Middle-management leaders are in a crucible. In addition to managing their extensive regular duties and leading groups toward common goals, they must navigate conflicting expectations and competing demands from their superiors and subordinates. The challenges in middle-management leadership are exacerbated in fast-paced, high stakes, large-scale…

Schools are typically highly structured institutions, so any shifts in processes can potentially generate anxiety, confusion, and even anger among staff. As such, when there is frequent change, initiatives often fail to achieve their intended goals. Well-intentioned initiatives can go awry when not consistently implemented correctly by all staff;…

The purpose of this study is to examine whether university leaders employed effective and appropriate crisis communication strategies via internal communication channels and systems with university faculty, staff, and students in Southern California during the 2020-2021 COVID-19 crisis. This study reviews (from the perspectives of university…

Purpose: This paper aims to provide insight for higher education leaders about how to navigate the immediate needs and long-term needs of an institution. COVID-19 disrupted higher education in unprecedented ways, but the post-pandemic world is proving to be just as challenging--if not more so. Presidents and higher education leaders must be…

Youths and parents in the California 4-H program have reported issues with communication and challenges in understanding the program. As a result, we developed a family handbook and other supporting documents to help youths and parents navigate the California 4-H program. This article addresses the development, dissemination, and reach of the…

More than 5 years after the passage of the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), California school districts continue to develop and refine strategies to act on the opportunities and expectations associated with the state's school finance system. A new project called the LCFF Test Kitchen has enabled three school districts to make progress by…

Purpose: Many recent articles discuss the increased marketization of higher education, but few examine whether such practices are executed at their optimum level of efficiency and efficacy. This study addressed the significant lack of research in this area and answers the central question of how optimally public relations and marketing departments…

Higher education systems and institutions are often viewed as resistant to change or slow to adapt, particularly by advocates and communities urging equity-minded reform of colleges and universities. Yet the COVID-19 pandemic jolted California's colleges and universities into drastically changing course to meet students' basic, mental, and…

A new law, Assembly Bill 705 (Irwin), is driving dramatic changes to how the California Community Colleges place students into English and math courses. In fall 2019, AB 705 began requiring the colleges to use students' high school grades as the primary means of placement; restricting colleges from denying students access to transferable…

Purpose: It was the purpose of this study to identify and describe the perceived barriers that hindered California community college students from successful transfer to a four-year college or university and what services they perceived were needed to support the successful transfer to a four-year college or university. Methodology: This…

In this paper, we argue that teachers have an opportunity to take on leadership roles in technology-rich schools and districts. Based on data collected during a year-long project to investigate award-winning schools and districts, we used observations, interviews and focus groups, and document analysis to glean lessons learned from leaders and…

The logo controversy was sparked by an article on the "San Jose Mercury News"' website that was promptly picked up by other news outlets and shared across social networks. Under the headline "University of California introduces a modern logo" sat a blurry, low-quality image of the new monogram next to the 145-year-old UC seal.…

Children with special health care needs (CSHCN) are at risk for school failure when their health needs are not met. Current studies have identified a strong connection between school success and health. This study attempted to determine (a) how schools meet the direct service health needs of children and (b) who provides those services. The study…

The website--it is where people go to find out anything and everything about a school, college, or university. In the relatively short life of the Internet, institutional websites have moved from the periphery to center stage and become strategically integral communications and marketing tools. As the flow of information accelerates and new…

The Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) represents a fundamental transformation of the way California allocates state funds to school districts and the ways the state expects districts to make decisions about (and report on) the use of these funds. This is the first in a series of short briefs that aims to capture some key themes emerging from…