This research examines how public school principals in Kentucky perceive their new teacher evaluation system and the proficiency exam they must take and pass in order to evaluate their staff. An online survey was developed and 308 out of an estimated 1,100 working school principals across Kentucky responded, yielding a response rate of 28%.…

Principals who are strong, effective, responsive leaders help to inspire and enhance the abilities of their teachers and other school staff to do excellent work. Such principals also tend to retain great teachers and create opportunities for them to take on new leadership roles. This leads to the following key question: What can state policymakers…

An effective school requires an effective leader, but great principals rarely just happen. They are cultivated. This Wallace Perspective draws on a decade of foundation research and work in school leadership to show how urban school districts can play a major role in ensuring they have principals who can boost teaching and learning in troubled…

Developing school leaders who are equipped with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed to effectively lead low-performing schools has become a critical goal for local school districts intent on dramatically improving student outcomes. Given the current criticism surrounding leadership preparation programs and the changing nature of school…

In 1985 the Kentucky General Assembly passed a comprehensive educational reform package including provisions for the Kentucky Beginning Principal's Intern Program (KBPIP). Evaluating the KBPIP involved three phases: identification of research goals, objectives, and data collection instruments; collection of data from participants; and…

This paper describes a game-format instructional strategy for administrator development based on a modified case method, the Kentucky New Administrator Standards, and the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) standards. This instructional strategy is intended to help prepare school leaders to assess and be assessed using authentic…

The relationship between educational background and mobility into the executive ranks of state government was examined in a questionnaire survey of 839 state executives at the assistant division chief level and above. This study is part of a large study of the background characteristics of executives from South Carolina, Mississippi, North…