Higher education today is confronted with increasing marketization and aggressive regulation of the public sector. In an attempt to address these challenging issues, public universities are undergoing unprecedented change, particularly Colleges of Education. Redesigning educational leadership preparation programs, working in partnership with local…

This study examined the demographic shifts in a medium-sized school district in West Michigan and the responses developed as a result of these changes during the last two decades. Findings indicated that the district's school demographics changed from being European American to minority dominant. As a result of these changes in student…

This study examined the skills, knowledge, and attitudes necessary for aspiring school leaders from the perspective of university faculty in educational administration programs and acting school administrators and teacher leaders. Additionally, I sought to understand the congruence and/or dissonance between university faculty in educational…

This article focuses on the necessity of providing foundational preparatory training for those who are charged with leading teacher hiring efforts at the K-12 level. The essential question proposed within the article is: Why are the very educators tasked with directly leading K-12 staff selection and retention efforts far more likely to be…

In this article the authors contend that the element that is typically missing or underdeveloped in the education and development of most leaders is the intentional integration of the research and practices for assessing and developing the deeply held core beliefs, attitudes, and values (what we will call leadership dispositions) that play a…

The purpose of this module is to illustrate examples of how courses in educational leadership programs can effectively and efficiently meld lessons on leadership with lessons on data collection and analysis. The rationale behind emphasizing this combination is very straightforward: America's schools need leaders who are adept with data-based…

Principals have tremendous influence on the schools they lead (Bamburg & Andrews, 1990; Marzano et al., 2005). Certain leadership behaviors impact school level factors (Cotton, 2003; Hallinger & Heck, 2010; Leithwood, Begley, & Cousins, 1990; Marzano et al., 2005; Orr, 2003). To affect high levels of student achievement, school…

This module draws parallels between conditions in North Korea and the work of school leaders, as defined in the 2008 ISLLC Standards. It is intended to demonstrate to educational leadership preparation programs how seemingly unrelated contexts may be utilized to capture students' attention, hopefully with the result of enhancing their…

In July 2008, Riverbend Public Schools (RPS) in Western Michigan and Grand Valley State University (GVSU) received a grant from the Wallace Foundation that supported the development of a specialized educational leadership program. The project was designed to customize an existing degree program in the university's College of Education,…

This exploratory study investigated the prevalence of single evaluation methods courses in doctoral education leadership programs. Analysis of websites of 132 leading U.S. university programs found 62 evaluation methods courses in 54 programs. Content analysis of 49 course catalog descriptions resulted in five categories: survey, planning and…

This is the second part of a study conducted by Barton and Cox (2012) investigating administrative credential candidates' pre and post self-assessment results. Candidates who successfully complete principal preparation programs should possess the requisite knowledge and skills to assume leadership positions in P-12 schools. This study was…

The purpose of this study was to determine if principal tenure, principal stability, and principal educational experience in public education along with school-level variables predicted elementary school student achievement. A second purpose was to examine whether there was a significant difference between (a) levels of principal tenure and levels…

This descriptive research study examines the perceptions of former graduate students from Governors State University's Educational Administration Program regarding the quality and quantity of their mentoring experience and their suggestions for mentoring implementation. The research questions are: (1) What is the percentage of teachers who receive…

Principal preparation programs are designed to ensure that candidates who successfully complete the programs are qualified and knowledgeable, and have had leadership experiences that prepare them to compete for leadership positions in today's schools (Hale S.z Moorma, 2003). Providing meaningful leader-ship experiences in non-internship programs…

Both the 1996 Interstate School Leadership Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) standards and the 2002 Educational Leadership Constituent Council (ELCC) standards, adopted by preparation programs nationwide have a strong emphasis on democratic ideals. By aligning their programs with these standards education administration faculty have taken a step in the…