Abstract:
The national average for tenure of a public school superintendent ranges from
3.64 years to 7.25 years. This qualitative case study explored the leadership behaviors
that one school superintendent displayed over a 1 0-year tenure with the same school
district. The superintendent included in this study was selected through purposeful
sampling. Network sampling was then employed to select the four principals that would
be interviewed concerning superintendent's leadership practices and behavior. In depth
interviews, document analysis, and observations were used to collect data.
Findings from the study yielded six major themes: capacity to excel, leader as
teacher and learner, leader as mentor, relationship building, facilitative leadership, and
values-driven leadership. The themes were analyzed and discussed within the context of establishing the contributing factors to this superintendent's above-average tenure.
Description:
"A Decade of Service: A Case Study of Superintendent Leadership," by
James Bradley Knox for Doctor of Education in Leadership, in Leadership in the Department of Curriculum, Leadership, and Technology
of the Dewar College of Education and Human Services. July 2013.