A veteran newspaper editor speaks unashamedly in support of public schools, dispelling myths about teacher workload, student performance, vouchers and charter schools as reform models, outdated school boards, and overpaid administrators. Schools should revamp their public relations by publishing positive items in newsletters and creating speaker's…

The editors chose character education as the theme for this "School Administrator" special issue because it undergirds school leaders' true mission: creation of community, advocacy for children, and preservation of democracy through public education. Authors tackle numerous topics, from the need to recapture a sense of civic duty and…

When Tennessee's Value-Added Assessment System began reporting yearly achievement test gains (instead of raw test scores), the Knox County Schools discovered that location no longer predicted a school's performance. TVAAS shows gains by high, low, and average student achievement groups in five academic subjects. Equal gains across groups equals…

A content analysis of over 35 American motion pictures and television sitcoms since the 1950s showed principals most often portrayed as autocrats, bureaucrats, or buffoons. Sometimes, as in the TV movie "Kidz in the Woods," a single show depicts all three characteristics. Promoting instructional leadership and an ethic of caring among…

E-Learning eliminates time and distance barriers, creating universal learning-on-demand opportunities. Cisco Systems has invested over $50 million in the world's largest e-learning laboratory. Starting with 64 academies in 7 U.S. states in 1997, the Networking Academy program now serves 140,000 students in over 5,800 sites in 96 countries. (MLH)

Shortly after implementing a mandatory school uniform policy, the Long Beach (California) Public Schools can boast 99% compliance and a substantial reduction in school crime. The uniforms can't be confused with gang colors, save parents money, and help identify outsiders. A sidebar lists ingredients for a mandatory uniform policy. (MLH)

The Schoolwide Enrichment Model is a blueprint for total school improvement that stresses flexibility and creativity and promotes challenging, enjoyable learning across all school types, levels, and demographic differences. The model combines organizational resources with three service-delivery components: the total-talent portfolio,…

Inspired by Deming's work, the superintendent of West Babylon (New York) Schools convened his administrative team to build a consensus about the schools' mission. The vision statement outlines four primary functions: protective care, civic training, personality development, and teaching of knowledge. The district's goal-driven process surmounted…

A study of 262 randomly selected American Association of School Administrators members shows insufficient awareness of the association's code of ethics. As in Dexheimer's 1968 study, the majority of responses to a borderline ethical dilemma were unethical. Ethics scores were higher for superintendents with larger districts, larger salaries, and…

A suburban Philadelphia district set aside $100,000 for merit-pay (bonuses) for individuals and groups of teachers. Although teachers are resistant, vowing to give to charity any bonuses linked to test scores, morale and scores have improved. Cincinnati and Castle Rock, Colorado, have workable plans. (MLH)

Competency-based pay provides an incentive for employees to enhance their capacity for performing their jobs. Salary increases are not linked to past performance, but to future professional growth to meet increasingly higher expectations. Discussions to identify key teaching competencies must precede implementation. (MLH)

Studies of Texas' testing program, initiated in 1992, identify several factors contributing to improved achievement: alignment with state standards; results that inform instruction; understandable, attainable rating systems that encourage improvements for all populations; balance between school/student accountability; stable, yet improvable…

Schools need a Renaissance human-resources director to implement strategic staffing and fast-track teacher-recruitment plans. The HR director must attend to customer satisfaction, candidate supply, web-based recruitment possibilities, stabilization of newly hired staff, retention of veteran staff, utilization of retired employees, and latest…

A consortium of St. Louis-area school districts, college career officers, and consultants developed an online teacher and administrator recruitment/job-application system that has gone statewide and is being used by nine other states. Next is a nationwide job bank to help districts recruit educators. (MLH)

To buffer education's instructional core, superintendents increasingly have been diverted from teaching and learning and pressured to become operations managers and political beings fostering confidence in schools and communities. Today's superintendents should become responsible for helping their communities develop a common language about…