Successful principal leadership in challenging American public schools: a brief history of ISSPP research in the United States and its major findings
Journal of Educational Administration
ISSN: 0957-8234
Article publication date: 21 September 2021
Issue publication date: 25 January 2022
Abstract
Purpose
In this paper, the authors recap the history and evolution of ISSPP research in the USA with research teams that grew from one location in 2002 to seven teams at present. The authors also examine the unique context of public education in America by describing its governance, key policies and funding as well as increasing student diversity due to changing internal student demographics and global population migrations. In particular, the authors describe how decentralization in American public education that has led to long-standing systemic inequities in school resource allocations and subsequently to marked gaps in performance outcomes for children from poor communities, especially for those of color. These existing inequities were the reason the USA research team was the only national ISSPP team from the original network of eight countries that choose to study exclusively leadership in challenging, high needs schools that performed beyond expectations.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors describe the common multi-case case study methodology (Merriam, 1988) and interview protocols employed in order to gather multiple perspectives on school success in high-needs communities and the principal's contribution to that success. Leithwood and Riehl's (2005) framework of core leadership practices for successful school leadership was used to analyze our data across all cases.
Findings
The authors present key findings from cases across the USA and synthesize common trends across these findings.
Research limitations/implications
The authors conclude the paper with a discussion of their overarching impressions from almost two decades of study, the importance of national and local context in examining school leadership and, lastly, suggestions for future research.
Originality/value
This article contributes to findings from the longest and largest international network on successful leadership.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgement of Team Members from USA Research Groups will be included here.
Boston College, Boston Massachusetts – Lauri Johnson, Kathy Sillman, Carrie Fuller; University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY – Stephen Jacobson, Lauri Johnson, Corrie Giles, Rose Ylimaki, Sharon Brooks; Clemson University, Clemson South Carolina – Curtis Brewer, Emily Green, Hans Klar, Rob Knoeppel, Jane Clark Lindle, Amanda Werts, Marissa Whitehouse; Indiana University, Indianapolis, Indiana: Gary Crow, Gerardo López, Khaula Murtadha, Thu Suong Nguyen; Fordham University, New York City, NY – Terry Orr and Monica Byrnes‐Jimenez; University of Texas ‐ San Antonio, San Antonio, TX – Betty Merchant, Encarnación Garza, Jr, Juan Manuel Niño, Karina Vielma and Hugo Saucedo and University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona – Rose Ylimaki, Jeffrey Bennett, Lynnette Brunderman, Thad Dugan.
Citation
Ylimaki, R.M., Jacobson, S., Johnson, L., Klar, H.W., Nino, J., Orr, M.T. and Scribner, S. (2022), "Successful principal leadership in challenging American public schools: a brief history of ISSPP research in the United States and its major findings", Journal of Educational Administration, Vol. 60 No. 1, pp. 101-117. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEA-04-2021-0087
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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