Central Office Administrators Research Articles

In-School Suspension Through the Lens of Whiteness as Property: Exploring a School District’s Role in Maintaining Educational Inequality

Despite impacting almost three million students annually, and disproportionately impacting Black students, little is known about district policy and central office staff in the use of in-school suspension. The purpose of this study was to understand how districts use in-school suspension over time, with attention to racial disparities, programmatic changes, and central office perspectives. Case study methods were used to examine in-school suspension in one large school district in the Western United States. Data included two district board school discipline policies, quantitative in-school suspension data, and interviews with central office staff. We found a history of on-going racial disparities for Black and Latinx students and that decisions made by central office about in-school suspension had likely sustained these disparities over time. District policy goals of reducing racial disparities were found to be largely rhetorical in the face of an ethos of non-enforcement. Central office administrators believed they lacked the power to hold school principals accountable for implementing school discipline policy with fidelity to redressing racial disparities. Through the concept of Whiteness as Property, we argue these patterns demonstrated central office administrators’ protection of White educational and political propertied interests above those of educational opportunities for Black and Latinx students. This study contributes to the literature on in-school suspension by finding discrepancies between policy and practice and contributes to the field’s understanding of how school autonomy can undermine equity-oriented school discipline policies through racial negligence.

Barriers to Teacher Diversity in a Predominantly White District

This case study explains factors that prevented a predominately White suburban district from diversifying its teaching staff despite the stated desire of administrators to provide more diverse teachers for the district’s students. The researcher interviewed three central office administrators, five district curriculum directors, and four principals in the school district and reviewed hiring documents. Interviews revealed that administrators may have incorrectly perceived culturally diverse candidates as not interested in teaching in the case district. Some administrators said that they were unable to identify which applicants were from diverse backgrounds, and the district’s favoring of individuals already tied to the district professionally or personally might inhibit culturally different candidates from teaching in the case district. Findings should compel practitioners and policymakers to ensure that teacher hiring is more equitable by being reflective about practices that may inhibit teacher diversity. Districts should consider leveraging technology to increase the number of candidates screened by offering interview opportunities to a larger and broader population, partnering with districts with different demographics, and increasing recruitment from colleges and universities that serve culturally diverse teacher candidates. Researchers should study the experiences of culturally diverse candidates applying to predominately White school districts to report on their perspectives.

Is Role Change Enough? District Organizational Supports for Principal Supervision

Background and Purpose: District school improvement efforts have increasingly focused on improving the quality of support principals receive from the central office. This study uses the theoretical lens of recoupling to examines efforts by one urban district in the midst of change to revise the role of principal supervisors. Analysis focuses on how district organizational structures and systems supported (or did not support) principal supervisors' work in the new role. Research Methods: This qualitative study draws upon semi-structured interview data from 31 principals, principal supervisors, and central office leaders. Data were analyzed using an iterative, multi-round coding process that identified emergent themes. Findings: District central office structures, systems, and roles shape principal supervisors' ability to effectively develop principal leadership. System-wide changes to support principal supervisors' new work appeared to be at odds with existing district context and structure, limiting their effectiveness. Additionally, three organizational barriers emerged that limited principal supervisors' ability to meet the new role expectations: misaligned central office expectations, overlapping responsibilities between supervisors and other central office administrators, and an incoherent district definition of instructional leadership. Implications: Findings provide guidance for districts seeking to build central office capacity for school support by highlighting the importance of implementing district-level structural supports and other system considerations in addition to changing administrator roles.

School District Administrator Perceptions and Hiring Practices of Teachers Who Participated in International Student Teaching Placements

This study investigated school district administrators’ perceptions and hiring practices of teachers who participated in international student teaching experiences. Thirty central office administrators from 12 states across the United States were interviewed. The responses and practices of these administrators and the districts that they represent were compared with the perceptions of student teachers and teachers from previous studies who had student taught abroad. Findings reveal that both teachers and administrators believe that there are a multitude of benefits to international student teaching and that this experience ultimately impacts student learning. While they also believe that such experience should be accounted for in the hiring process, very few districts have a formal way of accounting for international student teaching experiences. Recommendations include how districts might adjust their hiring process to account more specifically for the various of experience that teachers bring to their positions.

An Administrators’ Association Partnership Translates to Gifted Education Advocacy

A formal partnership between a state-level umbrella association of educational administrators and one of its constituent associations, the association of gifted education administrators, has resulted in successful legislative and policy advocacy for gifted education. The formal partnership encouraged leaders of the gifted education professional community to identify as administrators and to collaborate with superintendents, principals, and other central office administrators. For the past three decades, this unique partnership has flourished and provides a model that other states can adapt to their context. In addition to the formal administrative association partnership, an informal partnership operates between two state gifted education associations (one focused on gifted education coordinators and administrators; the other focused on teachers and parents) and the umbrella organization of central office and building level educational administrators in the state. A key feature of the formal partnership is shared governance between the umbrella association and its 12 member associations, one of which comprises gifted education administrators. The informal partnership is linked by advocacy and policy development initiated by the salaried Legislative Advocate and a standing Legislative committee that includes the presidents of the state association for gifted education administrators and the president of the teacher and parent association. The benefits of the formal partnership and suggestions for initiating such a partnership in other states are discussed. The complexities of the informal partnership are explored.

Possibilities and Challenges: Conditions Shaping Educators’ Use of Social–Emotional Learning Indicators

Background/Context Researchers have amassed considerable evidence on the use of student performance data (e.g., benchmark and standardized state tests) to inform educational improvement, but few have examined the use of nonacademic indicators (e.g., indicators of social and emotional well-being) available to educators, and whether the factors shaping academic data use remain true for these newer types of data. While the field continues to advocate for greater attention to the social–emotional development of students, there remains little guidance on conditions supporting the use of data on these important mindsets, dispositions, beliefs, and behaviors. Purpose/Focus of the Study In this article, we use sensemaking theory, prior research on academic data use, and research from a study of “early adopter” California districts to develop a framework for understanding conditions likely to shape educators’ use of social–emotional learning (SEL) indicators to inform practice. Research Design We develop our findings and framework by drawing on prior research and theory, as well as data from a multiyear research–practice partnership with a consortium of California districts that began measuring SEL as part of the No Child Left Behind waiver they received from the U.S. Department of Education. We draw on more than 125 interviews with consortium leaders, central office administrators, leaders, teachers, and staff in 25 schools and six districts to understand how they made sense of SEL and SEL survey data, as well as the practices employed to support SEL. Findings We find that five categories of conditions appear to shape how educators interpret and respond to SEL indicators: policy context, organizational conditions, interpersonal relationships and interactions, data user characteristics, and data properties. Much like academic data use, we find: (1) the accountability policy context can convey a sense of importance, but may also lead to distortive responses; (2) district and school leaders are critical for allocating time and staff, and cultivating a data culture; (3) collaboration facilitates sensemaking; (4) individual-level knowledge and beliefs can shape interpretation; and (5) timeliness and perceived relevance of data matter. Some of these conditions, however, are uniquely relevant to the use of SEL data, which brings greater ambiguity, uncertainty, and a decoupling from the traditional academic role of educators. We find that including SEL indicators in multiple measure systems can lead to uncertainty and interpretive complexity, and divide educators’ attention. Deficit conceptions may also shape sensemaking and are especially germane in the SEL context given documented gaps by race/ethnicity on measures of SEL. Another condition especially relevant to SEL indicator usage is the lack of coherence or clarity around SEL. The frequent misunderstandings of and disagreement about SEL—sometimes shaped by disciplinary background—could lead to different interpretations and responses. All of these conditions suggest that sensemaking and response to SEL data indicators are complex processes that require multiple enabling factors. Conclusions and Implications Given the significant investments in supporting and measuring student social-emotional development, it behooves policymakers, education leaders and practitioners to better understand the conditions facilitating and inhibiting productive use of SEL indicators. The framework provided herein presents a set of concepts and conditions that may be useful in supporting this process. The findings also raise a cautionary flag that while sometimes consistent with the process of using academic data, the use of SEL indicators may present added challenges worthy of attention. We conclude with implications for policy, practice, and research. Notably, education leaders and practitioners may want to invest in building common understanding of SEL and capacity to interpret and act on these indicators, and consider how equity orientations shape understanding and usage of SEL indicators. Policymakers may want to consider more formative uses of SEL data that are provided to educators earlier in the year, and attend to the human capital needs that accompany SEL data usage. Finally, researchers might build on this work by further examining the relationship between SEL and culture/climate and the ways in which educators respond to data on both, and also investigate the outcomes of SEL data usage, such as actions that lead to meaningful improvements in SEL.

Central Office Leadership for Instructional Improvement: Developing Collaborative Leadership Among Principals and Instructional Leadership Team Members

BackgroundThis study addresses the nexus of two significant yet under-researched areas of instructional leadership: the role of central office administrators in developing principals as instructional leaders and the potential for the instructional leadership team (ILT) to serve as a structure for supporting administrators and teachers in working collaboratively to improve instruction and student learning in their schools.PurposeSpecifically, this study examines the efforts of principal supervisors—central office administrators responsible for supporting and evaluating principals—who aimed to develop instructional leadership broadly in high-poverty high schools by leading professional learning opportunities for principals and members of their ILTs.ParticipantsParticipants included principals and ILT members (e.g., assistant principals, teachers) in three high-poverty high schools in the same urban district and the three principal supervisors responsible for supporting them.Research DesignDrawing on 36 interviews and approximately 80 hours of observation of ILT meetings and professional learning opportunities, the present study uses in-depth case studies of three focus schools to identify the specific practices principal supervisors use to influence the work of principals and ILTs.FindingsThe findings suggest that principal supervisors contributed to ILTs’ increased focus on instruction and encouraged principals to share leadership with teachers. Principals and ILT members viewed the support of principal supervisors as most helpful when they engaged in explicit teaching about the purpose and practices of ILTs, approached their work with principals and ILTs as joint work, and shared specific models that could be integrated into ILT meetings.ConclusionsThe practices used by principal supervisors represented a significant shift in the role of central office administrators toward a focus on teaching as opposed to a more traditional focus on supervision.

The Network Runs the Schools: From a Loose to a Tightly Coupled School District

This case study explores a central office’s attempt to improve its school performance by shifting from a loosely to a more tightly coupled organization through greater oversight and standardization of practice. Educational leaders and, specifically, district-level and central office administrators often negotiate between providing schools autonomy and pursuing greater accountability and uniformity to foster improved student achievement. Educators studying this case will examine the pros and cons of both approaches as well as the potential trade-offs when shifting from one system to another or engaging in a hybrid approach on elements like teacher motivation, teacher–student relationships, school culture, and student achievement.

Goals, Rhetoric, and (In)Equity: The Rationales Behind Decentralizing a Large, Diverse School District

School district decentralization typically shifts authority and resources from central office administrators at the district level to leaders at the school level. Although decentralization reforms have been prevalent in urban educational contexts for decades, they often yield poor results for low-income, minoritized communities. In this article, we examine stakeholder rationales behind decentralizing a large, diverse countywide district and the extent to which equity was part of these rationales. The findings suggest that although stakeholders aim to improve student achievement, financial and administrative efficiency, and family/community engagement through decentralization, many failed to consider how school-level disparities might result in sustaining or worsening inequities.

District micropolitics during principal professional learning

Principal professional learning is shifting in many districts in the United States of America away from didactic, central office-managed workshops to include more peer-led learning opportunities. Yet researchers have largely failed to examine issues of positionality and authority in principal professional learning, despite international scholarship that demonstrates the influence of micropolitics on the enactment of change. Using event analysis of a critical case study in an urban district in the northeast USA, we examine three chains of events. Principals and central office administrators used a variety of tactics – cooperation, compromise, and co-optation – to navigate overt and covert conflict during implementation of peer-led principal professional learning. Principals and central office administrators encountered micropolitics as they determined authority over the learning agenda, negotiated a redefinition of a new principal role, and co-constructed official spaces for peer-led learning. Findings provide lessons for educational leaders and those responsible for professional learning in districts with middle manager roles in any context, as well as suggesting that future research on the micropolitics of principal professional learning is warranted.

PEMEKARAN DAERAH: PELUANG DAN TANTANGAN BAGI PEMEKARAN KOTA MEULABOH

The Establishment of the new city has two consequences. Positive consequence of the creation of new district is the best solution for the old and new in infrastructure development. The negative consequence occure when the creation of new district is only focus on development of new infrastructure for the central office administration and ignore the poverty and welfare as the main problem of societyKeywords: Decentralization, Expansion, Poverty

The (Mis) Education of Immigrant Children in Today’s America

In today’s America, not every child starts on a level playing field, and very few children move ahead based solely on hard work or talent. Generational poverty and a lack of cultural capital hold many students back, robbing them of the opportunity to move up professionally and socially. Children of immigrants are especially at-risk because, in addition to facing poverty, race, geographical location or economic disadvantages, they are also confronted with failure due to their limited or non-existent English proficiency. This study focuses on the degree to which teachers in a mid-sized urban school district take into consideration the individual needs of immigrant children in the process of their education. The study also examines the preparation teachers have had to equip them with knowledge of best practices in teaching immigrant children, and the relationship between teachers’ practices, beliefs, and their demographic and personal characteristics (age, gender, years of experience, level of education, etc.). Quantitative data was collected via a survey. Interviews with teachers and one central office administrator provided data for the qualitative section of the study. The findings revealed that teachers, in general, appeared to lack knowledge of specific policies for mainstreaming immigrant students into general education classrooms; their use of effective teaching practices for working with immigrant children were limited; and most of the teachers had not participated actively in professional development that focused on teaching immigrant children.

The role of district leaders for organization social capital

PurposeAlthough it is assumed that school district governance by districts leaders can impact schools’ capacity to improvement and educational quality, there is little systematic evidence to support this claim. The purpose of this paper is to discuss how governance goals and interventions affect school districts’ social capital.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical enquiry used quantitative data on district leaders enacting governance as perceived by their school principals. These data were collected among 399 school principals of 23 Dutch school districts in elementary education, using a survey. Social network data on social capital within school districts were collected using a social network survey among educational administrators (i.e. district leaders, central office administrators and school principals). Additionally, examples of the relation between school district social capital and governance at six school districts were described.FindingsResults suggest that district leaders can promote the organizational social capital of their school districts through focusing on educational goals. In addition, the findings show that they can reinforce their impact by using interventions varying in coercion level, of which offering support to school principals appears to be “a golden button” to make organizational social capital thrive.Research limitations/implicationsLimitations to the study are the generalizability of the findings (they can be questioned because “convenience sampling” was used) and warrant a longitudinal design to examine how organization social capital develops over time.Originality/valueThe study is unique as it addresses the impact district leaders may have on their districts’ social capital by focusing on social network approach in the study of school district governance.

Understanding the Organizational Implementation Context of Schools: A Qualitative Study of School District Administrators, Principals, and Teachers.

Key features of the school environment can have a significant impact on teachers' effective use of evidence-based practices (EBP), yet implementation-specific organizational constructs have rarely been studied in the education sector. This study examined three aspects of the organizational implementation context (implementation leadership, climate, and citizenship behavior), which have been conceptualized and validated in other service settings. Focus groups with central office administrators, principals, and teachers were conducted to understand the applicability and conceptual boundaries of these organizational constructs in schools. Focus group transcripts were coded, and the results indicated both similarities and differences in their conceptualizations of implementation leadership, climate, and citizenship behavior in school. The data indicated that: (1) implementation leadership was largely present in schools with the addition of Distributed Leadership; (2) two implementation climate constructs were most clearly present (i.e., Focus on EBP and Educational Support for EBP) and two additional constructs (i.e., Existing Support to Deliver EBP and Prioritization of EBP) emerged as part of this construct; and (3) implementation citizenship behavior (Helping Others and Keeping Informed) was consistently acknowledged across schools and two new components emerged (i.e., Information Sharing and Observation/Feedback). Recommendations to researchers and community stakeholders are discussed.

Principal Coaching in Central Office Supervisory Roles: Exploring Persistent Tensions

Scholars have increasingly focused on the practice of central office administrators. Principal supervisors, who often work in central offices, have received attention as scholars view these administrators as an essential source of support for school principals. This study employed a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews conducted with 20 principal supervisors who participated in coaching partnership facilitated by a private, mid-sized university over three academic years. Additionally, the data set included 127 hours of non-participant observation and 59 documents. The findings indicate that principal supervisors had difficulty reconciling coaching behaviors within the context of their supervisory roles. In particular, supervisors found the expectations associated with their role more prescriptive than anticipated and thus an impediment to the adoption of coaching behaviors in their work. Supervisors thus sought to adjust their practice to accommodate coaching behaviors. However, given expectations associated with their role, supervisors often resorted to directive and supervisory behaviors. A primary conclusion of this study is that leadership coaching behaviors might not be readily implemented within the context of supervisory practice unless adequate support, training, and organizational reforms occur. The findings thus have implications for the configuration of central office supervisory roles as well as how leadership preparation programs prepare candidates for central office supervisory positions.

Effect of meditation on psychological distress and brain functioning: A randomized controlled study

BackgroundPsychological stability and brain integration are important factors related to physical and mental health and organization effectiveness. This study tested whether a mind-body technique, the Transcendental Meditation (TM) program could increase EEG brain integration and positive affect, and decrease psychological distress in government employees. MethodNinety-six central office administrators and staff at the San Francisco Unified School District were randomly assigned to either immediate start of the TM program or to a wait-list control group. At baseline and four-month posttest, participants completed an online version of the Profile of Mood States questionnaire (POMS). In addition, a subset of this population (N = 79) had their EEG recorded at baseline and at four-month posttest to calculate Brain Integration Scale (BIS) scores. ResultsAt posttest, TM participants significantly decreased on the POMS Total Mood Disturbance and anxiety, anger, depression, fatigue, and confusion subscales, and significantly increased in the POMS vigor subscale. TM participants in the EEG-subgroup also significantly increased in BIS scores. Compliance with meditation practice was high (93%). ConclusionFindings indicate the feasibility and effectiveness of implementing the TM program to improve brain integration and positive affect and reduce psychological distress in government administrators and staff.

The Impact of Job Satisfaction on the Turnover Intent of Executive Level Central Office Administrators in Texas Public School Districts: A Quantitative Study of Work Related Constructs

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between job satisfaction and turnover intent of executive level central office administrators in Texas public school districts. For the intent of this study, executive level central office administrators were defined as staff members who serve in one of the following roles in a school district: assistant, associate, area, or deputy superintendent. The data were collected from a random sample of 234 participants in which survey instruments of job satisfaction and turnover intent were used. Each instrument was created on a five-point Likert scale. Based on the results of the study, it was concluded that a moderate inverse relationship exists between job satisfaction and turnover intent and job satisfaction explained 41.3% of an executive level central office administrator’s intent for turnover. Research related to this employee group is lacking. Therefore, not much is known regarding how it relates to their attitude towards work-related factors. Learning more about job satisfaction and turnover intention of these individuals could have long term implications since it relates to mitigating the shortage of superintendent candidates available to fill the growing number of vacancies as well as recruitment, retention, and increased work productivity of these staff.

Reorganizing a countywide school district: A critical analysis of politics and policy development toward decentralization

Policymakers and educational leaders continue to use school district decentralization as a reform effort that attempts to shift power and authority from central office administration to school-level leadership. In 2015, the Nevada Legislature passed legislation to restructure the Clark County School District (CCSD), the state’s largest school district, with the intent of breaking it up into smaller districts but instead evolving to decentralization. In this article, we use case study methods to explore the events leading up to the reorganization of CCSD. We take a critical perspective on Kingdon’s multiple streams framework to analyze the reorganization efforts, focusing specifically on how Nevada’s political context provided a window of opportunity for the reorganization to occur. We also examine the extent to which equitable educational opportunity was a factor in these efforts. Our analysis of the reorganization of CCSD contributes to a wider understanding of state-level policy development and politics within contemporary educational contexts. In this case, we find that state-level policymakers successfully leveraged the opportunity to enact the power and authority necessary to significantly and rapidly impact the structure of one of the largest school districts in the United States.

Evidence-Based Decision-Making

Research has explored the use of evidence-based practices within schools but less is known about evidence-based decision-making among school district central office administrators. This study explored how individual and school-level characteristics of administrators were related to the implementation of evidence-based practices. Findings suggested that administrators were more knowledgeable about evidence-based practices if they were working in districts with existing policies in place to address the use of research in decision-making. Administrators were less knowledgeable about evidence-based practices in small, rural districts.

Using data wisely at the system level

District administrators who want to build capacity for data use in schools may be well-served by starting in the central office. This case study of the Boston Public Schools shows how central office administrators can leverage their own data inquiry cycles to improve the ways they support schools in using data. Using the Data Wise Improvement Process, this central office team revamped its model for supporting teachers as they identify, practice, and integrate new instructional strategies to better meet the student needs they uncovered in their data. Here’s what it looks like when inquiry facilitators “walk the walk” of continuous improvement.