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.…

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…

School structures need not be rigid, controlling, and coercive; in fact, they can be just the opposite. Enabling school structures are centralized and formalized in ways that promote problem solving, collaboration, flexibility, change, and professional judgment. The current research demonstrates the importance of "both" collegial…

The perspectives of 84 African American students attending a predominantly White institution (PWI) were qualitatively analyzed to identify the conditions under which African American student organizations were perceived as assets and liabilities to academic success. Results indicate that involvement in African American student organizations can…

The current paper reports the findings of a study that sought to identify Israeli prospective teachers' perspectives about educational leadership in relation to "masculine" and "feminine" leadership orientations. The first purpose of the study was to expose prospective elementary teachers' conceptions about the…

Leading the modern university in the twenty-first century is a nearly impossible task. According to Parker Palmer (2006), the answer for all university presidents and faculty alike lies not in looking outward at competing demands, but in facing inward. Palmer would agree that new leadership is needed for new times, but it will not come from…

The purpose of this article is to describe the emergence of the New DEEL (Democratic-Ethical Educational Leadership) and the role it is attempting to play in confronting the excesses of the current accountability movement typified by massive standardized testing and No Child Left Behind legislation in the United States. This article depicts the…

Background: The paradox of relying on routines and standard practices, which protect institutional functioning from the vagaries of personality, often comes at the cost of thoughtful adaptability. Purpose: The objectives are to conceptualize and apply the construct of mindfulness to schools and to explore trust as a school condition that fosters…

Based on input from practitioners at 42 two-year colleges in the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education region, this document outlines the research agenda of the Western Center for Community College Development (WCCCD) for the next century. Introductory sections describe the role of focused research, the WCCCD, methodology used in…

The gender validity of the Strong Interest Inventory's Personal Style Scales (Work Style, Learning Environment, Leadership Style, and Risk Taking/Adventure) was examined through a study of 458 female and 282 male college students at Iowa State University. The students completed the Personal Style Scales and the Adjective Check List (ACL), which is…

This paper focuses on the role of the school leader as motivator. In particular, attention is given to what those in school leadership roles can do to enhance the personal investment of students in learning. A conceptual model is outlined which suggests that school leaders affect not only the degree, but also the quality of student motivation by…

This volume of conference proceedings addresses critical issues related to leadership in the field of outdoor recreation. It contains keynote presentations, panel and individual presentations, and working session reports covering the following topics: (1) leadership styles; (2) K-12 teacher certification in outdoor education; (3) accreditation and…