Principals at Low-Performing Schools: Characteristics of New Hires, Stayers, Leavers, and Their Relationship With School Outcomes

• In Event: Roundtable Session 116
  In Roundtable Session: Leading and Teaching in Diverse Contexts

Abstract

The entire premise of the school turnaround effort is that educators in schools that need to be "turned around" have failed their students and that the leader of the school—the principal—is most responsible for that failure. The research in this paper examines who these leaders are (i.e., their characteristics, the length of stay of the leaders of such schools, whether the schools show any gains over time with the same leader or after a leader transition, and where the leaders go after leaving the school), and as such focuses on a surprisingly under-researched issue.

Authors

• Edward J. Fuller, The Pennsylvania State University

• Michelle D. Young, University Council for Educational Administration