Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K) programs are becoming increasingly common in elementary schools across the United States--in fact, a recent analysis of federal data revealed that 57% of public schools have a Pre-K grade. Despite the prevalence of Pre-K programs in schools, principals--known to be among the most important factors in school success--often…

This mixed-methods study explored if there were alignment, or gaps, in leadership standards, preparation, and/or practice of a novice principal or assistant principal. Educational leadership preparation programs have been criticized for the lack of relevant context applicable in real-life settings. Quality leadership standards influence…

The principal's impact as an instructional leader influences many elements that keep a school building running effectively. Assistant principals, as emerging school leaders, must be prepared and cultivated with the proper support and resources to thrive in principalship positions. Support through school district-based principal preparation and…

Although the number of principal preparation programs (PPPs) has continued to grow, researchers have voiced concerns about the effectiveness of these licensing programs, particularly given the importance of a principal in student achievement and teacher retention. The purposes of this study were to evaluate the perceptions of graduates of the…

In 2013, the NYC Leadership Academy (NYCLA) developed a leadership intervention--the Targeted Intensive School Support (TISS) program--in collaboration with the New York City Department of Education (NYC DOE) to support schools that were facing particular challenges. NYCLA asked the RAND Corporation to provide an independent evaluation of the…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how novice Assistant Principals (APs) perceived administrative professional learning experiences. Data came from twelve first-year APs in two Southeast United States public school districts during the 2017-2018 academic year. Through use of semi-structured interviews, a description of how the…

This descriptive qualitative study investigated the experiences of novice assistant principals regarding how participation in a Grow-Your-Own leadership program influenced their self-efficacy to fulfill their administrative duties in one Southwestern U.S. state. Social learning theory, situated learning theory, and self-efficacy theory provided…

Principals and assistant principals currently serving in Florida and Georgia school districts were surveyed about their perceptions of university educational leadership preparation and professional learning. The results revealed that many principals and assistant principals agreed that university educational leadership preparation programs…

In this study, faculty members of an educational leadership program, situated in a large urban university in the southeastern region of the United States, utilized focus group research to determine the perceptions of K-12 assistant principals regarding the effectiveness of an educational leadership program, and to provide recommendations for…

This study sought to determine the effectiveness on increasing student achievement of principals trained in a traditional principal preparation program and those trained in an alternate route principal preparation program within the same Mississippi university. Sixty-six Mississippi principals and assistant principals participated in the study. Of…

Educational administration is the weakest program that schools of education offer...most (principal preparation programs) vary in quality from inadequate to appalling. Their shortcomings include irrelevant and incoherent curricula, low admission and graduation standards, inadequate clinical instruction...(and) degrees that are irrelevant to the…

We use detailed data from New York City to estimate how the characteristics of school principals relate to school performance, as measured by students' standardized exam scores and other outcomes. We find little evidence of any relationship between school performance and principal education and pre-principal work experience, although we do find…

This article reports on an internship project developed by the Department for Education and Skills (UK) to prepare headteachers (principals) for schools facing challenging circumstances. The project placed experienced deputies (assistant principals) in secondary schools to work alongside mentor headteachers who had demonstrated leadership…