AASA began an inquiry in 2001 to understand how barriers to effective after-school programs could be overcome by school district leaders. The issue, well-known anecdotally, had not to date been researched. School leaders tend to agree that after-school programs are sound educationally but struggle to operate and sustain such programs.…

Over the past quarter-century, schools and school districts have become increasingly turbulent, pluralistic and unpredictable places to lead. On any given day, conflicting values, ideas, preferences, interests, needs, demands, problems and solutions descend upon the typical school leader from a shifting array of individuals and groups, each with…

The author's advice for for a school board superintendent is to assume incompetence instead of malevolence. Board members who behave inappropriately are a minority, and those with malicious intent are extremely rare. Most misbehaving board members act out of frustration. They may not understand the appropriate role of a board member.…

On a late March morning in the early 1990s, less than 2 1/2 months after he was forced to resign his tumultuous superintendency in a small Midwestern school district, Ed Evans took a shotgun into the woods and, using a spatula to push down the trigger, took his own life. His body was found by his teen-age son three days later. He had devoted…

Although women have access to the superintendency power position, evidence has shown that women have not been able to consistently break the glass ceiling. A review of related literature failed to identify specific and practical employment factors that must be resolved or overcome if women are to reach power parity in Missouri. This study was…

William "Rob" Roberts wasn't thinking about working as a professional educator, much less running a major school system, when he decided he'd had enough of formal schooling himself at age 19. Rather, he dreamed of big adventures, flying combat aircraft for the military. When he discovered the U.S. Army didn't insist on two years of…

The author shares that he came across "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen Covey in the early 1990s when he was a central-office administrator in a small school district just outside of Boston. He considers the book foundational as he thinks about leadership. (He is now superintendent in a central Massachusetts…

Today's world is challenged by complex issues and citizens need ever-increasing scientific literacy to understand the impact of issues such as global warming, alternative energy, and genetic engineering, on their daily lives and to make informed decisions. Students need to be prepared to tackle issues such as these by being exposed to learning…

School superintendents work in increasingly high stakes environments full of adversity. The purpose of this study was to examine how female superintendents apply strategies to confront adversity and become more resilient in the process. Fifteen female superintendents in New York State were interviewed. The findings about resilient leadership are…

School superintendents in 60 public school systems in Georgia were surveyed to describe strategies being pursued to prevent school violence and promote a safe learning environment. Results from the present study were compared with results from a survey of superintendents conducted by one of the authors in 1995 to determine the extent of change in…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to report on the superintendent portion of the UCEA Voices III project. Design/methodology/approach: A four-year study to determine how school leaders, from several locations and contexts, describe their perceptions of and experiences with educational leadership related to the study themes, school improvement,…

At 75, encouraged by an 18-year veteran board member who decided to seek election to the state legislature, the author decided to run for election to the five-member regional school board that represents the voters in the four-town New Hampshire seacoast. He had been superintendent of a five-town area in New Hampshire and in the Boston suburb of…

The purpose of this three-part qualitative study was to investigate the perceptions principals had with their professional training based on selected leadership responsibilities that strongly correlated to student achievement. From the Marzano et al. (2005) quantitative study, the researcher selected the five strongest correlated responsibilities…

This appendix accompanies "Gaining Ground in the Middle Grades: Why Some Schools Do Better. A Large-Scale Study of Middle Grades Practices and Student Outcomes. Initial Research Report." This appendix contains the full bibliography of all research and policy documents consulted during the development of the ten research domains and three…

The "2011 Superintendent's Briefing Book" provides comprehensive yet concise overviews of the best thinking available on a wide range of top-priority PreK-12 education concerns. This resource will prove invaluable in making research-based decisions with confidence, and in identifying programs and practices that will improve student achievement.…