First Advisor

Weiler, Spencer

Second Advisor

Cohen, Michael I.

Document Type

Dissertation

Date Created

12-2019

Department

College of Education and Behavioral Sciences, Leadership Policy and Development: Higher Education and P-12 Education, LPD Student Work

Abstract

In accordance with the accountability measures required for public education by the United States Federal Government, the State of Colorado has developed a system for ranking school performance based on academic achievement, academic growth, and postsecondary and workforce readiness (Colorado Department of Education, 2016b). Schools are rated as Turnaround, Priority Improvement, Improvement, or Performance status (Colorado Department of Education, 2016b). Schools in Turnaround or Priority Improvement status must move to Improvement or Performance status in less than five years (Colorado Department of Education, 2016e). The focus of the study was on the leadership skills and behaviors of principals in schools that have successfully moved from Turnaround or Priority Improvement status to Performance status. A case study was conducted using two schools in similar urban settings that had moved from Turnaround to Improvement status. While both principals assumed it would be important to address instructional leadership first, both found that they had to address climate and culture and mission and vision first before they could make lasting and impactful changes in instruction and curriculum. Five areas in which principals focused their leadership in order to foster student achievement emerged. These areas included mission and vision/strategic leadership, school and staff culture/cultural leadership, instruction and curriculum/instructional leadership, teacher efficacy/transformational leadership, and management and resources/managerial leadership. This work is significant in that it would provide direction for leaders of schools in need of improvement.

Extent

210 pages

Local Identifiers

Jarnot_unco_0161D_10784.pdf

Rights Statement

Copyright is held by the author.

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