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Principals' Lived Experiences In Childhood Poverty Impacting Resiliency Of Students In Poverty, Jonathan Rasmussen Jan 2015

Principals' Lived Experiences In Childhood Poverty Impacting Resiliency Of Students In Poverty, Jonathan Rasmussen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The number of children living in poverty within the United States is on the rise, which translates to more public school students experiencing those risk factors associated with poverty. Given the severity of the negative effect living in poverty has on the likelihood of academic success, paired with the current climate of accountability in U.S. public schools, it is imperative that educational leaders understand how to create a school culture that fosters resilience in students from poverty. The purpose of this study was to examine principals' lived experiences in childhood poverty impacts the decisions they make. More precisely, it examines …


Principals' Perceptions On Educating Elementary Students Who Are Gifted, Ingrid Cumming Jan 2015

Principals' Perceptions On Educating Elementary Students Who Are Gifted, Ingrid Cumming

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Students who are gifted need student centered academic challenges and authentic problems to spark reflection and enhance student outcomes. When academic needs are not met,students who are gifted may not reach their full academic potential and may lose motivation for learning. A primary reason for students who are gifted to underachieve in academics is equated to school factors including lack of instructional resources, social/emotional support, and teachers who are unprepared to teach students who are gifted. The purpose of this phenomenological research study is to explore the perceptions and lived experiences of participating elementary school principals in an urban school …


Urban School Principal Rated As Highly Effective: Support And Culture For Co-Teaching, Michelle San Jan 2015

Urban School Principal Rated As Highly Effective: Support And Culture For Co-Teaching, Michelle San

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The recent revisions to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (2004) and the passing of the No Child Left Behind Act (2001) promoted a movement toward meaningful inclusion, which has led to an increase in interest in co-teaching (Friend, Cook, Hurley-Chamberlain, & Shamberger, 2010; Nichols, Dowdy, & Nichols, 2010). When co-teaching is effectively executed both students with and without disabilities benefit academically and socially (Friend & Cook, 2007). Researchers indicate that a key factor in effective co-teaching is administrative support (Friend et al.; Dieker & Murawski, 2003; Murawski & Dieker, 2008; Murawski & Dieker, 2004; Scruggs et al., 2007). …


An Exploratory Study Of The Strengths Of Islamic School Principals In California, Texas, New York, Florida, And Illinois, Syed Kamran Qadri Jan 2014

An Exploratory Study Of The Strengths Of Islamic School Principals In California, Texas, New York, Florida, And Illinois, Syed Kamran Qadri

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As the focal point of the school, the principal’s leadership is integral to its effective functioning. This study used a self-assessment to analyze the self-identified strengths of principals in Islamic schools within the five most populated states in the United States (which also have the largest number of mosques) and the commonalities in those strengths based on (a) the enrollment of the school; (b) year school was established; (c) the gender of the principal; (d) the principal’s professional preparation, e.g., degree in education vs. other fields and years of experience; and (e) geographic location. While only a small amount of …


Deadly Premonition: Does Terrorist-Leader Psychology Influence Violence Lethality?, Clayton Besaw Jan 2014

Deadly Premonition: Does Terrorist-Leader Psychology Influence Violence Lethality?, Clayton Besaw

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis seeks to address a theoretical and empirical gap within terrorism studies, and more specially the study of terrorist-group lethality. This research updates a model of terrorist-group lethality by including terrorist-leader psychology as an individual-level variable in predicting terrorist-group lethality. Terrorist-leader statements were analyzed by using two novel coding schemes called Operational Code and Leadership Trait Analysis to create quantified measurements of leader cognitive beliefs and personality traits. The empirical portion of this study utilizes pooled cross-sectional time-series data within the framework of fixed effects and multi-level estimation models. The results find that terrorist-leader psychology, and more specifically Instrumental …


A Holistic Framework For Transitional Management, Ahmed Elattar Jan 2014

A Holistic Framework For Transitional Management, Ahmed Elattar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For all business organizations, there comes a time when a change must take place within their eco-system. It consumes a great deal of thought and planning to ensure that the right decision is made as it could alter the entire course of their business for a number of years to come. This change may appear in the form of a brilliant CEO reaching the age of retirement, or an unsuccessful Managing Director being asked to leave before fulfilling the term of her contract. Regardless of the cause, a transition must occur in which a suitable successor is chosen and put …


Collaborative Crisis Management In The Public Sector: Effective Leadership Under Stress, Yusuf Ustun Jan 2014

Collaborative Crisis Management In The Public Sector: Effective Leadership Under Stress, Yusuf Ustun

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The primary aim of this study is to discover how leadership competencies affect the perceived effectiveness of crisis management. Leadership skills exhibited by public managers in crisis times may help eliminate panic and help victims recover from the difficult situation as soon as possible. The existence of effective leadership in a crisis is one of the most important inputs in order to diminish the harmful effects of crises and disasters. The absence of effective leadership in times of crisis may be one of the most significant problems in the public administration because it may result in loss of human life …


A Framework Of Critical Success Factors For Business Organizations That Lead To Performance Excellence Based On A Financial And Quality Systems Assessment., Melissa Francisco Jan 2014

A Framework Of Critical Success Factors For Business Organizations That Lead To Performance Excellence Based On A Financial And Quality Systems Assessment., Melissa Francisco

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

One of the most important tasks that business leaders undertake in order to achieve a superior market position is strategic planning. Beyond this obligation, business owners desire to maximize profit and maintain steady growth. In order to do this, resources must be invested in the most efficient way possible in order to achieve performance excellence. Adjusting business operations quickly, however, especially in times of economic uncertainty, is extremely difficult. Business leaders therefore need insight into which elements of organizational improvement are most effective in order to strategically invest their resources to achieve superior performance in the most efficient way possible. …


Unintentionally Unethical: How Uncivil Leaders Violate Norms And Hurt Group Performance, Christopher Coultas Jan 2013

Unintentionally Unethical: How Uncivil Leaders Violate Norms And Hurt Group Performance, Christopher Coultas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Incivility is a common form of low-grade aggression that lacks a clear intent to harm, that violates community norms and values for interpersonal conduct, and is often chronic in nature (Andersson & Pearson, 1999; Cortina, Magley, Williams, & Langhout, 2001). Because of its subtleties, it is difficult at times to detect and even more difficult to prevent. However, it is an essential phenomenon to research, due to its ubiquity and negative impact on worker outcomes such as job satisfaction and psychological health (Cortina et al., 2001). Incivility instigated by those in authority may be an even bigger problem, due to …


Where's The Boss? The Influences Of Emergent Team Leadership Structures On Team Outcomes In Virtual And Distributed Environments, Marissa Shuffler Jan 2013

Where's The Boss? The Influences Of Emergent Team Leadership Structures On Team Outcomes In Virtual And Distributed Environments, Marissa Shuffler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The influence of leadership on team success has been noted extensively in research and practice. However, as organizations move to flatter team based structures with workers communicating virtually across space and time, our conceptualization of team leadership must change to meet these new workplace demands. Given this need, the current study aims to begin untangling the effects of distribution and virtuality on team leadership structure and subsequent team outcomes that may be affected by differences in conceptualizing such structures. Specifically, the goals of this study were threefold. First, this study investigated how the physical distribution of members may impact perceptions …


Examining The Impact Of Leader Social Distance On A Multicultural Team, Granados Deborah Diaz Jan 2011

Examining The Impact Of Leader Social Distance On A Multicultural Team, Granados Deborah Diaz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Leading multicultural teams is one of the main challenges faced by today’s leaders. The advantages often associated with multicultural teams (e.g., collaboration and integration of different knowledge, ideas, and approaches to a task) are often the major challenges in leading these teams. The literature on effective multicultural teams has identified leadership as an important factor for team effectiveness. Therefore, the goal of this study was to examine the effect of leader social distance in multicultural teams. A lab study was designed to test the impact of experimentally-manipulated leader social distance (socially close or socially distant) on the relationship between team …


Principal And Teacher Perceptions Of Change Implementation Practices In 2007 And 2008 Small Learning Communities Grant Recipient, Benjamin Bristo Jan 2010

Principal And Teacher Perceptions Of Change Implementation Practices In 2007 And 2008 Small Learning Communities Grant Recipient, Benjamin Bristo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Leading through change is a difficult process. School leaders who hope to create meaningful, long-term change must be cognizant of numerous factors. This study was undertaken with the hope of increasing educational leaders' awareness of how their decisions are viewed by those who follow them. Case studies revealed pertinent data within two schools that have undertaken a significant change initiative. All 2007 and 2008 Small Learning Communities (SLC) grant-recipient schools in Florida were invited to participate in a series of case studies. Participating principals were questioned about their perceptions of how they fulfill their change leadership role related to the …


Addressing Anger Managment In A Middle School Setting: Initiating A Leadership Drive Anger Management Group, Isaac Burt Jan 2010

Addressing Anger Managment In A Middle School Setting: Initiating A Leadership Drive Anger Management Group, Isaac Burt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effect of a leadership driven anger management group on angry middle school students. Twenty-five participants from a local middle school were nominated by school faculty to be participants in the study. Twenty individuals participated and eighteen completed the study. The eighteen participants were assessed at pre and post test on measures of anger, anger control and personal relationships. Three research questions were tested: (1) Does a short term leadership focused anger management group reduce youths' overall anger? (2) Does such a group increase angry youths' ability to control anger urges? (3) Does this group reduce youths' …


The Relationship Of 10th-Grade District Progress Monitoring Assessment Scores To Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test Scores In Reading And Mathematics For 2008-2009, Marilyn Underwood Jan 2010

The Relationship Of 10th-Grade District Progress Monitoring Assessment Scores To Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test Scores In Reading And Mathematics For 2008-2009, Marilyn Underwood

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The focus of this research was to investigate the use of a district created formative benchmark assessment in reading to predict student achievement for 10th-grade students on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) in one county in north central Florida. The purpose of the study was to provide information to high school principals and teachers to better understand how students were performing and learning and to maximize use of the formative district benchmark assessment in order to modify instruction and positively impact student achievement. This study expanded a prior limited study which correlated district benchmark assessment scores to FCAT scores …


Curriculum Control And Teachers' Perceptions Of Professional Discretion And Satisfaction, Donald May Jan 2010

Curriculum Control And Teachers' Perceptions Of Professional Discretion And Satisfaction, Donald May

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this research was to investigate teachers' perceptions of professional discretion and satisfaction related to internal and external factors of curriculum control. Results of the study were intended to provide data to policy makers and school district administrators that could be used in the development and implementation of the curriculum reform process. Middle and high school teachers in a large central Florida school district completed the survey. The survey's six constructs were 1. Influence of Teacher Beliefs 2. Perceptions of Success and Satisfaction 3. Influence of Tests and Curriculum Guides 4. Teacher Control of Pedagogy 5. Leadership 6. …


The Contributions Of Professional School Counselors' Values And Leadership Practices To Their Programmatic Service Delivery, Margaret Shillingford Jan 2009

The Contributions Of Professional School Counselors' Values And Leadership Practices To Their Programmatic Service Delivery, Margaret Shillingford

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Professional School Counselors (PSCs) have been called to be leaders for educational reform to support the academic, career, and personal/social development of all students through the coordination and facilitation of their comprehensive, developmental school counseling program (American School Counselor Association , 2005; National Model). The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the contributions of PSCs' values and leadership practices to their programmatic service delivery (counseling, coordinating, consulting, and curriculum). The three constructs and instruments investigated in this study were: (a) Schwartz Value Theory (the Schwartz Value Survey ; Schwartz, 1992), (b) the Leadership Challenge Theory (the Leadership Practices …


An Examination Of An Antecedent And Consequences Of Supervisor Morally Questionable Expediency, Rebecca Greenbaum Jan 2009

An Examination Of An Antecedent And Consequences Of Supervisor Morally Questionable Expediency, Rebecca Greenbaum

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Supervisor morally questionable expediency occurs when subordinates perceive that their supervisors engage in morally questionable behavior to expedite their work for self-serving purposes (Greenbaum & Folger, 2008). A supervisor's preoccupation with the bottom-line (Greenbaum, 2007; Greenbaum & Folger, 2008; Wolfe, 1988) is examined as an antecedent of morally questionable expediency. It was hypothesized that subordinates experience deontic reactions (Folger, 2001) in the form of a moral psychological contract violation. Consequently, subordinates were hypothesized to reduce performance, engage in antisocial behavior and supervisor-directed deviance. Survey data from 259 subordinate-supervisor dyads provided general support for this hypothesized model. However, post hoc analyses …


Leadership Behavior And Technology Activities:The Relationship Between Principals And Technology Use In Schools, Alexandra Page-Jones Jan 2008

Leadership Behavior And Technology Activities:The Relationship Between Principals And Technology Use In Schools, Alexandra Page-Jones

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of study was to investigate the use of technology in schools and the influence of the principal on technology use. The technology activities of principals along with the school technology outcomes perceived by their faculty were described and analyzed to discover if there was a relationship between and among them. This study investigated technology related leadership behavior exhibited by principals in terms of NETS-A technology standards for administrators, and how their leadership behavior affected or predicted the multiple ways that technology was used throughout a school.The population for this study was composed of principals and instructional faculty from …


Leadership Orientations Ofcommunity College Presidents And The Administrators Who Report To Them: A Frame Analysis, Michele Mcardle Jan 2008

Leadership Orientations Ofcommunity College Presidents And The Administrators Who Report To Them: A Frame Analysis, Michele Mcardle

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Presidents of Community Colleges and the administrators who reported directly to them were the subjects for this study based on the Four Frame Leadership Theory of Bolman and Deal (1990b). The Leadership Orientation (Self) Survey (LOS) was mailed to 169 community college presidents and administrators in the presidents' direct report teams. The final usable response rate of 69.82% to the survey fell within the acceptable range for education as defined by Boser and Green (1997). In addition, the subjects were asked to write about the most difficult challenge they had faced in their current position and how they handled that …


An Investigation To Determine The Perceptions Of Resilience In Educational And Business Leadership Personnel In Central Florida, Craig Domeck Jan 2008

An Investigation To Determine The Perceptions Of Resilience In Educational And Business Leadership Personnel In Central Florida, Craig Domeck

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Leadership is a challenging task. Vibrant enduring leadership over time is a greater challenge. Cultivating "leaders that lasts" is the desire of this study. The purpose of this research was to determine the resiliency of leaders in Central Florida. Additionally, this study examined the resilience of educational leaders in Central Florida along with leaders from the business community. The analysis and comparison of the results revealed beneficial information regarding the factors that are substantial in resilient leaders and how these factors might be further cultivated. Educational leaders were randomly selected from school administrators in the Central Florida region, as well …


The Impact Of Computer Based Simulation Training On Leadership Development, Stanley Sidor Jan 2007

The Impact Of Computer Based Simulation Training On Leadership Development, Stanley Sidor

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between measures of emotional intelligence after participation in a simulation based leadership development program as applied to a student cohort at a community college. Additionally, this study was conducted to investigate significant differences in emotional intelligence subscales when compared to the categorical variables of age, race, gender, position type, number of years employed, and time. All 300 students in the introductory management classes in the Bachelors of Applied Science business principles classes in the Business program were invited to participate. A total of 201 questionnaires representing 103 individuals were returned, …


An Examination Of Time Use Patterns Influence On Academic Achievement Among African American And Hispanic Male High School Stude, Keith Riley Jan 2007

An Examination Of Time Use Patterns Influence On Academic Achievement Among African American And Hispanic Male High School Stude, Keith Riley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this investigation is to contribute to the body of knowledge in the area of effective time management skills among African American and Hispanic male student athletes and their academic achievement utilizing the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS: 2002) Base year thru the First follow-up database. The researcher has assessed indicators (socioeconomic status, time use patterns, sports participation, and race) within the construct of academic achievement among African American and Hispanic male high school student athletes. Their contribution to the main effects revealed that statistically significant differences exist between the non-sports participant and sports participant groups. After …


Leadership Orientations Of Senior Administrators At American Metropolitan Universities, Diane Trees Jan 2006

Leadership Orientations Of Senior Administrators At American Metropolitan Universities, Diane Trees

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Universities in the United States continue to evolve far beyond traditional concepts. While problems of an academic, economic, governmental, and educational nature beset any university, the metropolitan institution must grapple with these issues not as an individual entity but as a partner in a group of many players. Educational leadership for the American metropolitan university necessitates distinct and unique skills. This study sought to explore leadership behaviors of senior administrators at American metropolitan universities as conceptualized by Bolman and Deal's Four-Frame Model of Leadership (1991). Using Bolman and Deal's (1990) Leadership Orientations Survey (Self) instrument with an additional Respondent Information …


A Comparison Of Mentored And Non-Mentored Novice Elementary Principals In Respect To Job Satisfaction, Colleen Skinner Jan 2006

A Comparison Of Mentored And Non-Mentored Novice Elementary Principals In Respect To Job Satisfaction, Colleen Skinner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if mentoring programs had an impact on job satisfaction for beginning elementary principals in the state of Florida. It also examined if the following factors impacted job satisfaction: (a) length of the mentoring program, (b) frequency of meetings, (c) selection process for the mentor, (d) the position of the mentor, or (e) age and gender of the beginning principal. The population for the study consisted of 108 elementary principals with more than six months and less than fours years of experience in the state of Florida. Twenty-four districts participated in the study, …


Educational Vision In Florida School Districts: Vision Alignment And Leadership Style, Cindy Sikkenga Jan 2006

Educational Vision In Florida School Districts: Vision Alignment And Leadership Style, Cindy Sikkenga

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to address a gap in the organizational leadership research related to the sharing, or alignment, of leadership vision across organizational levels, with a focus on educational vision alignment in Florida K-12 public school districts. The study also sought to determine to what extent, if any, there were differences among Florida school districts exhibiting different levels of educational vision alignment. The broad question addressed by the current research was this: To what degree are the educational visions of superintendents and principals aligned within Florida K-12 public school districts? The following research questions further guided the …


Adaptive Self-Regulation And Organizational Politics: Investigating The Effects In The Accounting Profession, Sharon Howell Jan 2005

Adaptive Self-Regulation And Organizational Politics: Investigating The Effects In The Accounting Profession, Sharon Howell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate whether or not perceptions of organizational politics mediate the relationships between accountants' personality and interpersonal traits and their perceptions of a superior's leadership ability and performance. An accountant who has a higher degree of confidence in his or her superior's abilities is more likely to be committed to a given project, resulting in a better project outcome. This benefits the client and ultimately society as a whole. This study contributes to the accounting and psychology literatures because extant research views perceptions of leadership ability and performance from the perspective of the individual …


Transformational Leadership Qualities Of Florida Community College Student Government Advisors, Thomas Rath Jan 2005

Transformational Leadership Qualities Of Florida Community College Student Government Advisors, Thomas Rath

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

College student government organizations (SGOs) have the important responsibility for achievement of purposes that serve students and the college community. They are also the student voice in higher education governance. Effective student leadership is vital to the effective fulfillment of these purposes, as is the role of the student government advisor in ensuring the success of student leadership and leadership development. Transformational leadership (Bass, 1985) is seen as a way of reaching higher levels of leadership effectiveness and organizational performance, and it has been advanced for use in SGOs. This study examined the extent to which community college student government …


How Leadership Affects Follower Satisfaction: The Federal Case, Tracey Trottier Jan 2005

How Leadership Affects Follower Satisfaction: The Federal Case, Tracey Trottier

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study focuses on the effect of leadership in the federal government. Using a slightly revised version of Bass's Full Range Leadership Model, the study examines the influence of transformational leadership, transactional leadership, and combination of the two on the perception of leadership effectiveness and follower satisfaction in the federal government. To establish if this revised model is consistent with federal employees' perception of effective leadership, if leadership in the federal government increases follower satisfaction, and if both the transactional and transformational leadership are important to followers' perception of leadership and their satisfaction, data from the 2002 Federal Human Capital …


A Comparison Of The Perceived Leadership Characteristics Of Central Florida Middle And High School Principals And School Achievement Scores, Thomas Fisher Jan 2005

A Comparison Of The Perceived Leadership Characteristics Of Central Florida Middle And High School Principals And School Achievement Scores, Thomas Fisher

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this inquiry was to examine the possible extent to which specific, identifiable leadership characteristics of Central Florida school principals differ between middle and high school administrators, and to examine if these leadership characteristics display a relationship, either positively or negatively, with the obtainment of student scores on state measures of education accountability (FCAT reading scores). Data from the research sample were collected through the administration of a modified version of the Audit of Principal Effectiveness (APE), a survey instrument developed by Dr. Jerry Valentine through the Middle Level Leadership Center at the University of Missouri-Columbia (Valentine & …


Community College Leadership In The 21st Century, Laurie Van Jan 2005

Community College Leadership In The 21st Century, Laurie Van

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore with community college presidents of 292 Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Level 1 institutions their perceptions as to the extent to which selected leadership styles presently required in the performance of presidential duties may be required in the future. Also investigated were leadership succession planning and professional development initiatives aimed at identifying and developing future leaders. A total of 209 (71.6%) presidents completed a researcher designed survey. Data analysis resulted in the following major findings. The presidents indicated a high level of support for each of the five leadership styles for …