Doctor of Education (EdD), Ohio University, 2024, Educational Administration (Education)

This study seeks to investigate and illuminate what Superintendents perceive to be their democratic ethos and how they maintain their orientation in the context of school board interactions and/or relationships. A democratic ethos is seen by this study as the intrapersonal convictions needed to enable Superintendents to continually drive forward with their practices, even when policy, school-boards, and the community seem to falter. The schoolboard-Superintendent relationship represents a microcosm of American society and overarching democratic values. The research is concerned with the relational synthesis of two concepts by Superintendents as a mechanism for sustaining a system of governance and ensuring the longitudinal growth and progress of the educational systems they work in. Approached as a multiple-case analyses, this study presents the narratives of a group of 10 Superintendents who self-identify democratically. This research sees the concepts of political literacy and social democracy as intertwined. The study has implications for informing the leadership of practicing Superintendents as well as leadership preparation programs, both for K-12 settings as well as post-secondary institutions and can extend to inform the practice of any individual who is charged with organizational leadership throughout the course of their daily demands.

Committee: Michael Hess, Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Bruce Martin, Ph.D. (Committee Member); Dwan Robinson, Ph.D. (Committee Member); Jerry Miller, Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Education; Education History; Education Philosophy; Education Policy; Educational Evaluation; Educational Theory; Ethics; Philosophy; Political Science; Social Research; Sociology; Sustainability

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2019, Arts Administration, Education and Policy

The purpose of this dissertation is to provide an intrinsic case study investigation of The City of Miami Beach and Miami - Dade County Public School's Education Compact. The Education Compact provides a model of how school districts are using innovative educational governance strategies to improve failing and low performing schools. The impetus for the design and instigation of The Education Compact was to address the rapidly growing changes in 21st century demographics of The City of Miami Beach and Miami-Dade County. The underlying goals of this case study are not to build theory, but to provide context-specific knowledge, and provide a detailed example and understanding of the intrinsic value of The City of Miami Beach and Miami-Dade County Public School Education Compact.

Committee: Candace Stout (Committee Chair); Joni Acuff (Committee Member); Wayne Lawson (Committee Member); James Sanders (Committee Member) Subjects: Art Education; Arts Management; Curricula; Curriculum Development; Demographics; Education; Education Policy; Educational Evaluation; Educational Leadership; Minority and Ethnic Groups; Multicultural Education; Organizational Behavior

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2010, Cross-Cultural, International Education

This research is a case study which looks at a school district in rural Alaska that serves a predominantly Alaska Native population. The research addresses the question of how the district is navigating the implementation of federal and state educational policy and simultaneously adapting initiatives to the local reality and addressing the needs and wishes of Native village communities. To understand the policy implementation process in this specific context, the researcher coded and analyzed all documents provided to the school district's board of education for their meetings from the 2004 through 2009. This data contained both explicit and implicit information about the challenges and relationships that make up a framework within which district administrators, board members, and community members work. In addition, it informed how this framework influences the policy implementation process within the district. Though specific to the context of rural Alaska and education for Alaska Natives, this research explores the local-national dichotomy at play in policy implementation, especially concerning schooling in Native communities. By giving attention to the role of the school board in this process, it is providing insights into an area that is under researched.

Committee: Bruce Collet PhD (Committee Chair); Christopher Frey PhD (Committee Member); Sheri Wells-Jensen PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Bilingual Education; Education; Native Americans

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), University of Dayton, 2012, Educational Leadership

This study examined attitudes of administrators, faculty, and students regarding student newspapers on Ohio's public university campuses; how student newspapers on the university campuses are governed, whether jurisdiction lies in administration, faculty, or student oversight; the extent to which problems occur between Ohio public university administrators and student journalists on the university campuses, including litigation; and examined anticipated changes in the current student newspaper governance structure and policies related to the student newspapers on the campuses. At its heart, this study focused on freedom of the press as it relates to student newspapers on public university campuses in Ohio.

Committee: Charles J. Russo J.D., Ed.D. (Committee Chair); Carolyn S. Ridenour Ed.D. (Committee Member); C. Daniel Raisch Ph.D. (Committee Member); James D. Robinson Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Educational Leadership; Higher Education; Higher Education Administration; Journalism; Mass Communications; Mass Media