Leadership preparation is essential in developing critical skills of effective school leaders. Educational leadership preparation programs vary greatly in terms of program features, it is important to identify which specific elements are likely associated with program quality. Using multiple years of Initiative for Systemic Program Improvement…

The researchers explored educational leadership program coordinator (PC) roles in developing university-K-12 school district partnerships. Little is known in regards to the PC's role in educational leadership preparation programs, and there is even less evidence of the PC's role in K-12 school district partnership development. This burden appears…

There is a pervasive and ongoing perception that leadership preparation is a problem. Important questions remain about the intentions, capacity, and impact of state departments of education engaged in leadership preparation program redesign. In this essay, I take up several issues concerning this state policy work, including whether a one size…

Increasing criticism of practicing educational leaders has led to additional critiques of the university programs in which they are prepared. In response, many states have mandated statewide university preparation program redesign. The articles in this special issue describe five unique cases of principal preparation program redesign--including…

In 2007, educational leadership programs in Florida were notified by Florida's Department of Education of a law requiring all programs to align with new legislation, State Rule 6A-5.081. Previously, most state-approved preparation programs were based on Florida's Leadership Preparation Standards, a version of the 1996 Interstate School Leadership…

Principal preparation programs in colleges throughout the country are being initiated and redesigned using diverse models and approaches. Creating change in any organization requires the involvement and support of supervisory personnel in leadership positions. Thus, although supervisory roles in colleges and universities tend to be less direct…

The Auburn University Educational Leadership Team and its K-12 practitioner and community partners collaboratively developed a comprehensive, on-going evaluation plan to assess a newly implemented field-based graduate program. The purpose of the present manuscript was to describe the evaluation guidelines and plans. The leadership team and…

Many states are mandating reforms in university-sponsored principal preparation programs, but faculty and school system personnel often have concerns about the prescriptive nature of state mandates related to these reforms. Auburn University served as one of four pilot principal preparation program redesigns in Alabama, a process that took over…

Programs designed to develop future educational leaders must include practical learning experiences that connect the theoretical content of university coursework with the realities of the K-12 workplace. Internships, which offer a common method of providing these experiences, have been generally lacking in the degree to which aspiring leaders…