This document is a companion guide to "A Descriptive Analysis of the Principal Workforce in Florida Schools" (Folsom, Osborne-Lampkin, & Herrington, in press). It describes the methods used to extract information from the Florida Department of Education database in order to conduct a descriptive analysis of the demographic…

Although demographic change is happening more rapidly at the elementary school level, the intersection of these demographic trends with the changing mission of high schools may offer the opportunity to reduce some of the persistent racial gaps in educational attainment. At the same time, when schools became diverse as desegregation took place,…

In this study the authors use longitudinal data from one large school district--Miami-Dade County Public Schools, to investigate the distribution of principals across schools. The authors find schools serving many low-income, non-white, and low-achieving students have principals with less experience, less education, and who attended less selective…

This study examines the demographics of SACs and the schools they serve, and proposes that demographic similarity with the school principal influences the SAC membership. The findings draw attention to the likelihood that appointment to SAC chair may be contingent on an individual's demographic similarity with the school principal. Principals also…

From classroom teachers to researchers, education professionals have raised questions about how best to assist students who face the significant dual challenge of acquiring the content knowledge necessary for academic success and simultaneously developing their English language competency. This document addresses these questions by looking at key…

School principals have complex jobs. To better understand the work lives of principals, this study uses observational time-use data for all high school principals in Miami-Dade County Public Schools. This paper examines the relationship between the time principals spent on different types of activities and school outcomes including student…

While the importance of effective principals is undisputed, few studies have addressed what specific skills principals need to promote school success. This study draws on unique data combining survey responses from principals, assistant principals, teachers and parents with rich administrative data to identify which principal skills matter most…

Case study examines attitudes of principals in selected high-poverty/low-performing Florida schools toward the state's system of school improvement and accountability. Finds that principals oppose the high-stakes nature of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test because of unfair comparisons with more affluent schools. Principals believe that…

This report is part of the Florida Department of Education, Title III, ESEA, Educational Needs Assessment study and deals exclusively with information and data collected from questionnaires administered to a sample of seven educationally relevant subpopulations within the State. These subpopulations included students, teachers, principals,…