Urban superintendents are hired and commissioned to raise student achievement, especially for students who have been traditionally underserved by underperforming public schools. Site principals have a significant impact on student achievement; therefore, successful superintendents must be able to recruit, select, and hire effective principals in…

Every two years, the Educator Licensing Division of the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) is tasked with producing a report on the supply and demand of teachers. By statute, that report must contain data collected by surveying Minnesota public school districts, charter schools, and teacher preparation institutions (Minnesota Statute 127A.05,…

"Proceedings of International Conference on Social and Education Sciences" includes full papers presented at the International Conference on Social and Education Sciences (IConSES), which took place on October 13-16, 2022, in Austin, Texas. The aim of the conference is to offer opportunities to share ideas, discuss theoretical and…

Several hundred of the nation's lowest-performing schools have recently undergone major changes in leadership and teaching staff to comply with federal requirements for using school improvement grants (SIGs) financed by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). In particular, schools that receive stimulus-funded SIG awards must…

The study of institutional myths has been central to organizational sociology, cultural sociology, and the sociology of education for 30 years. This article examines how the myth concept has been used and develops neglected possibilities by asking: What happens when myths become incarnate, and how does this occur? In other words, what happens when…

This dissertation presents a framework for investigating how school level phenomena may influence African-American teacher retention, attrition, and mobility in K-12 contexts. I argue that prevalent assumptions and inadequate data concerning the state of black educators have inhibited thorough investigation of minority employment trends in K-12…

One of the most promising developments in math education is the fact that many districts are hiring math coaches--also called math resource teachers, math facilitators, math lead teachers, or math specialists--to assist elementary-level teachers with math instruction. What must not be lost, however, is that principals play an essential role in…

In 2004, the U.S. Department of Education's Policy and Program Studies Service contracted with SRI International and its partner, Policy Studies Associates, to undertake an evaluation of the 21st Century Community Learning Centers. The following evaluation questions informed this study: (1) What is the nature of activities in centers that are…

Most public elementary and secondary schools have "instructional paraprofessionals" who are support staff responsible for assisting in the delivery of instruction. Instructional paraprofessionals account for about 12 percent of full-time or its equivalent staff in these schools while teachers make up about half of such staff (Hoffman and…

This report, produced jointly by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Center for American Progress, and Frederick M. Hess of the American Enterprise Institute, is a call to action in response to how poorly states measured up on key indicators of educational innovation. The report is the first-ever attempt to evaluate the innovation gap in American…

This study positioned the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2002 as a reified colonizing entity, inscribing its hegemonic authority upon the professional identity and work of school principals within their school communities of practice. Pressure on educators and students intensifies each year as the benchmark for Adequate Yearly Progress…

Principals are anxious to determine which strategies, programs, and other factors contribute to increasing the achievement of English Language Learners (ELLs) so that all students in their schools can experience success. This study investigates the practices, strategies, knowledge, and expectations of an elementary principal that contribute to…

The author recently left her position as special services director in an urban school district in Vermont, a state that embraces inclusion for students with disabilities, to accept the position of superintendent of schools in the same district. The new job requires overseeing the educational mission of six elementary schools, two middle schools, a…

Although women comprise about 65% of the educational workforce, they occupy only about 14% of the superintendent positions nationwide. In the past, some theorists accounted for the underrepresentation of women by claiming that women were not assertive enough, didn't want the power, lacked self-confidence, didn't aspire to line positions, were…

This paper focuses on the results of a study examining the relationship among gender, leadership style and principal selection. A sample of 64 Arizona elementary teachers participated in the study. Key issues related to gender and leadership style were identified through a literature review, teacher ratings of four fictitious principals, coded…