This is a report of the Two-Day National Seminar on New Directions in Higher Education, organized by the Kerala State Higher Education Council on 12th and 13th July 2010. The objective of the seminar was to deliberate upon the reforms being undertaken by the Government of India in Higher Education. Reputed scholars from within and outside the…

The need for effective school leadership is a global concern. This paper provides a comparison of the school principal in Costa Rica to the United States. Differences and similarities are described for principals in both nations. Major differences for principals in Costa Rica include administrative salaries, selection procedures, induction, no…

A competency model for religion-affiliated college presidents is proposed. The model consists of three main components: spiritual calling, personal values, and professional roles. The spiritual calling component may make the model unique for this group of college presidents. An impetus for the competency model is the trend toward shorter tenure…

The intent of this article is to illustrate the effectiveness of using the tenets described in the Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning by Dr. William Allan Kritsonis (2007) to improve ethical conduct. Ten recommendations to implement the Ways of Knowing Through the Realms of Meaning for the improvement of ethical conduct are provided.…

In the current educational climate, our schools are increasing in diversity amongst students; however the teachers are remaining the same. Many students are faced with the realization that their teachers "do not look like them" and therefore have a desire for their teachers to be as diverse as the student body. For many years the hiring of…

Human resource management in education is a vital function of hiring, developing, nurturing, and sustaining highly-qualified personnel for the school system. In an age where strong accountability measures are in place, school districts across America must become aware of the types of teachers and administrative staff being selected and retained…

The global movement to improve education by decentralizing governance and financial management and by holding school personnel accountable for outcomes aligned with standards extends even to traditionally centralized systems in Asia. The author explores research questions related to how resources are acquired, who decides how best to use resources…

This issue of the SubJournal highlights three different substitute teacher programs and how they succeeded in enhancing their programs. These articles provide guidelines to how two school districts and one regional education service center met these challenges. A list of references follows each article. Articles in this issue include: (1) St.…

The study examined selection practices applied to education. The selected contextual factors were tested to see whether school administrators took consideration of person-organization fit (POF) factors when they select applicants during the selection process. The results showed that POF factors affected selection when school size was under…

Principals and superintendents were surveyed as to how they use concepts of Person-Job Fit (PJF) and Person-Organization Fit (POF) as they assess teacher applicants. An instrument was designed and a random sample of principals and superintendents was assessed. Results indicated that each group focuses on a different set of concepts in selection…

In U.S. public schools a limited number of women have attained the position of superintendent. Consequently, there has been limited research focusing on understanding the position from a woman?s perspective. The purpose of this study was to add to the small body of literature focusing on women?s ideas and beliefs about leading schools. A survey…

This retrospective study used the language of political ecology to describe the dynamics of a school board decision to hire a nontraditional superintendent. Those dynamics were described as contextual variables that existed within the community as well as mediating variables that were negotiated among the key players who were part of the selection…

This paper examined attitudes concerning the effectiveness of distance learning, and determined the impact these perceptions had on selection decisions. Results partially supported the hypotheses, demonstrating that individuals believed distance education was of lower quality than traditional classes, and this perception impacted their hiring…

Finding the right candidates for positions is a difficult task for employers. For job applicants obtaining the best positions available can also be challenging. One problem is the inherent weakness of one page cover letters, two page resumes, or short portfolios to present an applicant's talents thoroughly. One successful method of displaying a…

The papers contained in this document represent the keynote addresses, refereed and non-refereed conference papers from the 21st National Conference of the Society for the Provision of Education in Rural Australia (SPERA). The theme for this national annual conference was: Our Stories: Innovation and Excellence in Rural Education. Keynote…