Leadership Preparation and the Career Paths of Black Principals

Leadership training and administrative experience are key components of sponsored mobility as the candidate’s participation in district- or school-sponsored training for aspiring school principals combined with the opportunity to avail of administrative experiences effectively constitute a pipeline to the principalship. The literature reveals that principals are the primary sponsor of teachers entering into the principalship pipeline. We conceptualize two of the above key areas (leadership training & administrative experience) as components of contest mobility and the other two (participation & opportunity) as components of sponsored mobility. Contest mobility encompasses academic credentialing and management experience and assumes every candidate has an equal chance and the same opportunity as any other candidate to contest for a school leadership position. These actions are not sponsored by the candidate’s district or school. In contrast, sponsored mobility encompasses the informal process used to facilitate transition to leadership for some teachers, but not for others. We use restricted data from the 2011 to 2012 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) to discern whether there were differences between Black and White principals’ exogenous contest mobility and endogenous sponsored mobility prior to the attainment of their principalships.

When Good Intentions Only Go So Far: White Principals Leading Discussions About Race

This cross-case case study explores how two White principals took the first steps to engage in racial conversations. Using the constructs of race consciousness and antiracism, race neutrality, and resistance to racial dialogue to frame our findings, we illustrate how both principals broached the topic of race with staff members. We demonstrate how the structures of whiteness hindered the principals’ progress toward addressing systemic racial inequities within their respective schools. Our article concludes with recommendations and strategies for principal preparation programs and practicing school leaders.

Culturally Responsive Instructional Leadership: A Conceptual Exploration with Principals of Three New Zealand Mainstream Schools

Principals of many New Zealand (NZ) mainstream schools navigate a complex intercultural educational policy environment to address the academic challenges of M?ori and Pasifika students. This inquiry sought to explore the concept of <em>culturally responsive instructional leadership </em>by studying the knowledge, actions, motives, perceptions, and challenges of White principals in a primary school, an intermediate school, and a high school in NZ. The emergent conceptual definition of <em>culturally responsive instructional leadership</em> includes those purposeful, well-intentioned, creative, and collaborative actions that a principal takes to enhance the academic engagement and achievement of minority-culture students.