Rural school leaders encounter an array of complex issues that require legal counsel. Student discipline, contract disputes, employee conduct, special education, and a host of other topics require school boards and superintendents to utilize school attorneys. This descriptive phenomenological study explored the daily experiences of ten school…

In this paper we discuss the connection between the lack of special education specific preparation for leaders and decades of evidence of racial inequities in special education. In doing so, we have a four-fold purpose. First, we outline the basic Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) legal requirements that educational leadership…

Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) invited 10 districts to participate in a community of practice designed to increase understanding of how to braid and blend federal funds. District teams composed of principals, superintendents, business managers, and other district leaders participated in four 90-minute virtual sessions. The purpose of…

By encouraging a single-minded focus on instructional leadership, the training, socializing, and mentoring of school leaders has unwittingly fostered a culture of caged leadership. Leaders are expected to succeed via culture, capacity building, coaching, and consensus--no matter the obstacles in their path. Those are all good things, the author…

School administrators are responsible for ensuring state and federal special education laws and regulations are being implemented properly. This study examined the amount of training a Virginia school principal receives while attending principal preparation programs as well as professional development offered by their school division on how to…

Meeting the health and wellness needs of students in school is a necessary and effective approach to reducing educational barriers for children and ensuring America's economic dominance in the 21st century. Since 1988, Medicaid has permitted payment to schools for certain medically necessary services provided to children under the Individuals with…

This report describes a problem based learning project focusing on Section 504 Compliance in the State of Missouri. Additionally it provides information about Superintendent's perceptions and levels of knowledge about Section 504 compliance in their districts. The project team sought to learn and understand the historical timeline of legislation…

This report describes a problem based learning project focusing on Section 504 Compliance in the State of Missouri. Additionally it provides information about Superintendent's perceptions and levels of knowledge about Section 504 compliance in their districts. The project team sought to learn and understand the historical timeline of legislation…

This report describes a problem based learning project focusing on Section 504 Compliance in the State of Missouri. Additionally it provides information about Superintendent's perceptions and levels of knowledge about Section 504 compliance in their districts. The project team sought to learn and understand the historical timeline of legislation…

The superintendents have become more of educational leaders in order to meet the federal mandates of NCLB and IDEA which have the goal of students with disabilities being proficient in reading and math by 2014, while providing FAPE to meet their individual program and service requirements. The increased accountability pressure of NCLB for federal…

Federal special education and accountability policies requires that educators individualize instruction for students with disabilities, while simultaneously ensuring that the vast majority of these students meet age-based grade-level standards and assessment targets. In this paper, we examine this dynamic interplay between policies through…

As the first federal stimulus money began flowing to states last week, local school administrators across the nation were crunching numbers to determine just how much relief to expect. Even with the unprecedented federal investment in education under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act--a total of up to $100 billion for K-12 over two…

The "Code of Virginia" requires school divisions statewide to submit data to the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) on incidents of discipline, crime, and violence (DCV). School divisions began reporting such data in 1991. This annual report focuses primarily on DCV data submitted for school year 2008-2009, with selected comparisons…

The "Code of Virginia" requires school divisions statewide to submit data to the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) on incidents of discipline, crime, and violence (DCV). School divisions began reporting such data in 1991. This annual report focuses primarily on DCV data submitted for school year 2009-2010, with selected comparisons…

The reauthorization of the Individual with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 strongly encourages the use of a response-to-intervention (RtI) model to reduce the number of students identified as learning disabled, to increase student achievement, and to close learning gaps between subgroups of students. RtI is based on the systematic assessment of…