The work of principals has become increasingly challenging and complex, as they are expected to lead school improvement, manage a host of competing demands, and attend to the needs of diverse stakeholders. However, the emotions related to principals' work, particularly in relation to educational reform, has been understudied in recent years. This…

Racism has always been a factor in U.S. education, whether it be anti-literacy laws aimed at enslaved Africans (Mitchell 2008), segregated schools in the south during the era of Jim Crow (Ladson-Billings, 2004), or funding disparities in the northern United States between schools serving majority white students versus those serving predominantly…

In the United States, legislators have created policies to hold school personnel accountable for the academic success of all students. However, many students with disabilities working toward a high school diploma have not demonstrated progress on local or national standardized assessments. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore…

Principals of low-performing schools in northern New Mexico lack adequate professional development to improve student outcomes. Exploration of experiences in the professional development program, Principals Pursuing Excellence, studied the lived phenomena of 12 rural northeastern turnaround school leaders through the conceptual framework of…

Teacher leadership is an important pillar in building school capacity. Using an interpretive qualitative research design, the theoretical lens of Mezirow's (1978) transformative learning theory and Spillane's (2005) distributed leadership theory were used to inform the research questions in this study. With shifts in education reform, student…

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) mandates that special education students receive free appropriate public education instruction in the least restrictive environment. Special education students often receive a disproportionate number of suspensions in schools. It is the disproportionate number of suspensions received by…

Novice teacher induction programs impacted teacher fulfillment and confidence (Coffey, 2010; Darling-Hammond, 2003), and high-quality induction improved effectiveness of instruction and improved student learning (Brownell et al., 2010; Potemski et al., 2014; Strong, 2005). Administrators are challenged in their responsibilities to develop…

Buckless, Jessica Jasmine. Portraiture of Two Tribal College Leaders. Published Doctor of Education dissertation, University of Northern Colorado, 2022.This study explored the lives and self-perceived impacts of Tribal college presidents in a northwest state of the United States. This qualitative inquiry employed portraiture in which the…

Adult college students face unique challenges that can derail their dreams of completing a degree or certificate program. The problem addressed in this study was that, although postsecondary institutions in Tennessee have been tasked with equipping at least 55% of adult residents with a college degree or certificate by the year 2025, some college…

Directors of disability services at universities play a key role in assuring the success of students with disabilities. Yet, there are few published empirical studies detailing the leadership style and approach of these directors. My research addresses the importance of understanding the work of the directors of disability services at universities…

The recent uptick in students exhibiting mental health needs within American public schools has emerged as a concerning trend amongst educators. A plethora of research has occurred on the proliferation of student mental health needs in schools, along with its consequential influence on both teaching and learning. Absent from the current literature…

The number of teachers working in urban educational settings who have experienced student violence has increased yearly. Despite reporting these violent incidents, many teachers leave the profession between their first 5 years of teaching, identifying the limited support from school administrators as a major reason for their departure. The purpose…

Croft presents her study results that explored how district leaders can be equipped to support their school librarians in the absence of an official district school librarian supervisor. Croft offers suggestions for practice to assist school librarians in partnering with district leaders to provide the knowledge and experience district leaders…

Responsible leadership (RL) has gained increasing attention in recent years as organisations face growing pressure to address social and environmental challenges. RL involves leading with a sense of purpose and responsibility towards stakeholders, society, and the environment beyond the interests of shareholders and profit maximisation. This…

Purpose: This study examined the diverse expressions of self-fulfillment among principals working in Israel's special education system for complex disabilities. It addressed two primary questions: (1) What are the perceived manifestations of self-fulfillment among principals in the context of complex disabilities? (2) What examples of…