This article deepens the knowledge of practices within school cultures and their dynamics in relation to improvement work. It investigates: Which practices can be identified in school improvement among principals at upper secondary school level? How are these practices shaped? How do they promote or prevent the improvement work of the principals?…

Interpretive and narrative research approaches, the experiences of academic administrators other than deans, chairs, and presidents, and academic identity work beyond graduate students and beginning professors are all areas that are underrepresented in the literature on higher educational administration. This article builds on recent narrative…

This article reports on an exploration into the human relationships practices of school leaders at faith-based schools as viewed through a servant leadership lens. The researchers employed a qualitative research design. Data were collected by means of individual semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions. The interviews were…

This study examines the role of deans, department chairs, and diversity officers within the faculty diversity and hiring discourse. Using an embedded case study approach, I conducted semi-structured interviews with 12 administrative and academic leaders across four academic departments to understand their theories of change to advance faculty…

Novice principals' experiences and responses to challenges are important for understanding their sensemaking of their role, especially in view of the contextual complexity of leadership in small schools. Using interview data from 19 novice principals in small schools, we explore principals' sensemaking of their key challenges and responses.…

This article investigates the influence of head of department instructional leadership, collegial cooperation, and school administration support on the perspectives of 649 teachers in Kuwait toward school-based professional learning. The study used a quantitative questionnaire, and teachers expressed positive school-based learning experiences. The…

The identification and understanding of essential roles and functions in a profession, through the application of job analysis methods, can serve as a guide to develop and hone professional competency. The last such analysis of accessibility services administrators in postsecondary education was published in 1997. A variety of changes in the field…

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education leaders in America were navigating a notable shift in the trajectory of the field (Soliday & Lombardi, 2018). The COVID-19 pandemic added urgency to the challenges facing institutions of higher education. For this study, the researcher sought to add to the body of knowledge to better understand…

In an era of high demands and accountability, high school principals' duties have increased over the years. Grissom et al. (2021a) found that the principal effect on student achievement is nearly as significant as the average effects of teachers. The authors indicated principals' influence tends to be larger in scope as they can directly impact…

The role of the K-12 principal is one that is vast and diverse in its range of responsibilities. This qualitative study examined the current challenges specifically facing small rural school district principals and the access available to support for professional growth in that role. McREL's Balanced Leadership Framework was used as the…

As the world of education has changed, so have the roles and expectations of the evaluating administrators. Public schools have begun to insist that principals take much of the responsibility for teachers' instructional development and support. Some principals use a managerial approach, and others use a coaching style of motivating their…

Learning another language is considered a key 21st century subject, something that all students should begin in elementary school. However, most school districts in Illinois do not offer students the opportunity to learn another language in elementary school. There are effective and high quality programs available to learn another language that…

The purpose of this quantitative research study was to examine how teachers perceive their school administrators, school culture, and personal well-being while at the workplace. The participants were certified middle school teachers, regardless of years of teaching experience or teaching specialization (i.e., special education, reading specialist,…

This qualitative narrative inquiry study aimed to understand the social supports that current urban, alternative, high school principals perceive to have contributed to remaining in the role and providing the support to lead effectively. This study utilized House's (1981) model of social support to understand how the various types (instrumental,…

The expert knowledge of seven executive-level leaders in higher education in their response to COVID-19, an extreme environmental perpetration, was documented in this qualitative case study. The research problem explored the effectiveness of response by the presidents of institutions located in the Southeast Region of the United States, going…