Voices of Women Aspiring to the Superintendency


Book Description

The superintendency offers the most powerful and prestigious positions in K–12 public school systems. Few superintendents of these systems in the United States are women, although the majority of teachers are women and many women have leadership positions in schools. There are also increasing numbers of women in administrative preparation programs at institutions of higher education. This study of 27 highly qualified women in top-level administrative positions in public education was designed to find out what it is like to be a woman aspiring to the executive leadership position. Research questions included: Why are there so few women superintendents when so many are qualified? What are the routes to the superintendency? What is the context of educational administration in the public school? What kinds of leaders are women who aspire to the superintendency? The research was also informed by a femininst advocacy of social change to discover how and under what conditions a more equitable distribution of superintendencies is likely to occur. A feminist poststructural framework provided the theoretical basis for the analysis of the data.




Voices of Women Aspiring to the Superintendency


Book Description

The superintendency offers the most powerful and prestigious positions in K-12 public school systems. Few superintendents of these systems in the United States are women, although the majority of teachers are women and many women have leadership positions in schools. There are also increasing numbers of women in administrative preparation programs at institutions of higher education. This study of 27 highly qualified women in top-level administrative positions in public education was designed to find out what it is like to be a woman aspiring to the executive leadership position. Research questions included: Why are there so few women superintendents when so many are qualified? What are the routes to the superintendency? What is the context of educational administration in the public school? What kinds of leaders are women who aspire to the superintendency? The research was also informed by a feminist advocacy of social change to discover how and under what conditions a more equitable distribution of superintendencies is likely to occur. A feminist poststructural framework provided the theoretical basis for the analysis of the data.




Women and the Superintendency


Book Description

Abstract: The most male-dominated executive position of any profession in the United States. The typical superintendent is a married, white male, between 51-55 years old. Women spend an average of 10.2 years in the classroom before seeking an administrative position; men spend an average of 5 years. The slowest of all K-12 administrative positions to integrate women and people of color. With the majority of educators being women, they are a logical source of candidates that has only marginally been activated. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to reveal the narrative of women superintendents as well as to describe their perceptions of success ascending to the superintendency. If women are to seek the superintendency they will need to view the position as one that will offer them success. But what is success for women in the superintendency? How do women in this position experience it? This study probes the lived experiences of women superintendents, including significant moments in their childhood, in search of better understanding their perceptions and experiences with success. A narrative approach was used in this study to capture the essence of participants' lives along with documents and artifacts. Feminist Theory was used as the theoretical lens from which to frame the research. The data was recorded, transcribed, and analyzed. The findings surrounding female superintendents perceptions of themselves revealed four themes: identity, education, roles, and support. The findings surrounding women superintendents experiences with success is focused on relationship building and effective communication. The main conclusions drawn included aspiring superintendents need to obtain higher education degrees for advancement, site level administration and district office experience, and personal and professional support systems.




Women and School Leadership


Book Description

This international collection of work by leading feminist scholars in educational administration from five Western liberal democratic countries presents "state-of-the-art" research on women in school leadership positions. The contributors focus on the need for critical reflections, which reveal hidden aspects of leadership phenomena, and advocate diverse forms of positive action to improve the condition for women in school settings. As such, this collection challenges the reader to consider the partiality of all perspectives on leadership, as well as future directions for research and practice. It also brings together views of schools and school systems at the macro level, with discussions and case studies focused on the micro levels of school life.




Sacred Dreams


Book Description

Although women have dominated the teaching ranks at all levels of education since the turn of the century, men occupy 93 percent of superintendency jobs. Considering the nationwide concern that superintendency positions will be vacated faster than they can be filled during the next decade, it's quite possible that women are the greatest untapped pool of capable candidates. As women think about, seek, and accept superintendency assignments, they need a resource like Sacred Dreams that offers both practical advice from those who have attained this rank and research results from those who have studied the situation. Such an understanding has the potential not only to increase the number of women in the position, but also to increase their likelihood of success. [Contributors include Judy A. Alston, Cynthia Beekley, Jackie M. Blount, C. Cryss Brunner, Susan Chase, Margaret Grogan, Barbara L. Jackson, Debra Jackson, Estelle Kamler, Sylvia E. Méndez-Morse, Flora Ida Ortiz, Barbara Nelson Pavan, Charol Shakeshaft, and Marilyn Tallerico. Also included is a foreword by Patricia A. Schmuck.]




The Study of the American School Superintendency 2000


Book Description

This book is the largest and most comprehensive look at the men and women leading our nation's public schools. It's a must-have for school leaders, aspiring school leaders, and those charged with preparing and supporting school leaders. It includes a wide range of information about and from superintendents, including chapters devoted to women and minority school leaders.




Reconsidering Feminist Research in Educational Leadership


Book Description

Ten prominent feminist researchers from diverse backgrounds examine educational leadership by focusing on critical questions about the theories, methods, and epistemologies feminist researchers use. The contributors analyze the impact of research on participants and assess the ethical and political implications of researching across groups. They explore the types of strategies feminist researchers have developed to address the problems of the field and propose alternative epistemologies that provide for more sensitive research methods and more complex research results. The book provides a timely examination of how gender inequalities were created and structured within U.S. systems of school administration, how they are maintained and perpetuated, and how they might best be understood and dismantled.




The Contemporary Superintendent


Book Description

A strong superintendent is critical to the success of an entire school district, and this exciting new resource details the issues surrounding the state policies that appoint superintendents.




The Study of the American Superintendency, 2000


Book Description

The Study of the American School Superintendency, 2000 is the ninth 10-Year Study of the American School Superintendent commissioned by AASA. This 174-page reference work on the superintendency is the largest and most comprehensive look at the men and women leading our nation's public schools. It includes a wide range of information about and from superintendents, including a close examination of: Superintendents' personal characteristics, professional experience and professional preparation and training, Superintendent/school board relations and other issues affecting education and leadership, Women and minority school leaders, The history of the school superintendent in American public education, And more! The Study of the American School Superintendency, 2000 is a valuable resource for school leaders, aspiring school leaders, and those charged with preparing and supporting school leaders. In 2007, AASA will publish the 10th study of the superintendency. So, we're making room for the new study and offering the 2000 study at more than 70% off! Buy yours now, before it's too late!




Handbook for Achieving Gender Equity Through Education


Book Description

First published in 1985, the Handbook for Achieving Gender Equity Through Education quickly established itself as the essential reference work concerning gender equity in education. This new, expanded edition provides a 20-year retrospective of the field, one that has the great advantage of documenting U.S. national data on the gains and losses in the efforts to advance gender equality through policies such as Title IX, the landmark federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in education, equity programs and research. Key features include: Expertise – Like its predecessor, over 200 expert authors and reviewers provide accurate, consensus, research-based information on the nature of gender equity challenges and what is needed to meet them at all levels of education. Content Area Focus – The analysis of gender equity within specific curriculum areas has been expanded from 6 to 10 chapters including mathematics, science, and engineering. Global/Diversity Focus – Global gender equity is addressed in a separate chapter as well as in numerous other chapters. The expanded section on gender equity strategies for diverse populations contains seven chapters on African Americans, Latina/os, Asian and Pacific Island Americans, American Indians, gifted students, students with disabilities, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students. Action Oriented – All chapters contain practical recommendations for making education activities and outcomes more gender equitable. A final chapter consolidates individual chapter recommendations for educators, policymakers, and researchers to achieve gender equity in and through education. New Material – Expanded from 25 to 31 chapters, this new edition includes: *more emphasis on male gender equity and on sexuality issues; *special within population gender equity challenges (race, ability and disability, etc); *coeducation and single sex education; *increased use of rigorous research strategies such as meta-analysis showing more sex similarities and fewer sex differences and of evaluations of implementation programs; *technology and gender equity is now treated in three chapters; *women’s and gender studies; *communication skills relating to English, bilingual, and foreign language learning; and *history and implementation of Title IX and other federal and state policies. Since there is so much misleading information about gender equity and education, this Handbook will be essential for anyone who wants accurate, research-based information on controversial gender equity issues—journalists, policy makers, teachers, Title IX coordinators, equity trainers, women’s and gender study faculty, students, and parents.