Uses the examples of remedial education, K-16 initiatives, and workforce preparation to illustrate how these values influence higher education policy at community colleges. Policymakers should recognize that these values may conflict, therefore leading to controversy. States that cultural/social values dominating the development of educational…

The president of the University of Miami (Florida) at the time of Hurricane Andrew discusses the challenges of coping with widespread campus destruction and the resulting organizational crisis, and offers guidelines for responding rapidly and effectively to the needs and concerns of various constituents. (MSE)

The technological infrastructure at New Hampshire's Brewster Academy has affected policy building, teaching methods, staff development, and administrator role. The five-year phased implementation of a school design model based on universal connectivity and curricular embedding is discussed, with emphasis on network architecture, financial…

Survey of 217 Maine principals revealed that respondents perceived their staff as moderately to highly involved in decision making, viewed the community as informed but not actively involved in decision making, and desired greater involvement from staff and parents. Principal gender and school level did not affect desired levels of involvement.…

This interview with a school principal, Efrain Vila, argues that staff development is crucial in school reform. Teachers cannot be asked to use new processes if they do not have opportunities to learn how to use them. His school's faculty meetings always include staff development components. Parent involvement is also essential. (SM)

Describes frictions inherent in the decision-making process at a California community college, where shared governance is both clearly defined and mandated. Discusses responsibility versus consultation and offers two successful examples (regarding the writing center and the basic writing program) in which faculty were involved in the decision and…

Describes one principal's success at helping teachers guide reform in a Wisconsin elementary school by creating, with the help of his teachers, a school that abolished age-based grade levels and traditional grades for some students. The paper describes what it takes to create a successful program that encourages teacher collaboration. A sidebar…

Describes a study that identified parenting practices related to the psychosocial development of children and evaluated the effectiveness of the Catholic elementary school to prepare parents to apply such practices. Concludes that schools must increase efforts to provide a comprehensive program of formative parenting that assists parents in…

A principal who exchanged jobs with a university professor explores changing principal roles, using a case-study approach. Principals' working world is characterized by overwhelming responsibilities, information perplexity, and emotional anxiety. Principals would appreciate intrinsic and extrinsic rewards, support networks, university-school…

Management by spontaneity shuns job descriptions, supervisory duties, needs assessment, strategic planning, group process, and problem solving. Not for the fainthearted, MBS requires knowledge of psychology, lawyerly skills, and philosophic wisdom. MBS remains untested, as current job descriptions have confined authors to MBO and TQM. (MLH)

Discusses the role of administrators and media specialists in the successful use of technology in schools and explains the TSSA (Technology Standards for School Administrators) project. Topics include hardware needs; applications, including software and Internet connectivity; teachers' technology use; and professional development for staff,…

Foster children are an educationally vulnerable population that is over represented in special education. This article describes a collaborative effort among a child welfare agency, a local education agency, and a nonprofit law office to improve the educational outcomes of children in foster care. Program procedures and the role of the education…

The National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities (NJCLD) is a national committee representing 11 organizations concerned about individuals with learning disabilities. The NJCLD considers and discusses contemporary issues in learning disabilities and develops and disseminates reports and statements related to these issues to influence policy…

This article examines the roles of deputy principals (assistant principals, deputy heads) in secondary schools and thus contributes to an under-researched area often overlooked in discussions about school leadership. Typically, these discussions have focussed on the principalship alone. Data were collected from deputy principals in one large…

Drawing upon empirical data, this article explores the ways in which school culture and leadership impact on new teachers' learning in the workplace. The study was carried out over a two-year period and involved a cohort of 14 new teachers and 18 elementary and secondary schools. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with the new…