The American Association of School Administrators (AASA) invited the 2007 state winners to gather in Denver, Colorado, for three days of intensive dialogue about the challenges facing today's superintendents. As a result of the panels and small group discussions that followed, superintendents identified and detailed in this paper five avenues for…

This article presents and analyzes the findings of two recent studies related to female school superintendents and their respective experiences with the "professional victim syndrome" and the consequences of their career decisions. Those findings are synthesized with research and literature related to leadership skills and dispositions…

The problem. To consider reorganization of two or more Iowa school districts in light of declining enrollment, dwindling financial resources, the end of the state budget guarantee program and pressure to provide the most rigorous and relevant education possible to Iowa's students. Specifically, the problem is to determine what two or more school…

This study examined superintendents' or designees' perceptions in light of NCLB (2002) and to understand parental involvement through the lens of Epstein's Framework of Parent Involvement (1992, 1995, 2002). The central problem was that despite parental involvement legislation, implementation and effectiveness of policies, and programs varies…

This case, which was inspired by actual events, describes the efforts of a district to create a culture of accountability for professional employee practice and behavior. In the midst of new district leaders and a shift in district priorities, numerous situations test the fortitude, organizational knowledge, ethical commitments, and political…

After serving 31 years as a school administrator, the last 16 as a superintendent, the author entered a career transformation by pursuing a tenure-track position in a research university. Following a calling to share acquired field experiences with the next cadre of school administrators, the writer outlines the process used to successfully…

The Broad Superintendents Academy is an executive training program that identifies and prepares prominent leaders--executives with experience successfully leading large organizations and a passion for public service--then places them in urban school districts to dramatically improve the quality of education for America's students. This brochure…

To determine the influence of district superintendents on student achievement and the characteristics of effective superintendents, Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL) conducted a meta-analysis of research on the influence of school district leaders on student performance. This study examined findings from 27 studies…

For the past decade, attention has been drawn to a perceived shortage of school leadership applicants. Establishing an accurate perception of the shortage issue, however, is complex. One challenge with the perception of the shortage is the connection made between quality and shortage. The interpretation of quality is often times determined by a…

Superintendents' performance evaluations continue to be too frequently conducted through a highly informal, subjective process, based more on impressions than data. Several states require school boards to use student performance data in evaluating their superintendents. Student achievement data, focusing on continuous improvement, should certainly…

If leadership education programs are improving, then why do some American graduates fail in leading schools and districts even as others succeed? As one way to answer this question, this study explores the preparation, careers, and success or failure of two superintendents prepared in top tier university leadership preparation doctoral programs.…

The value of the doctorate in educational administration has been debated in recent years over its appropriateness as a qualification for superintendency. Underlying these debates are two overlapping trends. One is increasing program availability and shifts in institutional type, and the second is changes in program content and dissertation…

This is a study of the practices utilized by four school districts, two with high and two with low retention rates of teachers, to examine how similarities and differences in selected human resources practices relate to the successful retention of teachers in these districts. The factors studied that may impact teacher retention included…

Doubts about effectiveness and relevancy have made the academic preparation of superintendents a reform issue in most states. Attention being given to this topic has inevitably rekindled several fundamental questions such as: To what extent is the academic preparation of superintendents consistent among and within states? What forces control…

Professional preparation in educational administration has been a university-based state requirement that oriented aspiring school administrators to the roles of principal or superintendent. Professional and state expectations for preparation, development, and credentialing are shifting as the complexity of leadership and administration has…