This dissertation advocates for improved succession planning in educational leadership, particularly in the public sector, where it often receives insufficient attention. It proposes a robust leadership pipeline program within school districts to enhance the capacity of aspiring assistant principals by providing hands-on experiences, mentorship…

This in-depth study looks at how leadership helped and what problems there were when non-profit private schools in Eastern South Florida tried to use the Leader In Me (LIM) program. It looks into how school leaders help teachers and staff adopt LIM, deal with resistance, and make sure the program works. Five principals or assistant principals said…

The purpose of this dissertation-in-practice was to explore the dimensions of support for assistant principals in one southeast Texas mid-sized suburban public school district in conjunction with improving the overall efficacy of campus leaders while also bolstering the organizational leadership pipeline. Sixteen current or former assistant…

This paper describes a participatory action research project that was delivered on Saturday mornings to vice-principals (VPs) in two Anglophone school districts in the province of New Brunswick, Canada, in 2022 and 2023. The project was set up as an invitational five-part seminar series that was grounded in educational theory and leadership…

Despite ongoing efforts to recruit and support successful school leaders, relatively little is understood about the professional experiences and skillsets that principals possess upon entry into their positions. We trace the professional experiences and instructional effectiveness of all educators in Oregon over 14 years. We highlight that many…

The major objective of this study is to assess the most common school leadership practices in the Dire Dawa Administrative region and their relationship with student achievement. To this end, it used a cross-sectional and correlational study design. Sample schools were selected using purposive sampling techniques and principals and vice-principals…

Assistant principals exist in most school contexts and, although instructional leadership has been a frequent topic of educational research, most studies have focused specifically on the role of principals. The present improvement initiative analyzed the instructional leadership capacity of assistant principals and the impact of targeted…

Given the substantial challenges of the principalship and the high turnover of school principals, school districts have sought out assistant principals as a major source of leadership talent to take up the role of principal. In this qualitative dissertation, I explored how principals and assistant principals from a southeast urban school district…

Although the position of the assistant principal is crucial in providing experiences necessary to become an effective school leader, the research on the leadership development of the assistant principal has been largely understudied. This study examines the skills, characteristics, and leadership development of assistant principals within an…

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…

In this day and age, when educational administrators are required to make effective progress and academic achievement for all students, educational administrator preparational programs must equip all prospective leaders with the skill sets, knowledge, and experience to lead diverse student populations to high levels of learning and academic…

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenographical article was to explore the different ways that elementary assistant principals experienced mentoring from their elementary principals as a way to provide the requisite leadership development that would lead them to become a principal. This research study was conducted using in-depth…

This article reports on the process and findings on a systematic review of published articles related to deputy principals on the area of educational leadership and management (EDLM). In achieving this purpose, quantitative and bibliometric content analysis methods were employed which studied 61 articles published in 24 international EDLM and…

Increased accountability measures over the past two decades caused schools to seek new ways to increase student achievement. As principals play a crucial role in implementing reforms to improve instructional practices and student achievement, understanding the competencies that make principals successful is essential. Research indicated that…