Principals' experiences in rural schools often differ from that of their urban and suburban counterparts. They often experience challenges that are not only unique to their specific contexts but influence their roles as instructional leaders. With instructional leadership at the forefront of the principalship, it is important to explore how rural principals engage in the work and how they navigate the multitude of contextual factors that impact their roles. The purpose of this qualitative case study is to gain a deeper understanding of what instructional leadership looks and feels like in a rural, Title I school district in north Florida. Using Leithwood's (2021) leadership framework to inform the study, data were collected through one-on-one, semi-structured interviews wherein participants described instructional leadership, the practices of instructional leadership that they engaged in, and what factors they identify as influencing their roles as instructional leaders. Data were analyzed using the framework to identify patterns and trends across participants. This study found that while there aren't stark contrasts in the way rural principals described instructional leadership in comparison to the framework's definition, it is worth noting that participants emphasized that relationships played a vital role in instructional leadership and were critical in building capacity and improving instruction. Furthermore, rural principals spent the majority of their time in the "Building Relationships and Developing People Domain" and "Improving the Instructional Program Domain." When asked about the factors that influence their roles as instructional leaders, principals identified opportunity gaps, resource limitations, and political culture as negative influences, while the community and the availability of programs that support students and families were seen as positive influences. The implications of this study are relevant for principals, district leaders, policymakers, and researchers. Principals expressed the desire and need to have more opportunities to engage with their colleagues and in professional development. Given that principals identified barriers and supports that impact their roles, district leaders may consider examining how they can address some of the challenges while leveraging the existing systems and resources available to strengthen principals' instructional leadership practices. At the researcher level, examining what rural-specific supports impact principals most will provide valuable insight into how rural principals can best be supported. [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.]