The number of staff members serving American higher education institutions has more than doubled in the past twenty years, as occupations in technology, development, government relations, and even athletic administration have grown as never before in the history of the academy. As the number, variety, and importance of these positions have grown,…

Effective administrative decisions result from the continuous and systematic appraisal of past decisions and of current conditions. Forty observations that may guide secondary school administrators in assessing and improving the effectiveness of their own decision-making processes are presented in this publication. Each observation is accompanied…

Offers insights on the use of the charrette for long-range planning, drawing from the experience of the Virginia Community College System (VCCS). Defines charrettes, explains their benefits and limitations, lists requirements for successful charrettes, and explains the process used by the VCCS to incorporate the charrette into long-range planning.…

Quality circles are groups of people performing similar work that meet regularly to improve their work settings. Since the quality circle is a means for organizational change, it is helpful to place the concept within the literature of organizational change in the field of educational administration. With the use of quality circles, change occurs…

The article describes the goals, rationale, structure of the shared decision-making model in effect at the Nueva Learning Center, a private elementary school for gifted and talented in Hillsborough, California. An example applying the model to class scheduling and 10 steps for facilitating the process are given. (Author/DB)

Borrowing from Madeline Hunter, school districts should define staff development as school- or district-wide efforts to improve the quality of teacher decision-making. This article outlines a six-step process (including needs assessment, brainstorming, strategic plannning, communicating plans, coaching for effectiveness, and periodic monitoring)…

This paper discusses "moral imagination" or vision by strong-minded task-oriented contemporary educational leaders like New Jersey's Joe Clark. These are principals and superintendents who will challenge traditional assumptions about the nature of the school's relationships with its internal and external publics in favor of their own…

Interviews in seven English secondary schools revealed levels of teacher involvement in decisionmaking in the areas of finance and resources that ranged from schools where heads kept information confidential to one where a committee used a formula. (MLF)

The strategies for school based management and shared decision making are seldom studied together. A written survey administered to practitioners currently using one or both of the strategies provides information for the implementation of shared decision making. Methodological limitations include a sample of 230 site personnel with a response rate…

This booklet reviews decision-making, an important part of administrative processes, from the perspective of school teachers and other educators. The two most commonly used processes are the rational decision-making process (identify the problem, evaluate the problem, collect information, identify alternative solutions, select and implement…

Examines the nature and extent of behavioral changes exhibited by participants of an action oriented environmental program which focused on Lake Michigan's water quality. Outlines the program's objectives and assesses long-term behavioral modifications resulting from involvement in the decision-making process. (ML)

Three independent divisions of a large public agency, each with between 35 and 55 members, were randomly divided into experimental, placebo, and control groups for an intervention emphasizing decision-making and goal-setting practices that promote maximum employee interaction and participation. Results indicate increased levels of creativity after…

To implement School Based Management (SBM) in Charleston County, South Carolina, the school district was reorganized to include a management team to make shared decisions on all phases of district activities. Local schools were required to develop short and long range plans that encouraged needs assessment, goal identification, strategy…

This paper explores the decision-making process leading to school district approval for staff development. A retrospective field study approach was used to investigate the decision of a small, rural school district in eastern Washington (enrollment 2,200) to adopt a comprehensive English composition teaching program throughout the curriculum. This…

To improve secondary school organization, operation, and outcomes, a research report presents major results from 13 studies of leadership, decision-making, and change conducted by Project on the Administration and Organization for Instruction staff at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in cooperation with over 100 schools. National and statewide…