Elementary principals have the challenging responsibility of acting as the instructional leader of their school while at the same time managing the daily operations of a school with limited resources and support (Simieou et al., 2010). Without formal support and layers of leadership within their school, elementary principals are often isolated to solve instructional and management crises on their own (Kelchtermans et al., 2011). The purpose of this embedded single case study was to examine the role principals had in empowering teachers to share leadership roles in suburban elementary schools. A constructivist- interpretivist approach was used to answer the following research question: within the Heritage School District, what is the role of elementary principals in empowering teachers to share leadership responsibilities? [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.]