A principal's job is complex, demanding, and multi-faceted. Effective principals shape a school's academic vision and foster a climate for learning. In addition, they develop leadership capacity in teachers and staff, promote sound instructional practices, and use resources and data to drive school improvement (Mendels, 2012). Given these…

Background: This paper describes the Problem-Solving Cycle model of professional development and the Mathematics Leadership Preparation model of PD leader preparation. These models form the backbone of our current research-practice partnership project in which we are working with a large urban district to adapt these models to develop district…

Scholars are increasingly considering how theoretical concepts about social justice might permeate leadership preparation programs' design. Yet the degree to which these concepts actually anchor these programs is unclear. This article addresses this gap by analyzing how the University of California's Principal Leadership Institute bridges theory…

This article examines how the Education Leadership Foundation (a leadership development community based organization) in partnership with the Migrant Education Program use parent retreats for building leadership, and skill development of migrant farm-working families. Utilizing cooperative and community responsive practices, these retreats build…

Innovative and learner-centered approaches to teaching and learning are vital for the applied field of leadership education, yet little research exists on such pedagogical approaches within the field. Using a phenomenological approach in analyzing 26 students' reflective narratives, the authors explore students' experiences of and process of…

This paper describes the outcomes of a self-study that we undertook as instructors of a capstone undergraduate leadership course. Using the framework of action inquiry and a variety of pedagogical approaches, we sought to create a course and classroom environment that was student-centered, empowering, and transformative. Three questions are…

In this study the discipline of collaborative inquiry is employed to prepare aspiring administrators to lead for equity. Educational leadership students are required to conduct a site-based collaborative inquiry resulting in an Equity Plan signature assignment. As they develop their Equity Plans, emerging leaders also participate in a…

The purpose of this study was to examine the social justice principles embedded in California State University (CSU) Educational Administration Preparation Programs. More specifically, this study explored the intended, implemented, and assessed curriculum relative to social justice and critical consciousness, and investigated if differences exist…

This paper describes the signature role played by accomplished, experienced teachers in professional learning communities, and the importance that these practitioners make their teaching public and shared. In so doing, the authors describe how accomplished practices can be shared between classrooms and between practitioners with varying levels of…

In an effort to increase the knowledge about professional development programs that promote strong instructional leaders, the Wallace Foundation recently commissioned a study of innovative principal professional development programs and the policy and funding mechanisms that support them. In fall 2003, the foundation awarded a grant to a team of…

The "ISSS Annual Conference Proceedings" is a peer-reviewed professional publication published once a year following the annual conference. (Individual papers contain references.) [For the 2009 proceedings, see ED504973.]