Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), University of Findlay, 2024, Education

This qualitative study examined the importance of mentoring for Ohio's novice public- school principals, along with their beliefs about the access and effectiveness of Ohio's current administrative mentoring model, and their views about essential elements to include in an entry- year mentoring program. This study included an online Google survey to approximately 1,600 principals and Zoom interviews with nine principals who volunteered. This study's participants shared that they believe mentoring is important, and many of them lacked any formal mentoring in the entry year. The study also revealed that the majority of new principals who participated had no knowledge of Ohio's mentoring program which indicates that better exposure and marketing needs to take place. Study participants also expressed that a mentoring program would be more effective if it was individualized, and if the mentor was local and had knowledge about the districts in which the new principals worked. In addition, with approximately only 100 available spaces in the Beginning Administrator Mentorship (BAM) program, the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) does not sufficiently fund it to a level that supports the number of new leaders in Ohio–but the BAM program experience was satisfying according to the limited number (n=13) of this study's participants who took part in Ohio's program. Some implications of this study to consider include: honoring the local need and moving mentoring program oversight to regional ESC's; (2) structuring the mentoring program based on individualized needs; (3) prioritizing elements of a program based on data from this study; (4) considering small cohorts of principals working together.

Committee: Jennifer Theriault (Committee Chair) Subjects: Educational Leadership; School Administration

Doctor of Education (EdD), Ohio University, 2015, Educational Administration (Education)

The ratio of African American females in the position of high school principal in the State of Ohio is disproportionate to the number of credentialed, willing candidates. The central focus of this study was to examine whether or not gender and racial barriers exist when obtaining the position of high school principal. This study also posited to identify perceptions of gender and racial barriers, which could also inhibit access to the principalship for African American female assistant principals. Nine African American urban female principals and assistant principals were interviewed to ascertain their beliefs regarding barriers, supports, race and gender to the position of high school principal.This study found that African American female principals and assistant principals identified several barriers to the high school principalship of which race and gender were the most influential factors.

Committee: Dwan Robinson (Advisor) Subjects: African Americans; Education; Teacher Education; Womens Studies

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1968, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Doctor of Education, Miami University, 2018, Educational Leadership

Since the inception of the role of school principal, the responsibilities of the position have evolved and changed. Early principals were managers; however, over time social issues and the accountability movement led to state and national policies that have impacted the role of the principal to include instructional leadership. Literature on the topic of school leadership has identified a relationship between instructional leadership and student achievement. However, little information on how to develop instructional leaders has been studied. Therefore, the purpose of this explanatory, mixed-methods case study was to determine to what extent a principal development program fostered perceived instructional leadership skills in secondary school principals who have five years or less experience in the role. The case study was conducted in a large, Midwestern, suburban school district that implemented a Principal Academy in the fall of 2015 in order to equip principals to lead the implementation of district-wide instructional goals. This study focused on early career secondary principals as I hypothesized that they would be more likely to perceive an influence from the professional development experience. Qualitative data was gathered via interviews with five principals and their supervisor. Quantitative data was gathered from an online survey of teachers in the buildings whose principals qualified for the study. One overarching question and four sub-questions guided my study. The overarching questions was: To what extent has District X's Principal Academy strengthened the five identified instructional leadership behaviors of school principals with five years or less experience? The four sub-questions were as follows: • To what degree do early experience secondary principals perceive an improvement in their instructional leadership skills over time? • To what degree do early experience secondary principals who participate in job-embedded professional devel (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Kathleen Abowitz PhD (Committee Chair); Lucian Szlizewski PhD (Advisor); James Shiveley PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Adult Education; Education; Educational Leadership; School Administration

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1984, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Education

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1981, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Education

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 1954, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: Education

Doctor of Education (Educational Leadership), Youngstown State University, 1995, Department of Educational Administration, Research and Foundations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of teachers and supervisors toward the principal leadership behaviors of female secondary principals in Ohio. Principal self-perceptions were also included to complete the study. The literature shows that women continue to be underrepresented in a field in which the majority of professionals are women, therefore the reasons for underrepresentation warrant investigation. Although women are beginning to move into such ranks more frequently, line administrative positions continue to be dominated by males, and few women hold the positions of high school principal and school district superintendent, positions which continue to be particularly resistant to the advancement of females. Randomly selected school districts in Ohio were involved in this investigation, the participants of which completed a copy of Philip Hallinger's Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale (PIMRS), a scale which afforded the opportunity to compare the perceptions of superordinates, principals, and subordinates. The results indicated significant differences between principal gender and the responses of others on most of the subscales of the PIMRS. The mean subscale results were much higher for female principals than for male principals as well. The conclusions of this study indicate that there is significant difference in perceptions of principal leadership behavior regarding gender. Principals also judge their own leadership behavior significantly differently based on gender.

Committee: Robert Beebe (Advisor) Subjects: Education, Administration

Doctor of Education (Educational Leadership), Youngstown State University, 1995, Department of Educational Administration, Research and Foundations

This study examines the place of women in the culture of the high school principal. I used feminist analysis as a critique of the positivist paradigm of educational bureaucracy and the masculinist discourse that forms the culture of the high school principal. I used this culture as a microcosm of the larger culture. Through semi-structured interviews with five female high school principals from northern Ohio, I provided an opportunity for them to give voice to their discourses regarding their places in the culture of the high school principal. Through an examination of their discourses, I looked for expression of resistance and acceptance of the masculinized discourse of the culture that they inhabit. I proposed that an interpretation of their discourses can be used to make visible the link between gender and power relations. This visibility will further enable people to re-evaluate their own processes and situations and may provide a forum for mulitvoiced negotiation of difference and possible emancipatory constructions.

Committee: Robert Beebe (Advisor) Subjects: Education, Administration

EdD, University of Cincinnati, 2008, Education : Urban Educational Leadership

This qualitative study investigated the connection between the behaviors of principals and teacher job satisfaction and motivation, and how this connection results in increased teacher retention. Particularly, the researcher looked at what strategies principals use to motivate and encourage teachers to remain at a school. The researcher also examined teachers' primary reasons for staying at a particular school. Two urban high schools were the sites for this study. The researcher conducted both focus groups and interviews. Individual interviews were held with two principals; one principal had two years of experience and the other had seven years of experience. In addition, the researcher conducted individual interviews with three teachers from each school. One focus group at each school, each composed of three to four participants, also yielded data. The research showed that college education programs do not adequately prepare teachers to work with students and face the various challenges that often accompany them. Teachers need support in order to succeed as educators. The data revealed that the principal sets the tone and is the driving force of a school, thereby having a huge impact on the school environment. Though teachers were more likely to stay at schools where they felt a connection to their students, this study found that the principal is instrumental in teacher retention. The researcher found that though teachers believe they directly have control of many aspects of the school reality, the principal continues to orchestrate and facilitate school operations in an indirect, inclusive manner. The effective, invisible principal creates an environment where teachers are empowered and moved to the forefront, while the principal navigates from the background. The ability of the teacher to focus on teaching and learning is directly correlated with the principal's ability to maintain a safe and orderly environment, complete with the supports and recognition teacher (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Lanthan Camblin PhD (Committee Chair); Roger Collins PhD (Committee Member); Terry Joyner EdD (Committee Member); Steve Sunderland PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Educational Sociology; Educational Theory; School Administration

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2025, Leadership and Change

As schools increasingly adopt restorative practices, a parallel shift in leadership is occurring, challenging traditional leadership models like servant and transformational leadership. While research has largely focused on student outcomes, there is a critical gap in understanding how restorative practices influence school principals' leadership. Given their central role in sustaining and expanding restorative initiatives, this study aimed to address that gap by developing a definitional framework for restorative leadership, grounded in the experiences of women school leaders in grades 5 to 12. Using sensemaking theory, the research examined how leaders conceptualize and apply restorative values in practice. Key questions included how restorative leadership is understood, how it shapes leadership identity, and how it is enacted in practice. A mixed-methods design was employed, integrating survey data (N = 52) and semi-structured interviews (N = 12). Findings revealed that while 51.92% of participants recognized the term “restorative leadership,” many were already practicing it without labeling it as such. Restorative leadership emerged as a dynamic process of knowing, being, and doing, rooted in self-awareness, relational repair, participatory decision-making, and collective well-being. It challenges hierarchical paradigms and fosters inclusive school cultures, with the potential to disrupt inequitable systems, improve school climates, and promote leader well-being. Based on these findings, several key recommendations for action are proposed: establishing Restorative Leadership Intensives (RLIs) to deepen principals' engagement with restorative practices, integrating restorative leadership into leadership development programs and professional certifications, advocating for gender-equitable leadership models that emphasize relational strengths, and embedding restorative practices into school policies to create inclusive cultures. These actions a (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Betty Overton-Atkins PhD (Committee Chair); Woden Teachout PhD (Committee Member); Linda Kligman PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Continuing Education; Curriculum Development; Education; Education Philosophy; Educational Leadership; Educational Psychology; Educational Sociology; Educational Theory; Ethics; Gender; Management; Peace Studies; School Administration; Social Psychology; Social Research; Sociology; Teacher Education; Teaching; Womens Studies

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1950, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1964, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1960, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1964, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1960, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1967, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1963, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1962, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1962, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: