Advisor
Vogel, Linda R.
Committee Member
Cray, Martha
Committee Member
Jackson, Lewis
Committee Member
Whitaker, Kathryn
Department
Educational Leadership & Policy Studies
Institution
University of Northern Colorado
Type of Resources
Text
Place of Publication
Greeley (Colo.)
Publisher
University of Northern Colorado
Date Created
8-1-2010
Genre
Thesis
Extent
183 pages
Digital Origin
Born digital
Description
Effective school principals are urgently needed to lead reform efforts to close the achievement gap between high performing and low performing students, particularly in high poverty and low performing public schools. This study employed an embedded mixed methods design of qualitative and quantitative data, and an analytic process called paradigm (Strauss & Corbin, 1998) to reveal the behaviors and practices of effective school principals in challenging public school contexts. The results of the study illuminated the behaviors and practices of effective school principals in challenging public school contexts. In addition, a grounded theory was developed of the phenomenon of sense-making of effective school principals that linked to systemic changes in the school. A substantive theory gave explanatory power to the success of principals to generate significant academic student achievement in high poverty, high needs schools. The study revealed an alternative educational leadership model--Stewardship as a Sense-making Model of Leadership. The principal as a servant leader, the fundamental influence in the schools, created conditions for shared leadership and paradigmatic shifts in the instructional climate that positively impacted student academic achievement.
Degree type
PhD
Degree Name
Doctoral
Language
English
Local Identifiers
Masewicz_unco_0161D_10047.pdf
Rights Statement
Copyright is held by author.
