The emergence of a number 2 post (chief academic officer) focused on instructional leadership brings a new dynamic to the central office-particularly those headed by nontraditional superintendents. Used in universities, the CAO title lends cache. Women can get stuck in CAO positions; a few districts are eliminating them. (MLH)

Summarizes a study probing the relationship among leadership, effective planning, and resource management in four British secondary schools, highlighting environmental and school culture influences. Headteachers work along a continuum balanced between systems organization and an integrative culture. Schools with rational planning approaches are…

Describes the authors' experience co-chairing a writing department. Identifies seven key areas where the sharing of writing program administrator duties has resulted in personal, departmental, or institutional benefits. Discusses workload and professional identity, the politics of writing programs, co-directing as post-bureaucratic practice, and…

Examines the role spirituality plays in the leadership of Catholic education administrators. Asserts that the first great service of administrators is to lead, and that the second is the direction of that leadership toward mission. Leadership thus requires a particular spirituality: a reflective way to guide decisions and to evaluate their…

Compared 124 California principals' perceptions with 99 superintendents' perceptions on 22 reasons for principal terminations and on 9 organizational outcomes related to ineffective leadership. Superintendents attribute principals' failure to internal personal insufficiencies; principals most often named external factors--political interference…

A growing body of research has emphasized the social processes by which teachers adapt and transform policy as they enact it in their classrooms. Yet little attention has been paid to the role of school leaders in this process. Drawing on sociological theories of sensemaking, this article investigates how principals in two California elementary…

Purpose: This paper seeks to describe the Swedish compulsory school system and explore a hypothesis about the relationship between structure, culture and leadership as preconditions for successful principalship. Design/methodology/approach: On the basis of earlier research, argues that a principal's success depends on how he or she alters school…

Various research studies have asserted the significance of school leadership on student learning. Although the research-based knowledge about principalship continues to grow, there is a paucity of practical information about how to perform the essential tasks. How do principals develop and then act upon a deep understanding of supporting teachers?…

Given the unrelenting pressures of school management, how can principals and superintendents devote the time or resources to do much of anything that deviates from addressing the basic needs of schools? What are the levers that school leaders can use to infuse creativity and innovation into the cultural fabric of their organizations? In this…

Purpose: The main objective of this paper is to discuss the relationship between obstacles and weaknesses facing the development of MTPs and SMEs. In recent years many management training programmes (MTPs) of an off-the-job nature have been established in Palestine, after the peace agreement, in order to find a solution for apparent lack of…

This year, Congress is scheduled to review the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). In 2002, this law signaled an important change in federal education policy by focusing on accountability for results rather than simple compliance and by seeking to set the performance bar high for all children, regardless of where they live. The time is now to learn…

There is a large literature on the productivity of universities. Little is known, however, about how different types of leader affect a university's later performance. By constructing a new longitudinal data set, I provide evidence that the research quality of a university improves after it appoints a president (vice chancellor) who is an…

This paper provides an overview of U.S. Department of Education programs authorized and funded under federal law. It includes information as well on the laboratories, centers, and other facilities funded by the Department that provide important resources for education. Readers will find funding information, contact information, and a web site for…

This book is designed to help administrators broaden their skills to create new and exciting learning organizations. Chapter 1 describes six visionary leaders who shared three attributes--the ability to communicate clearly, the capacity of caring for others, and a commitment to persistence. Chapter 2 presents an overview of futurism as a field of…

Schools are professional work groups requiring the application of professional knowledge to constantly shifting educational challenges as adults work to help students learn. This paper describes a theory of professional visualization through which principals can make their professional practice consistent with their knowledge, values, and…