Clearing a Path for Inclusion

Abstract

The study presented here examines the efforts of one principal and the team she relied upon to create a more inclusive and high-performing school in a large urban school district. The goals, actions, and responsibilities of the team are described, as well as the daily challenges associated with school administration and special education. In doing so, this article highlights how a distributed approach to leadership can enable a principal and teachers to build teacher capacity, adapt to challenges, and ultimately serve all students in an effective and inclusive manner. The timeliness of this research is significant given an increasingly complex and accountability driven system that makes school leadership ever more difficult, particularly when attempting to promote inclusion. This study has important implications for how principals call upon school staff to support inclusive reform, and it also highlights the role principals can play when seeking to distribute leadership and enhance school capacity to serve all children.