gäller det att produktionen granskas och att verksamheten jämförs med de ställda kraven. Efter utförd studie har det påvisat möjligheten till certifiering för Nobias verksamhet i Tidaholm. Teorin samlades in genom litteratur, standarder och artiklar. Metoder som användes för att undersöka nuläget var diskussioner, processkartläggning och observationer. Utifrån teorin och undersökningen av nuläget tillämpades en gapanalys för att jämföra differensen mellan certifikatens krav och den befintliga uppfyllandegraden. Flertalet brister påvisades och de största mest påverkningsbara sammanfattades i en prioriteringslista. Utifrån analysen togs förslag arbetssätt och åtgärder fram för att uppnå spårbarhet. Resultatet innefattar teoretiska åtgärder relaterat till arbetssättet och praktiska åtgärder för hur spårbarheten kan uppnås. Slutligen har Nobia goda möjligheter att på ett strategiskt sätt möjlighet till att utveckla sin verksamhet till en certifierad produktion med hjälp av ett teoretiskt arbetssätt samt praktiska åtgärder. / Nobia AB in Tidaholm manufacture complete kitchens towards private persons and building projects. With the increasing awareness of sustainability in the society, there is an increase of sustainable consumption by the customers which leads to higher demands on sustainable kitchens. To produce kitchens with the environment and people in mind in line with their business strategi, their organization needs to be certified. The certificates of interests are the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC). To acquire certification Nobia will need to fulfil the demands in the standard and have traceability in their production. To acquire traceability, it is needed to review the production and to compare the organisation with the standards demands. After the completed study it has been proven that there is a possibility to certify Nobia’s organization in Tidaholm. The theory chapter was collected through literature, standards, and articles. Methods that were used to examine the current situation was discussions, process mapping and observations at the company. From the theory and the examination of the current situation was a gap analysis completed to compare the difference between Nobia’s current situation and the demands in the standard. Multiple breaches were discovered and the changes that would help the traceability the most was summarized in a priority list. The result includes theoretical measures related to working practice and practical measures as to how traceability can be achieved. Lastly is that Nobia has a good possibility, in a strategic way, to develop their organization and produce certified production with the help of a theoretical and practical measures.

Bibliography: pages 181-186. / The study recorded in this dissertation was undertaken in the School of Education at the University of Cape Town (UCT) during the period 1986-1990. It was motivated by perceived anomalies in the administration of State regulations for endorsement of teachers' diplomas in respect of ability in English (E/e). The study commences with an analysis of the relevant requirements of the regulations for teacher bilingualism, as set out in sections 10 and 11 of Criteria for the Evaluation of South African Qualifications for Employment in Education, 1988. Theoretical and practical problems of evaluation and endorsement identified at UCT are considered in relation to the concept of test failure, as opposed to testee failure. Responses to a questionnaire sent to other teacher training centres indicate similar concerns elsewhere. Arising from a review of recent literature on language testing, and against the background of the multilingual target groups tested at UCT, a proposition is put forward for a distinction between communicative competence and language proficiency as criteria in language assessment, depending on whether English is the medium (communicative competence), or the subject (proficiency), of instruction. Assuming that English will remain a medium of instruction in a changing socio-political dispensation, at least in the short and medium terms, the study then focuses on test design, construction and scoring, where the objective is to test communicative competence in English, rather than proficiency. The role of English in the curriculum in a future South Africa is discussed briefly. It is concluded that current regulations for language endorsement are in urgent need of review. The following recommendations are made in this regard: that the relevant requirements for teachers in State schools be reformulated to account for one level, rather than two, of endorsement in English as the medium of instruction; that such endorsement be required only in the case of non-English medium graduates, thereby recognising the integrity of the English medium teachers' diploma itself; that procedures for assessment for the purpose of diploma endorsement be standardised; and that the State support further research in this area.

In model predictive control an optimization problem is solved in every time step, which in real-time applications has to be solved within a limited time frame. When applied on embedded hardware in fast changing systems it is important to use efficient solvers and crucial to guarantee that the optimization problem can be solved within the time frame. In this thesis a path following controller which follows a motion plan given by a motion planner is implemented to steer a truck and trailer system. To solve the optimization problems which in this thesis are quadratic programs the three different solvers DAQP, qpOASES and OSQP are employed. The computational time of the active-set solvers DAQP, qpOASES and the operator splitting solver OSQP are compared, where the controller using DAQP was found the fastest and therefore most suited to use in this application of real-time model predictive control.  A certification framework for the active-set method is used to give complexity guarantees on the controller using DAQP. The exact worst-case number of iterations when the truck and trailer system is following a straight path is presented. Furthermore, initial experiments show that given enough computational time/power the exact iteration complexity can be determined for every possible quadratic program that can appear in the controller.

This study examined the process for implementation of the SB 1969 Staff Development in Sacramento City Unified School District. This case study focused on the implementation process from its inception in 1995 to the full implementation of training K–12 teachers during the 1997–98 school year. The data revealed that the policy implementation process occurred in three stages: (1) the planning phase, (2) the K–8 implementation phase, (3) the full K–12 implementation phase with modifications to the K–8 training component. The analysis revealed that local choices about how to proceed from policy to practice have had more significance for policy implementation than did policy features such as program design, funding levels, or governance requirements. The recommendations in this study are based on the research, findings, and conclusions. They include: (1) districts need to plan for policy implementation as a gradual process, (2) districts need to understand that successful implementation can only be achieved through a developmental process that consists of frequent reviews and modifications, (3) there must be an effective and committed group of people in the district guiding the implementation process, (4) districts must anticipate resistance to change by dealing with it accordingly, with flexibility built into the process, (5) the State must continue to provide an alternative means of credentialing teachers, who work with Limited English Proficient students in California. The recommendations for policy makers include: (1) policy makers should obtain information about policies directly from educators at the beginning of the policy development process; (2) policy makers should create liaisons with organized groups that represent the educational community in order to obtain feedback about policies affecting education; (3) policy makers need to ensure that they are obtaining information from the key stakeholders that will be affected by the educational policy, or gather information from other education-related organizations; (4) policy makers should utilize the internet, and other forms of communication to disseminate educational policy information.

In der heutigen Zeit ist der Wettbewerbsdruck in der Textilindustrie sehr präsent. Ein Qualitätsmanagementsystems nach DIN EN ISO 9000 ff. erhöht die interne Unternehmenstransparenz, vereinfacht Unternehmensstrukturen und verbessert interne Prozessabläufe. Eine permanente Analyse des Systems durch Audits, dient zur Fehlerprophylaxe und senkt letztendlich Kosten. Die Forschungsarbeit befasst sich mit der Frage, in welchem Umfang die DIN EN ISO 9000 ff. auf die Textilindustrie anwendbar sind. Qualitative Experteninterviews wurden im Rahmen der Untersuchung angewandt und das Ergebnis zeigt, dass die Normen auf die Textilindustrie anwendbar sind. Die Untersuchung zeigt ergänzend, dass Voraussetzungen zur Implementierung eines solchen Systems geschaffen werden müssen. Auf Grundlage der Erkenntnisse werden die erarbeiteten Voraussetzungen aufgegriffen und unter Berücksichtigung der Textilindustrie vertieft. Ein Kostenplan wurde bis zur Zertifizierung aufgestellt.:Abbildungsverzeichnis 5 Tabellenverzeichnis 6 Abkürzungsverzeichnis 7 1 Einleitung 8 1.1 Problemstellung 9 1.2 Zielsetzung der Arbeit 9 2 Theoretische Grundlagen 11 2.1 Textil- und Bekleidungsindustrie in Deutschland 11 2.2 Definition des Begriffs „Qualität“ 12 2.3 Branchenunabhängiges Qualitätsmanagementsystem 14 2.4 Qualitätsmanagement in der Textilindustrie 16 2.5 Entstehung der Normen 18 2.5.1 Entwicklungen der Normen 20 2.5.2 Entwicklung des Qualitätsaudits 23 2.6 Kernnormen der ISO-9000-Familie 24 2.6.1 ISO 9000 26 2.6.2 ISO 9001 27 2.6.3 ISO 9004 28 2.6.4 ISO 19011 29 2.6.5 Relevante Normen, Leitfäden und Best-Practice-Modelle fürs Qualitätsmanagement 31 2.7 Dokumente eines QS-Systems 34 2.8 Prinzipien des Audits 36 2.8.1 Qualitätsaudit 39 2.8.2 Systemaudit 41 2.8.3 Prozessaudit 41 2.8.4 Produktaudit 42 3 Untersuchungsmethodik 44 3.1 Experte I 45 3.1.1 DQS – Deutsche Gesellschaft zur Zertifizierung von Managementsystemen 46 3.2 Experte II 46 3.2.1 Intertek 47 4 Ergebnisse 48 4.1 Qualitätsmanagement-Handbuch 52 4.1.1 Qualitätshandbuch für den externen und internen Gebrauch 55 4.1.2 Enterprise Wiki als Dokumentationsverwaltungssystem 55 4.2 Auswahl geeigneter Auditoren 60 4.2.1 1. Persönliches Verhalten von Auditoren 61 4.2.2 2. Allgemeines Wissen und Fertigkeiten von Auditoren 62 4.2.3 3. Disziplin- und branchenspezifisches Wissen und Fertigkeiten von Auditoren 64 4.2.4 4. Allgemeines Wissen und Fertigkeiten eines Auditteamleiters 64 4.2.5 Auditorenauswahl in der Praxis 65 4.3 Kostenplan bis zur Zertifizierung 67 4.3.1 Unternehmen I 67 4.3.2 Unternehmen II 69 4.3.3 Kostenplan 70 4.3.4 Erläuterung des Kostenplans 74 4.3.5 Kosten und Nutzen 78 5 Nebenerkenntnis 80 5.1 Der Weg zur Zertifizierung 80 5.2 Ausblick auf die Norm 9001:2015 87 6 Fazit 90 7 Gender-Erklärung 92 8 Literaturverzeichnis 93 9 Anhang 98 9.1 Fragenkatalog – Interviewleitfaden 98 9.2 Aufwand und Kosten für eine Erst-Zertifizierung nach ISO 9001 100 / Nowadays, competitive constraints are very famous in the textile industry. A quality management system subject to DIN EN ISO 9000 et sqq. increases the intern transparency of companies, simplifies the structures of them and improves the intern processes. A permanent analysis of the system, undertaken by audits, is used to avoid mistakes and to reduce costs in the end. This research deals with the question to what extend the DIN EN ISO 9000 et sqq. can be used for the textile industry. Qualitative interviews of experts were used in this study and the result is that the rules can be used for this branch of industry. The study shows also that preconditions must be created to implement such a system. On the basis of these findings the prepared preconditions are used and deepened under consideration of the textile industry. A financial plan (overview) has been established up to the certification.:Abbildungsverzeichnis 5 Tabellenverzeichnis 6 Abkürzungsverzeichnis 7 1 Einleitung 8 1.1 Problemstellung 9 1.2 Zielsetzung der Arbeit 9 2 Theoretische Grundlagen 11 2.1 Textil- und Bekleidungsindustrie in Deutschland 11 2.2 Definition des Begriffs „Qualität“ 12 2.3 Branchenunabhängiges Qualitätsmanagementsystem 14 2.4 Qualitätsmanagement in der Textilindustrie 16 2.5 Entstehung der Normen 18 2.5.1 Entwicklungen der Normen 20 2.5.2 Entwicklung des Qualitätsaudits 23 2.6 Kernnormen der ISO-9000-Familie 24 2.6.1 ISO 9000 26 2.6.2 ISO 9001 27 2.6.3 ISO 9004 28 2.6.4 ISO 19011 29 2.6.5 Relevante Normen, Leitfäden und Best-Practice-Modelle fürs Qualitätsmanagement 31 2.7 Dokumente eines QS-Systems 34 2.8 Prinzipien des Audits 36 2.8.1 Qualitätsaudit 39 2.8.2 Systemaudit 41 2.8.3 Prozessaudit 41 2.8.4 Produktaudit 42 3 Untersuchungsmethodik 44 3.1 Experte I 45 3.1.1 DQS – Deutsche Gesellschaft zur Zertifizierung von Managementsystemen 46 3.2 Experte II 46 3.2.1 Intertek 47 4 Ergebnisse 48 4.1 Qualitätsmanagement-Handbuch 52 4.1.1 Qualitätshandbuch für den externen und internen Gebrauch 55 4.1.2 Enterprise Wiki als Dokumentationsverwaltungssystem 55 4.2 Auswahl geeigneter Auditoren 60 4.2.1 1. Persönliches Verhalten von Auditoren 61 4.2.2 2. Allgemeines Wissen und Fertigkeiten von Auditoren 62 4.2.3 3. Disziplin- und branchenspezifisches Wissen und Fertigkeiten von Auditoren 64 4.2.4 4. Allgemeines Wissen und Fertigkeiten eines Auditteamleiters 64 4.2.5 Auditorenauswahl in der Praxis 65 4.3 Kostenplan bis zur Zertifizierung 67 4.3.1 Unternehmen I 67 4.3.2 Unternehmen II 69 4.3.3 Kostenplan 70 4.3.4 Erläuterung des Kostenplans 74 4.3.5 Kosten und Nutzen 78 5 Nebenerkenntnis 80 5.1 Der Weg zur Zertifizierung 80 5.2 Ausblick auf die Norm 9001:2015 87 6 Fazit 90 7 Gender-Erklärung 92 8 Literaturverzeichnis 93 9 Anhang 98 9.1 Fragenkatalog – Interviewleitfaden 98 9.2 Aufwand und Kosten für eine Erst-Zertifizierung nach ISO 9001 100

Under det senaste decenniet har det skett en stor utveckling av strategier och trender gällandemiljöcertifieringar av kommersiella fastigheter. Efter att SGBC (Swedish Green Building Council)etablerades 2009 har företag valt att anpassa sin verksamhet, strategier och miljöpolicy därefter. Vissaföretag ligger långt i framkant när det gäller att investera i miljöcertifierade fastigheter varpå studienssyfte är att undersöka hur bolagen lyckats anpassa sin verksamhet på en marknad i rörelse. Det villsäga hur företagen förhåller sina investeringar av miljöcertifieringar till sina policys gällande hållbarutveckling. Metoden för studien har varit att undersöka årsredovisningar och hållbarhetsrapporter för utvaldafastighetsbolag under det senaste decenniet. Även företagens hemsidor har fungerat som underlag vidinsamling av information för att kunna kartlägga företagens mål, strategier och viktiga nyckeltal. Frånden insamlade data har man kunnat granska utvecklingen av trender och strategier för de undersöktafastighetsbolagen där man har sett en ändring allt eftersom rådande marknadsförutsättningar ochefterfrågan ändrats. Vissa svårigheter har uppstått vad gäller transparensen i tillhörande årsredovisningar som har visskorrelation till huruvida ett bolag väljer att överkommunicera arbetet med miljöcertifieringar ochhållbarhet i sin helhet. Detta kan antas bero på den hållbarhetstrend som fått genomslag under detsenaste decenniet där ett fastighetsbolag, för att vara tillräckligt konkurrenskraftig inom främstkontorssegmentet, har fått påvisa ett betydligt större arbete kring just miljöfrågor och hållbarhet än ettbolag mer inriktad på industriella lokaler lokaliserat till mindre städer. / Over the past decade, there has been a major development of strategies and trends regardingenvironmental certifications of commercial properties. Since the establishment of the Swedish GreenBuilding Council (SGBC) in 2009, companies have chosen to adapt their activities, strategies andenvironmental policies accordingly. Some companies are at the forefront when it comes to investing inenvironmentally certified properties, and the purpose of the study is to investigate how the companiesmanaged to adapt their operations at a market in motion. That is, how companies relate theirinvestments in environmental certifications to their sustainable development policies. The study has included examining annual reports and sustainability statements for selected companiesover the past decade. The companies' websites have also served as a basis for collecting information inorder to be able to map out companies' goals, strategies and key figures. From the collected data it hasbeen possible to examine the development of trends and strategies for the investigated real estatecompanies where a change has been seen as current market conditions and demand have changed. Some difficulties have arisen with regard to the transparency of the associated annual reports, whichhave some correlation to whether a company chooses to overcommunicate the work withenvironmental certifications and sustainability in its entirety. This can be assumed to be due to thesustainability trend that has had an impact over the last decade where a real estate company, in orderto be sufficiently competitive in the office segment, has had to demonstrate much greater work onenvironmental issues and sustainability than a company more focused on industrial premises locatedin smaller cities.

This study investigated the self-efficacy (also often referred to as self-confidence) of principals as determined by school administrator certification credentials and teaching endorsements at low performing middle schools in Mississippi. In educational literature, the term “self-confidence” is often referred to under the nomenclature of self-efficacy. In the context of an educational environment, self-efficacy pertains to a principal’s capability to organize and execute courses of action required in leading and managing a school. Successful school management requires a leader who is task oriented, consistently stays focused, employs effective strategies, and utilizes managerial skills. The investigation focused on the self-efficacy, as determined by credentials and endorsements, of the principals charged with leading and managing the 24 Mississippi middle schools that received Mississippi Department of Education accountability ratings of “D” or “F” in relation to student academic performance. The overall research question that guided the investigation asked: Did the self-efficacy of the principals charged with leading and managing the 24 Mississippi middle schools that received low accountability scores suggest any connection to the ratings? Based on the findings of the investigation, it may be concluded that the self efficacy of the principals charged with leading and managing the middle schools that received low accountability scores didn’t appear to have any connection to the ratings. Also, neither the principals’ certification credential levels nor teaching endorsements appeared to be factors.