According to Bennis (2003), "True leaders are not born, but made, and usually self-made" (p. 33). The purpose of this study was to identify and examine what factors influenced and limited the opportunities of African American females to obtain and maintain leadership roles in administrative positions at urban schools and the value of supporting diversity in leadership. This researcher believed that AA female leaders rely on their own personal-lived experiences to develop a leadership style that compliments how she handles the day-to-day protocols of her demanding and volatile job. Additionally, research and experiences about AA female leadership is scare and in dire need of more attention (Allen, Jacobson, & Lomotey, 1995; Alston, 2005; Bloom & Erlandson, 2003; Dillard, 1995, Hill-Collins, 2000). AA female leaders appear to be in a sphere of pressured situations based on social, economic, political, and moral concerns that collectively challenge the way she develops her educational environment in order to create a didactic environment that becomes an effective, successful, and high-achieving academic setting for the students, teachers, and staff. This research study examined the leadership style of a small subset of three (3) AA female elementary principals, ranging from ages 35-43, in a large urban school district. This study utilized a qualitative approach and was situated in an epistemology of Black Feminist Theory and Transformational Leadership that investigated how gender, race, age, personal-lived experiences, mentors, culture, spirituality, and other social inequalities might affect their leadership decisions and influence their urban educational experiences. [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.]