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Leading the Littlest Learners: Working Toward a Pre-K Inclusive Research Agenda in Educational Administration
Thu, April 9, 4:15 to 5:45pm PDT (4:15 to 5:45pm PDT), Los Angeles Convention Center, Floor: Level One, Petree DSession Type: Roundtable Session
Abstract
This symposium explores the critical but underexamined intersection of district leadership and early childhood education (ECE). The first paper reveals the extreme rarity of ECE teachers reaching the superintendency and explores how this background shapes leadership priorities. The second paper, using national survey data, demonstrates that women superintendents prioritize ECE significantly more than men, even among those without ECE teaching experience. The third paper presents qualitative findings on how superintendents make sense of leading Pre-K programs, highlighting both opportunities and structural challenges. Together, these studies illuminate issues in a significantly understudied area of educational leadership – ECE leadership – that have implications for leadership preparation programs.
Sub Unit
Chair
Papers
The Road Less Traveled: Early Childhood Teachers' Rare Ascent to the Superintendency and Its Impact on Leadership - Rachel Sue White, University of Texas at Austin; Lauren C. McKenzie, University of Texas at Austin; Christopher P. Brown, University at Buffalo - SUNY; Jinseok Shin, University of Texas at Austin; David E. DeMatthews, University of Texas at Austin
Making a Case for Closing the Superintendent Gap: Strong Early Childhood Education Leadership - Rachel Sue White, University of Texas at Austin; Lauren C. McKenzie, University of Texas at Austin; Michael H. Little, North Carolina State University; Rachel Rowan, North Carolina State University; Timothy Drake, North Carolina State University
How Superintendents Make Sense of Leading Public Pre-K Programs - Rachel Rowan, North Carolina State University; Lora Cohen-Vogel, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill; Lauren C. McKenzie, University of Texas at Austin