What’s in a first name?: America’s K-12 public school district superintendent gender gap

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study uses a new, contemporary dataset of nearly 13,000 traditional public K-12 school district superintendent names to examine superintendent gender gaps. Superintendent gender gaps are described at the national and state level, and in conjunction with district demographic data. I find significant superintendent gender gaps across the nation, with some states exhibiting smaller gender gaps than others. Women are more likely to lead larger districts and districts with more at-risk students. I discuss potential mechanisms that may contribute to the superintendent gender gap and the need for additional research focused on understanding the origins of the superintendent gender gap, as well as effective ways to narrow the gap.