Phase 1 of this research project included summarizing available information concerning lower socioeconomic status (SES) rural youth. Phase 2 involved defining a research population, selecting a sample from that population, collecting and analyzing data, and comparing data to the summarized material available on lower SES youth. The population for…

The quality of interpersonal relationships materially affects the outcome of encounters between teachers and administrators. The supervisor will, therefore, achieve the greatest overall success if he is supportive in his leadership style. His performance depends, too, on technical competence and managerial ability. There is a need for more…

Ten elementary and secondary school principals worked with the project director and consultants to select and develop instruments, procedures, and experiences that would help principals become more effective in their leadership roles. On the basis of the experiences gained from the five general workshops and the field trials, the project…

This study further develops the Diagnostic Survey for Leadership Improvement (DSLI) and determines its reliability and validity. Split-half estimates of the DSLI's reliability were computed. These estimates came in terms of the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients that were then corrected by the Spearman-Brown Prophesy Formula. The…

Leadership is key in the success of any reform, especially one as ambitious and complex as that in Philadelphia. "The case of Philadelphia is noteworthy as an exemplar of the implementation of paradigm-breaking new reforms in the governance and delivery of urban education." This report follows the first five years of the state takeover…

The Public Relations Division of the proceedings contains the following 15 papers: "Virtual Issues in Traditional Texts: How Introductory Public Relations Textbooks Address Internet Technology Issues" (Lois A. Boynton and Cassandra Imfeld Gajkowski); "Crisis Public Relations: A Study of Leadership, Culture, Demand and Delivery"…

Rural students face many challenges in gaining a sound education, but one of the advantages they have is that their schools are set in a community context that values a sense of place and offers a unique set of conditions for building social capital. A school-community partnership model of school renewal might be an appropriate means by which…

A quantitative and qualitative study examined three leadership strategies found in performance-based management (human resource, scientific management and political strategies used in public sector management); a framework by which performance measurement (PM) supports leadership strategies; and how the strategies impact PM. It examined leadership…

This study explored the role of leadership, especially that of the college president, in the application of continuous quality improvement (CQI) principles in higher education. The life history method study focused on William Troutt, president of Belmont University (Tennessee), who has been successfully guiding CQI initiatives at the institution…

Report of a study of the leadership competencies of rural principals in Missouri who were prepared through the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium Standards. Findings indicate that a standards-based program and collaboration between the training institution and public schools results in well-prepared leaders. (Contains 1 table and 17…

Discusses challenges to traditional views of school leadership posed by many school reform initiatives, curriculum innovations, and teacher incentive plans. Examines teacher leadership structures in light of the purposes and goals they seek to advance. Uses nonhierarhical theories of leadership from the general leadership literature to examine…

Identifies a set of change leadership functions including sustaining a vision for change, encouraging staff, modifying standard operating procedures, and monitoring progress. Suggests that these functions do contribute to change, but are also performed redundantly by persons in a variety of overlapping roles, including central office personnel,…

Analyzes cultural dimensions of Calvin College's Bridenthal Internship in Teaching program for improving the quality of public school teachers; explores how problems encountered by interns as classroom teachers relate to cultural dimensions of the program's industrial leadership orientation and style of leadership modeled by mentor John Wright.…

Most of us started our superintendency committed to keeping our eye on the higher purposes of education, vowing not to get bogged down in the managerial details. John Wiens shares his quest for an intellectual understanding of the role, a meaningful theory of leadership, and the creation of an environment that helped others pursue similar quests.…

In U.S. public schools, a limited number of women have attained the position of superintendent. Consequently, there has been limited research focusing on understanding the position from a woman's perspective. The purpose of this study was to add to the body of literature focusing on women's ideas and beliefs about leading schools. A survey that…