The intent of this study is to determine whether there was a difference between school board members' perceptions of their own behaviors and beliefs related to student achievement in California's high-performing poverty districts as opposed to such perceptions in low-performing poverty districts. Due to the findings of this study, the…

An intentional, active and self-regulated approach to professional growth results in improved instruction and higher levels of student achievement over time. School systems that aspire to a continuous learning ethic socialize educators to act on the assumption that all students and all educators are capable of learning and reaching high standards.…

For decades, school district offices, superintendents and school boards have been cast as "villains" in the drama of school reform and raising student achievement. This article presents research encompassing a different view of district leadership as the possible "hero" in these efforts. Recent studies by Harvard University (2007), Springboard…

With the enactment of No Child Left Behind, districts across the country have been consumed with ensuring that students are proficient in math and reading. However, by the very nature of the law, the definition of "proficient" varies from state to state as well as within states. Since countless resources are being poured into this endeavor and…

This article provides a model for developing and sustaining relationships that can lead to ongoing school academic success. Leaders can successfully engender positive relationships and develop healthy organizational cultures that advance powerful teaching and learning by focusing on the six relationship connectors described in this article. As…

In recent years American schools and the scholars who study these schools have become focused on bridging the achievement gap. The scholarly literature is most often focused on the discrepancy in achievement in one school, a region, or perhaps one nation. The literature examining the best practices of schools that have bridged this gap…

Historically, educational administration programs have prepared graduates in a "universal, one-size-fits-all" approach. As the K-12 student population becomes increasingly diverse, this approach is no longer viable since it seldom takes into account the urgency implied by the achievement gap. This article reports on a "transformative colloquium"…

Studies suggest that three and four-year old children who are exposed to preschool have a greater chance of academic success throughout their schooling. This article highlights a five-year case study of children of poverty who attended a structured preschool in Salinas, California. The longitudinal study exposed various components of a successful…

Increasingly, the viability of university programs to develop in school leaders the knowledge, skills and dispositions needed to bring about reform are being questioned. This article uses case study methodology for looking at how an increasing emphasis on collaborative inquiry in one university's program influenced a school principal several years…

The goal of this comparative study was to explore the online interactions among members of two learning communities. The two cases examined two different cohorts in the same professional preparation program for school principals and administrators: a distance-learning cohort and an onsite university-district partnership cohort in which online…

To engage in the goal of equity requires a certain amount of rage in one's belly. Understanding the context in which we are presently situated regarding our successes and challenges to achieve equity and social justice can serve to inform our future actions as educational leaders.

Both socioeconomic and school factors contribute to the underachievement of poor children and children of color. This article explores factors that contribute to the underachievement of students of color and offers practices that culturally proficient school leaders can use to build a school culture that may positively impact the academic…

This article addresses the failure of sustainability of reform efforts in public school systems by reconceptualizing the perplexing notion of sustainability through a case study to discern the skill sets needed of principals to sustain reforms in urban settings. This study draws on perceptual data gathered from principals in 36 schools in one…

Cohorts are increasingly popular management tools for recruiting students into professional education programs, for organizing their learning experiences, for promoting performance-based outcomes, and for developing and using innovative teaching-learning practices. This article explores the role of a cohort leader in ensuring that the curriculum…

Professors of Educational Administration spend an inordinate amount of time tracking student attendance and calculating absences into final grades. A study of student attendance in one educational administration program at a medium-sized public institution of higher education in California concluded that: (1) negative and positive grade-related…