The principal's impact as an instructional leader influences many elements that keep a school building running effectively. Assistant principals, as emerging school leaders, must be prepared and cultivated with the proper support and resources to thrive in principalship positions. Support through school district-based principal preparation and…

This qualitative study examined the lived experiences of Out-of-Field (OOF) teachers in urban schools, and how they are impacted (psychologically, physiologically, cognitively, and socially). The research utilized three theories: Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, Herzberg's Two-Factor Motivation Theory, and Bandura's Theory of Self-Efficacy. The…

Student performance in high school Earth science coursework is an important factor in lifelong scientific literacy and workforce readiness in geoscience fields. Performance often depends upon access to high quality teaching and resources in precollege academic settings. This study employed a non-experimental, correlational research design to…

Disproportionate enrollment of minorities in special education has been an equity issue in the United States for decades (Artiles, et al., 2010), often leading to case law and policy changes to provide corrective action. For example, in the 2004 amendments to the Individual with Disabilities Act (IDEA), the federal government mandated states to…

This descriptive case study using mixed methods examined principal supervisors' experience implementing the School Administration Manager (SAM) process designed to increase their focus on instructional leadership in a urban school district in the mid-Atlantic area. The research was framed around principal supervisors using the Constructivist…

The purpose of this qualitative case study (Yin, 2018) was to explore the perceptions of 11 full time English faculty who teach at least one section of "ENG 101-College Composition I," regarding interactions with students with disabilities (SWD) and learning disabilities (LD) at Friendship County Community College (FCCC), an urban…

The purpose of this study is to share how African American/Black male K-12 novice educators navigated their own educational journey to become K-12 educators in an urban school district in central Alabama. An urban school district was identified from findings from the Census Bureau and had a school that sat inside an urbanized area and inside a…

Classroom size, curriculum, and student attendance are all important factors that affect student outcomes, but these factors cannot compare to the classroom teacher's influence on student academic performance. Unfortunately, highly qualified teachers are not equally effective in different school settings. Findings associated with highly effective…

This study provides details of the closing of an urban charter school and the developments that took place over time. The primary focus of this research was to understand the reasons for the closing of an urban charter school, based on the passion of the founder and staff. The study examined Senge's (2000) five learning disciplines and how…

In this dissertation, the researcher investigates the success of productive learning environments in Detroit Public Schools. Using interviews with three productive principals from the Detroit school system, the researcher explores three related issues in public schooling. The first issue is the definition of a productive learning environment. By…

International Baccalaureate (IB) is an organization originally developed in 1968 to provide a high-quality, consistent curriculum across international schools. In the intervening years, it has grown to have a broader reach and impact, offering four curricular programs that serve over one million students among 4500 schools within six continents.…

Understanding the professional development needs of assistant principals is a key component in ensuring that schools are successful. This study provided the opportunity to investigate the professional development needs of New York City assistant principals. Assistant principals have been cited in educational research as feeling unprepared for…

The purpose of this study was to discover what school leaders considered during the decision-making process when adding a transitional kindergarten program and how the decision was made. This study investigated the decision-making process for superintendents and principals by examining decisions made by rural, suburban, and large school…

Principals are being asked to lead students to unprecedented levels of academic success, but with increasingly less power or resources to their avail. Moreover, principals must interact with countless stakeholders in education. While much research has studied the general characteristics of what many believe constitute an effective principal,…

The principal is the single most influential person in shaping a school's climate, culture, positive teacher attitude towards students and school practices (Washington III, 2006; DiPaola & Walther-Thomas, 2003; Praisner, 2000). Based on this premise, the principal's attitude is the key to reshaping of the school. The purpose of this study was…