School leaders, specifically principals, play a pivotal role in shaping student learning outcomes. The benefits of strong leaders extend beyond academic achievement, such as reductions in absenteeism and exclusionary discipline. While quality principals are critical for creating and sustaining quality schools, the staffing pipeline is facing…

This article shares our experience using a job-embedded active learning approach to support candidates' growth as systems-focused equity leaders in the University of Washington's Leadership for Learning program. We describe how socio-cultural learning theory helped us shift from field-based application projects to job-embedded learning. Our…

To best train and support school leaders in their evolving roles, they require high-quality preparation and in-service pipelines that both address the changing demands on their positions and acknowledge the cascading effects that well-prepared leaders have on both student outcomes and in school culture and retention. Including school leaders in…

Through a case study of two doctoral programs situated in the United States, this essay highlights how doctoral programs designed to prepare leaders in K-16 institutions and other contexts can be "framed around questions of equity, ethics, and social justice to bring about solutions to complex problems of practice" (CPED, 2016; Buss,…

Four different perspectives--from the director of a scholarship of teaching and learning dialogue forum, the director of a leadership institute, and two undergraduate students--join together to discuss a collaboration in optimizing leadership education at Western Washington University.

This case study is designed for aspiring principal and superintendent leadership candidates who are studying transitions, change theory in organizations, or board/superintendent relations. It examines the arduous process of closing a school and making huge cuts in a small district because of declining enrollment and expenditures that far…

Principals are essential to improving student achievement and narrowing persistent achievement gaps between students in underserved communities and their economically advantaged peers. The Every Student Succeeds Act provides opportunities for states to invest in developing and supporting effective school leaders. One such opportunity includes…

Improving services for the youngest deaf and hard of hearing children in Washington State has meant the creation of a professional learning community, or community of practice, for professionals in early intervention for children who are deaf or hard of hearing. In a state that has distinct geographical differences, these highly specialized…

Skilled local special education administrators (LSEAs) are difficult to replace. Estimates vary, but about 10-15% of these positions turn over each year. To build necessary skills, individuals need broad opportunities to lead other adults, but high caseloads and funding constraints too often keep future leaders focused instead on direct services…

Amy Morrison Goings was 40 years old in 2013 when she began her presidency at Lake Washington Institute of Technology. She didn't consider herself a representative of all Generation X community college presidents, but as a member of this tight-knit group, she does feel a need to share her insight into what's on the minds of that community.…

Superintendents and principals can have a positive and decisive impact on student achievement and higher graduation rates. Their essential leadership can illuminate the path to excellence for faculty and students. In upgrading curriculum and instruction, school leaders need to keep abreast of practices proven effective in other districts and…

4-H livestock projects present disease transmission risks that can be reduced by the use of bio-security practices. The responsibility of teaching bio-security to youth belongs primarily to volunteer leaders, who may not be aware of the importance of these practices. A needs assessment for an online educational module about bio-security revealed…

This article describes how the Danforth Leadership Program at the University of Washington used Data-in-a-Day, a collaborative, action-research approach, at an urban elementary school to create a reciprocal learning experience focused on motivated learning for diverse students.

With budgets and staff stretched thin, schools are turning tech-savvy students into technology leaders and a popular, important source of IT support. Providing professional tech support is a very expensive a proposition, so districts from Tupelo to Greenville, and from Hattiesburg to Columbia, are enlisting students to fill the gaps. This article…

Strategies to address the problem of work and family balance have begun emerging in recent years. Many American college and universities have begun to adopt this "family-friendly policies," such as tenure-clock extensions. Each of the policies to enable work and family balance, however, is situated within the broader academic culture.…