The Management Profile, developed at the Texas A & M University Principals' Center, has considerable potential as a comprehensive strategy for evaluating and developing educational administrators. This article reviews progress in refining the profile's use, including identification of performance criteria, standardization of decision rules for…

The relationship between measurements of personality and leadership is described in this paper. Following an introduction and a statement of the problem, the first part discusses the principles of measurement, beginning with the basic issues and assumptions and going on to examine various aspects of validity, reliability, instrument construction,…

Because administrative theory as presently developed does not allow administrative action to be accurately assessed, measuring participant responses to case study problems employing a predetermined, closed set of responses has questionable validity. This study tries to develop an alternative methodology and to test the resulting instrument in an…

Project EXCEL (Excellence in Community Elected and Appointed Leadership) was created in 1990 to provide opportunities for assessing job training and personal development needs of public officials in small and midsized communities, as well as to develop a continuing education program to assist public leaders in professional growth and problem…

The principal plays a crucial role in determining the overall effectiveness of the school; therefore, attention must be focused not only on principal preparation, but also on principal recruitment and selection. Today a greater emphasis is being placed on managerial skills in principal selection, but personal characteristics still exert a heavy…

With 50 percent of all principals planning to retire in the 1980's, hiring good principals should be a matter of planning rather than chance. This pamphlet notes the strategies that can help to ensure that a district hires effective educational leaders as principals. Developing effective job descriptions and interviewing techniques, though…

The Maryland Assessment Center Program (MACP), conducted in cooperation with the NASSP Assessment Center Project, consists of a Commission on School-Based Administration to review principal selection and training processes, a statewide assessment program, and a Research and Development Laboratory on School Based Administration at the University of…

The purpose of this report is to describe, evaluate, and validate a pilot assessment center (AC) established in the Center for Leadership and Personal Development at the U.S. Military Academy to develop cadets on job skills needed by newly commissioned officers in the U.S. Army. The AC programs employ a leadership evaluation development method…

A principal and assessor for an Alabama school system describes the professional benefits of her experience with the NASSP Assessment Center Project: peer interaction, informal exchanges, and close personal contact with five other practicing administrators. (TE)

A South Carolina high school band director describes his experience with the Springfield Simulation, a role-playing seminar/workshop where individuals are assigned roles and situations that will aid them in developing administrative skills. (TE)

A migrant education resource teacher from California describes the personal and professional benefits she obtained from her participation in the Springfield project, a role-playing seminar/workshop for administrators. (TE)

Evaluation findings concerning six Austin Independent School District (AISD) Assessment Centers are presented. The report describes the AISD assessment center, summarizes the evaluation findings, and provides conclusions and recommendations. The AISD assessment center is one of seven components which make up the District's Administrative…

The present success and future potential of the Springfield Simulation depend on six interrelated research findings about adult learning.These findings, enumerated and discussed, provide the theoretical framework for Springfield. (TE)

This article treats specific areas in which the assessment center can make significant contributions to university programs in educational administration: personal-professional growth, contributions to the preparation program, and linkages with the field. (TE)

This brief introductory article describes the NASSP's Assessment Center Project, a comprehensive plan to assist school districts in identifying and developing highly skilled school leaders. As such, it introduces a series of articles in which those who have used the NASSP Assessment Center describe their experiences. (TE)