Statement of Purpose and Method of Study: This study aimed to explore school principals' storytelling as a strategy in crisis leadership. The researcher's conceptual model, the Crisis Leadership Storytelling Model, guided the study. The methodology included a qualitative-exploratory design in which the researcher used semi-structured interviews based on the researcher's Crisis Leadership and Storytelling Interview Guide. Participants included 12 public school principals from the four congressional districts in Mississippi. One elementary, middle, and high school principal participated from each congressional district. Participants met the following criteria: (a) principal in a public elementary, middle, or high school, (b) principal in one of the four selected congressional districts and one of the four selected school districts in Mississippi, and (c) principal who led through at least one crisis. Findings and Conclusions: The study's conclusions are based on the findings from qualitative-exploratory research and answered the study's research questions in a thematic format. The conclusions relate to previous research and have conceptual implications and implications for practice and future studies, which are discussed in Chapter V. The conclusions are as follows: (1) Principals experience different types of crises, which do not occur in a vacuum. (2) Principals use storytelling in all three phases of crisis leadership: before, during, and after a crisis. (3) Principals' stories in crisis leadership embody a variety of story patterns:(a) analogies; (b) conversations; (c) data; (d) events and experiences; (e) facts and information; (f) humor, satire, and sarcasm; (g) hypothetical but believable situations; (h) instructions and directions; (i) reflections; (j) statements; (k) graphics; (l) objects; (m) pictures and videos; and (n) actions. (4) Principals use storytelling for different purposes during crisis leadership: (a) communication, (b) connection and collaboration, (c) empowerment, (d) mental and emotional support, and (e) sensemaking. (5) For principals in crisis leadership, storytelling yields various outcomes, including one or more of the following: (a) expected outcomes, (b) unexpected outcomes, and (c) lessons learned. (6) Findings of this study support the Crisis Leadership Storytelling Model. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]