The COVID-19 pandemic presented challenges to higher education institutions, especially for staffing. Internal interim appointments were used to fill gaps in the administrative ranks. Literature emphasizes that interim leaders often serve during periods of uncertainty, crisis, and change. The purpose of this study was to explore the motivation(s)…

Women comprise the majority of both the college-educated workforce (Fry, 2019) and higher education professionals (Silbert & Dube, 2021), yet a proverbial glass ceiling remains intact for female leaders within this industry (Bichsel & McChesney, 2017; DeFrank-Cole et al., 2014; Diehl & Dzubinski, 2016; Gagliardi et al., 2017;…

Colleges and universities appoint interim leaders to fill key leadership vacancies during periods of organizational transition and change. Although a widely accepted practice within higher education, there is limited literature related to the topic of interim leadership or on the experiences of those who navigate the role. Therefore, the purpose…

Higher education is experiencing leadership turnover and during these transitions colleges and universities are relying on interim leaders to fill this leadership gap. The purpose of this study was to identify ways to support interim leaders and leverage their experience into the development of professional growth opportunities at a large…

The purpose of this Action Research Study was to examine the lived experiences of interim administrators at a private university in New York and determine how they made sense of unexpected appointments resulting from crisis scenarios including those caused by leadership departures and the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Key to the investigation…

This dissertation comprises three chapters. The first two address issues within the education system, focusing on strategies to attract and retain high-quality teachers in the public sector. The third chapter, a collaborative effort with Martin Martinez and Miguel Saldarriaga, explores the application of machine learning tools for nowcasting…

The interim presidency represents a critical juncture in the life of an institution. Colleges and universities in the midst of presidential turnover are at a crossroads and the choices made by governing boards during this transition period may have lasting implications. This study analyzed the interim presidency period through the perspectives of…

Across three papers, I examine the influence of school-related factors on student outcomes in Brazil. In the first and second papers, I investigate the effects of teachers' contractual ties with the school on different outcomes. Two aspects of contractual ties were considered: 1) whether teachers hold a permanent or temporary contract, and 2)…