Despite the complexities and challenges faced by principals on a daily basis, the literature posits that mentoring can be impactful to the individual mentee, as well as the potential benefits to the system in which they serve (Gross, 2009). While the benefits of mentoring are reviewed from the perspective of psychosocial development (Mertz, 2004),…

School leaders, specifically principals, play a pivotal role in shaping student learning outcomes. The benefits of strong leaders extend beyond academic achievement, such as reductions in absenteeism and exclusionary discipline. While quality principals are critical for creating and sustaining quality schools, the staffing pipeline is facing…

Each year, SC TEACHER publishes different workforce profiles, sharing details and demographics around South Carolina educators for a better understanding of our public school workforce. Among these publications, this report is the first to examine the state's school "administrator" workforce. The analysis in this report uses statewide…

This study investigated the effectiveness of alternative routes to teacher certification programs in three small rural school districts in South Carolina Public Schools. The need for teachers across the United States is anticipated to increase as a result of turnover. Specifically, this research analyzed the existing data in the three districts,…

High-stakes, standardized testing plays an important role in the lives of many students as they apply to college and compete for scholarships. In states where college readiness measures, like the ACT® test, are used for school and district accountability, the ACT scores of all students, whether college-bound or not, are a top priority for school…

This article presents a brief conversation with Denise Khaalid, the 2012 NASSP/Virco National Assistant Principal of the year. Khaalid shares the various responsibilities of being an assistant principal at South Pointe High School in Rock Hill, SC. She talks about her greatest accomplishments in her role as assistant principal for curriculum and…

The amount of research on successful Title One Schools is woefully inadequate. Because so much money has been allocated for this program, more in depth research is imperative. A qualitative exploratory case study of one school and eight participants, including a principal, an assistant principal, a math coach and four teachers, focuses on the…

Our nation's schools are faced with numerous critical challenges and problems; meeting federal and state mandates, state standards, elevating academic achievement, increasing parental involvement, and violence in the schools (Gould, 2011; Kowalski & Cangemi, 2011; Simpson, LaCava, & Graner, 2004). Violence in many U.S. schools continues to…

In today's educational realm principals face high demands to increase student achievement and the mandates of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) has intensified this challenging job with its requirements to adequate yearly progress (AYP). Such mandates have caused many elementary school principals to consider distributed leadership as a catalyst…

According to Sergiovanni and Starratt (2007), the evaluation process plays a powerful role in developing and nurturing a teacher's instructional capacity, which, in turn, contributes to students' academic successes. School districts in South Carolina utilize the Assisting, Developing and Evaluating Professional Teaching (ADEPT) system. A component…

Transformational change in today's schools will require leaders with strong intrapersonal and interpersonal skills. A recent assessment program in South Carolina focused attention on the identification of the emotional intelligence of aspiring and newly appointed principals. A battery of personality and leadership assessments was used to develop…

Improving leadership development opportunities among those likely to ascend to the principalship is a particularly effective policy response to reform advocates. But the school district level requires a deeper understanding of the individual personality preferences and leadership styles of those preparing to apply for the next round of…

This paper examines the historical supply and demand trends of secondary public school administrators serving students in urban, rural, and mixed school attendance areas in South Carolina from 1978 to 1987. This report projects supply and demand trends for secondary school administrators for the next 15 years from 1988 to 2002. The study is…

This paper examines the historical supply and demand trends of elementary public school administrators serving students in urban, rural, and mixed school attendance areas in South Carolina from 1977 to 1987. This report projects supply and demand trends for elementary school administrators for the next 15 years from 1988 to 2002. The study is…