Educational Leadership Commons^™

Administrators' Capacity For Supporting Reform-Oriented Science Instruction: An Urban School District Case Study, Venicia Ferrell, Joanna K. Garner

Center for Educational Partnerships Publications

Secondary school administrators play a vital role as instructional leaders, but little is known about their knowledge of science practices and perceptions of strategies for supporting reform-oriented science instruction. This multiphase, mixed-methods Q-Methodology study explored administrators' perceptions of instructional leadership and, in particular, high-quality science instruction. After a concourse of 40 items was developed through a review of literature and an expert panel, n = 22 administrators from one urban school district completed a Q-sort and a post-sort questionnaire in which they commented on a lesson excerpt. Principal components analysis with varimax rotation was used to assimilate the participants into …

Critical Realignment Of Humboldt’S “Normal School”: Meeting The Changing Landscape Of Teacher Education, Heather H. Ballinger, Libbi Miller, Sara K. Sterner, James Woglom, Sarah Mccue-Green

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

Our team of teacher educators share our process for reconceptualizing and reaffirming our vision of teacher education as the larger university shifts focus to that of becoming a polytechnic institution. We developed a heuristic to help us articulate our vision based on our commitments and contexts, and discuss the practical implications that this work has in our coursework and clinical practice. Our vision of the polytechnic teacher centers around four commitments: reflective, relational, reconstructive and research-oriented teaching. These commitments are informed by and exist in relationship with broader concepts of positionality, communities of practice, community partners, and polytechnic perspectives.

Professional Counseling/Psychotherapy And Its Influence On Emotional Intelligence And Authentic Leadership Development: A Qualitative Participatory Inquiry Research Study, Jenny Lee Broaddus

Dissertations

The authentic leadership theory acknowledges that leaders must advance their introspection to gain self-awareness, balanced processing, internal moral perspective, and relational transparency. Leaders may desire to lead effectively, yet modern leaders lack emotional intelligence, authenticity, and a vehicle to acquire (Northouse, 2019). Like authentic leadership, emotional intelligence is favored in leaders to include self awareness, emotional management, empathy, and relationship management (Goleman, 1995). Much research surrounds emotionally intelligent competencies in leadership, but limited research targets behaviors for development. A look at psychology and counseling revealed that self-awareness, a standard competency in authentic leadership and emotional intelligence, is also the primary …

Bibliography, Christy L. Spurlock

Faculty/Staff Personal Papers

Bibliography of publications by Christy Spurlock.

Building Honor In Academics: Case Studies In Academic Integrity, Valery P. Denney, Camilla J. Roberts

Publications

A 360-degree look at academic integrity with case studies from professors, administrators, and students.

Building Honor in Academics: Case Studies in Academic Integrity is a collection of case studies on academic integrity from around the globe. More than case studies, the book is intended to help administrators, faculty, and students start conversations around the topic of cheating and academic integrity, and what to do when they find themselves faced with it firsthand. The case studies will come from honor code administrators, department leaders, faculty, and students across disciplines.

Written by leaders of The International Center for Academic Integrity, this book …

Examining K-12 School Leadership Through A Complexity Theory Lens, Mandi Lehnherr

Theses and Dissertations

Observing the connection between complexity theory and the K-12 education field, I conducted an extensive literature review to discover much research had already been undertaken. However, given the pervasive, wicked problems that still exist, there may be gaps in the operationalization of the findings. The purpose of this research is to determine how school leaders understand the complexity of their school system and if examining school leadership from a complexity lens may uncover practices that could create more effective school operations in dynamic environments. Ten school principals and leaders were interviewed. Five major themes were derived from the data: a) …

Marketization Without Marginalization? Approaches To Integration In A Dual Enrollment Magnet School, Shannon Mumolo

Theses and Dissertations

Despite the well-documented benefits of integration and Southern California’s racial, socioeconomic, and linguistic diversity, California and U.S. efforts to promote integrated magnet schools have been minimal and primarily driven by local districts. Attempts to evaluate magnet programs primarily focus on student outcomes, yet surprisingly few studies examine approaches used by school leaders to establish and achieve program outcomes. This study contributes to the knowledge and practice of magnet implementation by exploring one California high school’s efforts to establish a dual enrollment magnet program. An explanatory mixed methods case study design was used to understand how school leaders promoted student integration …

The Meta-Leadership Inventory: Developing A Valid And Reliable Instrument For International School Leaders, Matthew D. Wilkens

Theses and Dissertations

International school leaders must be prepared to steer their schools through ongoing crises and changes, regardless of the factors creating the crises and the need for swift change. To achieve the best possible outcomes from these dynamic situations, international school leaders must strategically deploy skills and abilities delineated by the Meta-leadership framework developed by Marcus et al.(2015). This study aimed to develop a valid and reliable instrument that measures the Meta-leadership competencies of international school leaders: the Meta-leadership Inventory for International School Leaders (MLI-ISL). This instrument development study involved a three-phase design. An initial set of items based on a …

Examining How Entrepreneurial Educators’ Perspectives And Lived Experiences Have Shaped Their Pedagogical Approaches In Secondary Education, Latonya Wiley

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenology study is to explore the perspective of entrepreneurial educators in Southeast Louisiana who teach students in grades 9-12, related to how their entrepreneurial experiences have influenced their pedagogical approaches. There is a gap in our knowledge and understanding of how the lived experiences of entrepreneurs can affect teachers' instructional approaches to introduce the art of entrepreneurship in its many manifestations. The Constructivist learning approach and Kolb's experiential learning theory (1984) are influential in this dissertation. The theoretical framework for this study is an experiential learning theory which helps us understand the impact of the …

The Moral Imperative To Include More Women In Leadership Within Institutions Of Higher Education, Kathryn Mattingly Flynn

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

In higher education, women’s trajectory into leadership positions is not equitable to men’s. The concerns with the scarcity of women in leadership positions, specifically deans, provosts, presidents, and board members, involve varying levels of gender biases, norms, and stereotypes, as well as expectations of representation. Gender biases and stereotypes remain ingrained in American societal structures and result in immoral consequences, injustice for colleges and universities, and diminished happiness of the participants within them. I will use philosophical inquiry to argue that greater representation of women in the leadership of higher education would lead to morally better outcomes for institutions and …

Applying Organizational Learning Theories To Continuous Improvement Practices Through Self-Study Methodology To Better Reflect Upon And Understand Factors That Influence School Improvement Efforts, Morgan Daniel Gallagher

Dissertations

The purpose of this self-study is to better understand and address the factors that influence continuous improvement efforts led by the researcher/practitioner. To this end, this study applies Bolman and Deal’s 4-frame model of organizational learning lenses to school improvement indicators on the Illinois 5Essentials Survey. Through taking Bolman and Deal’s Online 4-frame Self-assessment, I am able to identify the organizational learning lens least integrated into my own leadership worldview. The organizational learning lenses that comprise Bolman and Deal’s 4-frame model are the structural, symbolic, human resource, and political lenses. I then apply core tenets of my least integrated lens …

E Pluribus Unum: Increasing A Shared Understanding Of Mission At Marine Corps University, Edward Greiner, Kirstin Pantazis, Christopher Reid, Dominick White

Doctor of Education Capstones

E PLURIBUS UNUM: INCREASING A SHARED UNDERSTANDING OF MISSION AT MARINE CORPS UNIVERSITY

By Edward Greiner, Kirstin Pantazis, Christopher Reid, and Dominick White

A capstone project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in the Department of Educational Leadership at Virginia Commonwealth University

Virginia Commonwealth University, 2023.

Capstone Chair: Beth E. Bukoski, Ph.D., Department of Educational Leadership

Mergers between higher education institutions present unique challenges to creating and maintaining a shared understanding of mission. Additionally, professional military education institutions with civilian faculty and staff must blend military and civilian cultures in the workplace. …

Exploring The Impact Of Personal, Emotional, And Relational Elements That Influence The Decision To Speak Up During Critical Safety Moments, Kelly Rabah

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study focused on exploring the relationships between personal, emotional, and relational elements and the decision to speak up during critical safety moments. A phenomenological single site case study was employed using semi structured interviews to examine the healthcare professionals’ stories. The participants shared their lived experiences when making the choice to speak up or not, and the consequences – positive and negative, for themselves, their patients, and the organization. Results showed the decision to speak up is complex. There are many components that influence the decision to raise voice in the face of known risk. Personal elements, including …

Responding To Escalating Student Behavioral Health Needs : A Comparative Case Study Of Multi-Tiered System Of Support Team Functioning, Randi Bargo-Smith

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

The state of youth behavioral health in the United States was a public health crisis before the overwhelming challenges presented by the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic, and now, the situation is even more dire. The impacts of youth behavioral health challenges are pervasive and long-lasting for youth, their families, and the entire community. It is critical to identify innovative ways that youth behavioral health is being addressed in schools and understand how comprehensive school mental health systems including multi-tiered system of support teams are functioning. This comparative case study investigated the functioning of two high school multi-tiered system of …

Journal Of Communication Pedagogy, Complete Volume, 2023

Journal of Communication Pedagogy

No abstract provided.

The Relationship Between Systems Thinking By Building Leaders And Academic Outcomes For Marginalized Students, Dunham Obadiah

Education Dissertations

Despite the attempts by lawmakers to legislate a closing of the achievement gap, persistent gaps in performance for students based on ethnicity, race, economic level, disability, and first language persist throughout public schools in the United States. Occasionally, a principal will receive attention for raising the performance of minoritized groups in their school. However, while admired, the principal’s efforts are not easily replicated. Furthermore, principal development programs fail to produce building leaders that can reliably achieve the change marginalized communities need.

There have been numerous studies that have shown that principals impact the academic performance of their students. For the …

Putting The “U” In Shore U: Expanding Postsecondary Education On Virginia’S Eastern Shore, Katelyn D. Jones, Karen Belanger, Katharine Wise, Takeya Mclaurin

Doctor of Education Capstones

The University of the Eastern Shore of Virginia Foundation (Shore U) submitted a Request for Assistance to examine opportunities to expand postsecondary education on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. In response to this request, a doctoral research team conducted a mixed-methods study that explored potential pathways for a four-year degree option on the Eastern Shore. Eastern Shore Community College (ESCC) students, ESCC employees, and Eastern Shore community members were surveyed during the quantitative phase of the study. Secondary data was used to understand the postsecondary positionality of Eastern Shore high school students. The President of ESCC, Eastern Shore community members, and Virginia …

Assessing Graduate Student Needs And Structures Of Support At Virginia Commonwealth University, Trisha Saunders, Kiama Anthony Bishop, Herbert Hill Iii, Tameka Fitzgerald Burroughs

Doctor of Education Capstones

The purpose of this multi-case study was to explore how the institutional landscape is designed to support graduate student success at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), a large, public, urban, R1 research university. The study included review of existing literature on the various factors that contribute to or limit graduate student success at institutions across the country. A major aim of this study was to collect qualitative data from participants with a key stake in this issue, including enrolled graduate students, and faculty/staff supporting graduate (master’s and doctoral) programs at VCU. Participants included 39 graduate students and 23 institutional stakeholders. All …

A Brighter Future For Sms: Cultivating School Coherence Through A Shared Vision, Nicole K. Herndon, Heather Holcomb, Audra Krupp

Doctor of Education Capstones

Staunton City Public Schools submitted an RFA (Request for Assistance) to Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) to address concerns at Shelburne Middle School related to teacher satisfaction, student discipline, and student achievement. Document and data analysis, a site visit, and partner interviews surfaced issues of organizational fragmentation; the capstone team identified the need for a collaboratively constructed and implemented vision to better cohere the school. Through document analysis and stakeholder surveys, our mixed methods study aimed to understand stakeholder views on three aspects to support the work of the leadership team at SMS. First, the capstone team identified the needs in …

A Case Study Exploring William & Mary Military Alums' Experiences With Career Transition, Dirron Allen, Amanda Baldwin-Estep, Matthew Grinsell, Kimberly Lintag-Nguyen

Doctor of Education Capstones

Background: The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand William & Mary (W&M) Master of Business Administration (MBA) military alums’ experiences with their career transitions post-graduation and the influence of the program on their experiences.

Methods: This study utilized a case study design, including focus groups and interviews with 21 alums from the last 10 years and formal, semi-structured interviews with six current faculty and staff. We used Schlossberg’s (1981) individuals’ situation, self, support, and strategies to analyze data using thematic analysis, and then iteratively reducing codes into themes.

Results: Demographic findings showed a lack of diversity, such as …