The concept of belonging is considered an essential need, and the impact of belonging has been studied by many. However, limited research has been conducted on the impact of belonging of those who work in schools, especially those who are the only individuals engaged in their role, known as Onlies. The purpose of this study was to gain an…

This is a qualitative study focused on investigating building leaders' evaluations and the role they may play in teacher retention and recruitment. This qualitative study included analysis of interviews of evaluators of building level leaders and the findings from those interviews relative to teacher retention. [The dissertation citations…

Women are underrepresented in the superintendency of public schools. They are also underrepresented in the research about superintendents. Researchers report that male superintendents have been studied in terms of demographic makeup, stresses, career paths, leadership traits, and other indicators of success. Only in recent years has there been a…

The paper is an exploration of dual-role school district leadership in a small rural state. Dual-role leaders are individuals who fulfill all the roles of both the school superintendent and principal. Smaller rural school districts are the districts that often utilize a dual-role superintendent and principal model. The position of principal and…

Little is known about the characteristics and perspectives of school business officers, those who have the ear of superintendents and who help make key decisions about the spending of millions of dollars of public funds in school districts. Due to equity concerns and the paucity of research regarding this key group of individuals, this research…

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenology-informed study is to examine the lived experiences of new principals and to understand the experiences that have influenced their role as principal. Phenomenological research is "interested in an analytical and descriptive experience of phenomena by individuals in their everyday world"…

This paper examined the perceptions of school administrators in the state of Illinois concerning their roles in preventing school violence. Targeted school violence has increasingly been a concern in the United States. It is a type of violence that transcends everyday altercations in the school context, and rises to the level of deliberate,…

This study aimed to gain insight into the impact of personal life experiences on the leadership of school principals. As leaders of educational institutions, school principals are tasked with a wide range of responsibilities, including managing school personnel and students, handling government and policy relations, and spearheading academics,…

This research focuses on identifying successful approaches used by university ombuds offices to enact change regarding dispute resolution options within their academic institute. The field of Ombuds has grown steadily in North America since the 1970s and is widely used by private industry, academia, and government organizations to deploy…

This study explored the motivators and inhibitors experienced by women pursuing high school administration positions. Additionally, it sought to identify the reasons behind the gender discrepancies to support improved hiring practices and job requirements and inform districts and states about areas for improvement to attract and retain qualified…

This qualitative phenomenological study focused on the lived experiences of novice superintendents in Tennessee. Novice superintendents were operationally defined as superintendents within their first 3 years of performing the responsibilities and duties of the role. The researchers also examined the role the Tennessee Organization of School…

Governing board professionals, described in The Chronicle of Higher Education as "a pocket of power advising both the board and the administration," (Jesse, 2023, para. 3) are charged with ensuring governing boards meet their fiduciary obligations and operate effectively. Despite the role's growing recognition as a "linchpin…

Independent schools face a head of school problem, as sitting heads of schools approach retirement at a high rate. The head of school role is complex, all-encompassing, and the newly appointed head of school is likely ill equipped to manage the role without mentorship. There is a gap in the literature regarding what challenges a newly appointed…

The purpose of this qualitative, descriptive study is to explore how assistant principals describe their choices regarding survival, love and belonging, power, freedom, and fun regarding whether to seek promotion to principal in southern Arizona. A principal shortage exists in the United States in part because assistant principals qualified to be…

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an irreversible impact on the higher education sector. The disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic created challenges for university leaders and their stakeholders who needed to reinvent themselves to operate their campuses during the pandemic (Garcia-Morales et al., 2021). The purpose of this study was to conduct…