University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Promising practices: building the next generation of effective school principals

(USC Thesis Other)

Promising practices: building the next generation of effective school principals

PDF

Download a page range

Download transcript

Copy asset link

Request this asset

Transcript (if available)

Content Running head: BUILDING PRINCIPALS
1

PROMISING PRACTICES: BUILDING THE NEXT
GENERATION OF EFFECTIVE SCHOOL PRINCIPALS

by

Jennifer Edic Bryant

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

May 2016

Copyright 2016 Jennifer Edic Bryant
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
2
Acknowledgments
First and foremost, I must thank God for this opportunity to achieve a dream and for His
calling in my life. Through the most difficult times in this journey, my faith in who I am and
whose I am has sustained me. Second, I must acknowledge my immediate and extended
families, who have been by my side with love and encouragement from the very start. A special
thanks to my three children, Mason, Bailey, and Miles who not only were my biggest
cheerleaders, but also took every opportunity to feed me my own lines about working hard,
persevering, and reaching goals- touché.
I must express enormous gratitude to my committee chair, Dr. Kathy Stowe who made
the dissertation process such a positive one. Her feedback and structure was invaluable. In
addition, I’d like to thank Dr. Courtney Malloy and Dr. Lawrence Picus for serving on my
committee and for offering their extensive knowledge, insight, and time. Of course, I must also
acknowledge my thematic group- Ashley, Karen, and Monique. Thank you ladies for the honest
feedback, the laughs, and being kindred spirits through this process. Additionally, I must thank
my friend and role model Dr. Debby Collins for being my critical eye- reading each and every
line of this dissertation and providing such valuable feedback on my writing.
Finally, I would be remiss if I did not also thank Dr. Leigh Burstein, who informed me
that this day would arrive some 27 years ago. His dedication to the field of education, his
passion for understanding the complexity of this profession was inspiration for me. He planted
the seed that today is flourishing. I wish he were here to share in this special time.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
3
Table of Contents
List of Tables 6
List of Figures 7
Abstract 8
Chapter One: Overview of the Study 9
Background of the Problem 13
Statement of the Problem 15
Purpose of the Study 17
Research Questions 18
Significance of the Study 18
Limitations, Delimitations, Assumptions 20
Glossary of Terms 21
Organization of the Study 22
Chapter Two: Literature Review 23
Historical Context 24
District-Level Practices 28
Intentional Succession Planning 28
Collaborative Partnerships in Principal Preparation 32
Building Leadership Capacity at the School-Level 34
Selection of Potential School Administrators 35
Mentoring 36
Mentoring of pre-service administrators 37
Mentoring of novice administrators 38
Mentoring of tapped teachers 39
Collateral damage in mentoring 40
Challenges in Building Leadership Capacity 41
Transformational Leadership Theory 43
Model the Way 45
Inspire a Shared Vision 45
Enable Others to Act 46
Summary 47
Chapter Three: Methodology 49
Research Questions 49
Research Design and Methods 50
Sample and Population 51
Overview of the Organization 52
Overview of the Principal 52
Theoretical Framework 53
Conceptual Framework 54
Data Collection Approach 55
Instrumentation 56
Data Analysis 59
Ethical Considerations 60
Summary 60

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
4
Chapter Four: Results 61
Overview of Participants 61
Overview of the Organization 64
Data Findings: Research Question 1 67
School Culture 68
Relationships and accessibility 68
Clear values and vision 71
Opportunities for Authentic Experience 72
Authentic administrative activities 73
Feedback 74
Networking/learning opportunities 75
Personal Ideology 77
Selection of interns 77
Mentoring 78
Encouragement 79
Discussion of Research Question 1 79
Data Findings: Research Question 2 81
Relationships 82
Encouragement and Support 82
Relational model 83
Value in Mentoring and Coaching 83
Administrative role model 84
Guiding growth through mentoring 84
Value of Authentic Experiences 85
Opportunities for authentic experience 85
Feedback 86
Discussion of Research Question 2 87
Data Findings: Research Question 3 89
Factors that Facilitate 90
School systems and structures 90
District 92
Inhibiting Factors 93
Psychological 93
Structural/district-level 95
Discussion of Research Question 3 97
Summary 98
Chapter Five: Summary 100
Purpose of the Study 101
Summary of the Findings 102
Implications for Practice and Policy 106
Principals 106
Districts 107
Education Organizations 109
Recommendations for Future Studies 111
Conclusion 113
References 114
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
5
Appendix A: Participant Recruitment Letter 124
Appendix B: Administrator Interview Protocol 125
Appendix C: Teacher Interview Protocol 126
Appendix D: Matrix of Interview Protocols to Research Questions 127
Appendix E: Observation Protocol 131
Appendix F: Administrative Duties Chart Essex High School 133

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
6
List of Tables
Table 1: Study Participants 56
Table 2: Research Questions as Instrumentation 58
Table 3: Participant Descriptions 64
Table 4: Essex High School Student Demographics 65
Table 5: Essex High School Teacher Demographics 66

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
7
List of Figures
Figure 1: Conceptual Framework, Ed.D. Thematic Group 2015 54
Figure 2: Creswell’s (2014) Model for Qualitative Data Analysis 59

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
8
Abstract
This study utilizes the transformational leadership theory practices of inspiring a shared vision,
modeling the way and enabling others to act to examine intentional leadership succession
planning in K-12 public schools. The purpose of this study was to detail the promising practices
that one principal used to build leadership capacity in teachers who will become the next
generation of school principals and to describe the perceptions of teachers regarding those
practices. Additionally, this study sought to ascertain the factors that both facilitated and
inhibited the implementation of those strategies used to build leadership capacity. One high
school principal served as the case study for this research and data was gathered through
interviews, observations and collection of artifacts. Findings from this study showed that the
principal built leadership capacity in future administrators by creating structured opportunities
for authentic work in administration coupled with mentoring within a culture that values helping
others to develop professionally and personally. Findings also showed that teachers tapped by
the principal found value in the practices and expressed growth in capacity because of them.
Factors that inhibited the practices included psychological and structural challenges. While
factors that facilitated the practices were the structured and systematic way in which the principal
tapped teachers along with commitments of time and site funding. This study furthers
understanding of how intentional succession planning for the principalship can be initiated at the
school-level by effectively building leadership capacity in future principals while they are still
teachers.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
9
CHAPTER ONE: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY
Leadership has been shown to be a naturally occurring phenomenon that impacts all
groups and organizations. Studies of leadership in all industries, both public and private, allude
to the fact that leadership is significant in the success of an organization (Bass, 2008; Burke et
al., 2006; Collins, 2001; O’Reilly, Caldwell, Chatman, Lapiz, & Self, 2010). Because the very
nature of education is to develop human beings, the impact leadership has on student
achievement and development is a critical factor that cannot be ignored (Leithwood, Patten, &
Jantzi, 2010; Seashore Louis, Dretzke, & Wahlstrom, 2010; Wahlstrom, Seashore Louis,
Leithwood, & Anderson, 2010). If quality leadership is not being identified and cultivated in the
school system, then society is not fulfilling its greatest potential to provide the highest quality
education for all students.
A significant problem facing education nationally and globally is the recruitment and
development of leadership to fill school site administrative positions (Fink & Brayman, 2006;
Brooking, Collins, Court, & O’Neill, 2003). While the topics of classroom instruction, teachers,
teacher preparation and retention have dominated the literature on school improvement and
change, there is now movement toward investigating the development of leadership in schools
(Browne-Ferrigno & Muth, 2004; Leithwood, Harris, & Hopkins, 2008; Robinson, Lloyd, &
Rowe, 2008).
Research gives substance to the belief that principals matter when it comes to student
learning and outcomes. Successful principals are defined as those who create “schools that are
positive and productive workplaces for teachers and vibrant learning environments for children”
(Davis, Darling-Hammond, LaPointe, & Meyerson, 2005, p. 2). Successful principals have been
shown to impact students in two ways; the first being through their influence on programs and
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
10
processes that lead to student learning. Second, principals impact teacher retention, a factor
positively associated with higher student achievement (Ronfeldt, Loeb, & Wyckoff, 2013).
When examining student achievement and learning, research findings indicate that the
quality of a school’s principal is second only to teachers as a factor that contributes to these
student outcomes. Marzano, Waters, and McNulty (2005) found that principal quality accounted
for 25 percent of the impact on student achievement in a school. Some studies and reports
examine the relationship between principal leadership characteristics and student achievement.
Findings have linked practices associated with transformational leadership to student outcomes
(Leithwood & Jantzi, 2000; Leithwood et al., 2010). Other studies, while not using the term
transformational leadership, have found that successful principals use leadership practices that
are aligned with those described in the transformational leadership theory.
Successful principals also create conditions in schools that support student achievement
by contributing to teacher retention; this is done in part through a principal’s ability to develop
collaborative learning communities and shared leadership among staff (Boyd et al., 2011;
Hallinger & Heck, 2010; Marks & Printy, 2003; Robinson et al., 2008). Transformational
leadership emphasizes the connection between followers and leaders and how the role of a leader
is to inspire and motivate followers to achieve beyond what they believe possible of themselves
(Northouse, 2013). Transformational leadership, therefore, is the bedrock of successful principal
leadership.
The knowledge of principal impact on student outcomes and leadership characteristics
associated with positive outcomes informs districts and schools that seek to create viable
succession plans. Knowing what a candidate should be like then leads to the search for such a
person. Intentional succession planning includes addressing the need for high-quality principal
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
11
candidates, but recent trends in employment have indicated challenges in this area, these will be
addressed next.
In striving to fill principal positions with effective leaders, concerns have surfaced that
address the shortage of candidates for the principalship. Governmental agencies project a high
need for school principals in the next decade, particularly in areas serving historically
disadvantaged students, such as those living in poverty or English language learners (Fong &
Makkonen, 2011; Goldring & Taie, 2014; White, Fong, Makkonen, 2010). Depletion of the pool
of principal candidates is occurring due in part to the number of people leaving the education
field. For example “Baby Boomer” (born 1946-1964) principal retirements are predicted to
create a large number of openings.
Recent employment data show a 3.1% decrease in the labor participation rate since 2007,
1.6% of this decrease is attributed to retiring “baby boomers”. This decrease puts the total
number of adults in the labor market at it’s lowest since 1978 (White House Council of
Economic Advisors, 2014). Data on the impact of “baby boomer” retirements reflected a 70.6%
increase in need for administrators in education and related fields even in 2008 (Dohm, 2000).
Another contributor to the shrinking pool of candidates is that teachers, who are potential
candidates for the principalship, are leaving the education profession within the first nine years
of teaching at a rate 6% higher than exits due to retirements (Keigher, 2010). In simply looking
at numbers, the need to fill principal positions is growing. Compounding the increase in vacant
principal positions is the fact that in many states, there are sufficient numbers of administrative
credential holders to fill the vacancies, but they are not applying for positions (DeAngelis &
O’Connor, 2012; Gajda & Militello, 2008).
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
12
Those who have basic qualifications to fill principal positions are choosing not to do so
(Howley, Andrianaivo & Perry, 2005). Increasing job complexity, compensation not perceived
as proportional to job demands, stress levels associated with the principalship, and little time to
impact instruction all serve to discourage teachers from entering into formal school leadership.
Recent studies have addressed the development of principal succession plans and leadership
pipelines in order to explore the need for filling school principal positions (Fink, 2010; Gajda &
Militello, 2008; Myung, Loeb, & Horng, 2011). In confronting the shortage of principal
candidates, examining how to motivate teachers to aspire to administration as a career goal is an
issue that adds to the discourse on principal succession.
While the number of candidates applying for principal positions is shrinking in some
geographic regions by as much as 11 applicants per vacancy (Roza, 2003), an added dimension
to the shortage problem is that many are finding that principal candidates have only basic
qualifications and lack leadership experience and qualifications (Turnbull, Riley, & McFarlane,
2013). As research reveals the impact principals have on student outcomes, district leaders are
feeling as if the shortage is not merely based upon numbers, but also based upon number of
qualified candidates who seem prepared to take on the challenges of effective school leadership
(Roza, 2003). Organizations such as the Wallace Foundation have allocated resources for
developing administrative training programs that increase the quality of principal candidates
(Turnbull, et al., 2013). Much of the research informing this multi-state program examines the
skills, knowledge and behaviors that are needed in successful school administration. In addition
to developing administrators who meet specific standards aligned to effective school leadership,
the program also utilizes research-aligned practices in preparing future principals. For example,
strong evidence exists that principal development is improved through the use of strong and
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
13
effective mentoring (Browne-Ferrigno & Muth, 2004; Hansford & Ehrich, 2005; Silver,
Lochmiller, Copland, & Tripps, 2009). Promising administrator training programs include the
use of collaborative learning relationships with mentors and peers that provide opportunities for
pre-service and novice administrators to build leadership capacity. Leadership capacity can be
defined as “an organizational concept meaning broad-based, skillful participation in the work of
teachers as leaders in which they are invited, supported, and appreciated” (Harris & Lambert,
2003, p. 24).
Leadership planning has been a topic of interest as the shortage of qualified principals has
swelled. Attention has been directed toward examining the creation of a pipeline by strategically
planning for leadership succession (Collins, 2001; Fink, 2010, 2011). Included in intentional
succession planning discussions is how leadership capacity is developed in teachers prior to their
deciding to become administrators. The term “tapping” is used to describe a form of sponsored
mobility (Turner, 1960) where informal opportunities for leadership practice and learning are
offered to individuals who have been identified as having potential to move into administration.
As limited research in this area reflects, choices made in whom to tap may be based upon
characteristics unrelated to leadership potential (Myung et al., 2011). Further research is needed
to investigate how attributes aligned to successful principals can be used to select teachers for
tapping by current principals. This study aimed to examine principal practices that include the
selection of teachers and subsequent leadership capacity building that occurs as those selected
are moved into the principal pipeline.
Background of the Problem
The school principalship has been an evolving position. From the early 20
th
century until
today, the role has evolved into a more complex occupation. Early principals were selected to
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
14
serve in a managerial capacity, serving as an intermediary for teachers and districts with very
little focus on student learning (Rousmaniere, 2007). Growing supervisorial duties, the onset of
federal policies, and research reflecting principal impact on instruction and student success, have
refashioned the job into a multifaceted profession (Rousmaniere, 2007). The complex work of
the modern principal, in part, contributes to a dearth of qualified principals and the current
examination of how to develop the next generation of school leaders.
There is a rising need to fill vacant position in school administration in K-12 education.
The need is growing as a result of increased student population, retirement of current principal
force, and the complex nature of the position, making it unattractive to so many teachers
(Howley, et al., 2005; Kearney, 2010). The shortage of quality leaders to fill principal positions
has become a focus of interest by those examining the impact of principals on schools and
students (Fink, 2011; MacBeath, 2006; Russell & Sabina, 2014). The position has evolved from
one that used to be managerial in nature to one that involves a vast array of competencies.
Among other issues, today’s principals must have curricular and instructional expertise; the
ability to create a collaborative culture that includes shared leadership, and must create a clear
and compelling vision for student success. The critical role principals play in student academic
success have led studies, projects, and policies to begin to address how best to develop principals
as leaders (Darling-Hammond, LaPointe, Meyerson, & Orr, 2007; Davis et al., 2005).
States such as California are adjusting their standards for school administration to reflect
the growing responsibilities of the principalship. Partnerships between university training
programs and districts are beginning to show promise in building the leadership capacity of pre-
service administrators (Darling-Hammond et al., 2007, Kearney, 2010). Concurrent evaluation of
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
15
such partnerships in principal training reflect promise in their ability to better prepare principals
for the complex role of school administration (Turnbull et al., 2013).
In addition to the inquiries on principal training programs, a small number of studies are
also beginning to examine selection and leadership development in teachers through tapping or
sponsored mobility (Myung et al, 2011; Parylo, Zepeda, & Bengtson, 2013). While research on
tapping is sparse, it serves to broaden the conversation about how best to fill the reservoir of
school principals with high-quality leaders. Yet to be adequately addressed are the promising
practices that current principals use to recognize potential school administrators within their
teaching force and what strategies and resources principals use to cultivate effective leadership
capacity in these individuals.
Statement of the Problem
As prominent studies reveal, leadership is of great importance and particular leadership
characteristics are known to be more consistent in leading organizations toward success (Bass,
2008; Collins, 2001). From private businesses to government institutions, questions about how
to recognize, recruit and develop leadership continue to be asked and explored. Public education
faces this same dilemma. As states like California project a need for up to 5,000 new school
administrators by the year 2018 (White et al., 2010), the importance of developing leadership
becomes all the more critical.
In education, current research suggests the importance of school leaders regarding their
impact on many aspects of school operations, most importantly on student achievement (Branch,
Hanushek, & Rivkin, 2012; Leithwood et al., 2010). Yet, current data reflect an increasing
problem of filling leadership positions in schools in part due to the quality of the candidates
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
16
applying for positions, vacancies created by retirements, general attrition, and lack of motivation
to move into administration (Kearney, 2010).
The problem is not simply a shortage of people with administrative credentials. Rather,
the problem involves a lack of recruitment and the lack of leadership development in teachers
who could potentially fill school administrative positions (Fink, 2011; Myung, et al., 2011;
Peters, 2011). Many potential school leaders exist within the teaching ranks. Kearney (2010)
notes that in California there are sufficient administrative credential holders to fill the state’s
vacancies, but they are not moving into administrative positions. For example, in 2011-2012
1,535 California educators became eligible for administrative positions, but only 332 of them
were working in such positions the following year (Commission on Teacher Credentialing,
2014). DeAngelis and O’Connor (2012) found similar results in Illinois where 60% of
administrative certificate holders do not hold administrative positions, even after six years.
While teachers are obtaining minimum requirements necessary for administrative licensure, only
portions are seeking employment in an administrative capacity. In addition, human resources
personnel are often finding these candidates for administrative jobs ill-prepared to take on the
challenges of school administration (DeAngelis & O’Connor, 2012; Fink, 2011). The shortage of
principal candidates is in reality a shortage of qualified candidates who desire to become school
administrators. This shortage has materialized in part because leadership capacity is not being
cultivated in potential administrators.
The problem of recruiting quality leadership is particularly acute in schools that service
low-income, non-white, and English learner students (Loeb, Kalogrides, & Horng, 2010).
According to a 2014 report by the National Center for Education Statistics, 8% more principals
leave low-income schools than schools with higher income students. The vacancies created by
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
17
this attrition impact student achievement (Wahlstrom, Seashore, Leithwood, & Anderson, 2010)
as well as teacher retention (Boyd et al., 2011) in these high-needs schools. Identifying potential
leaders becomes even more critical when examined through the lens of urban schools that serve
our most underprivileged students. What remains problematic, given this research on the school
leadership pipeline, is how to best recruit and train educators who will develop into strong school
leaders and go on to be principals who can positively impact student learning and achievement.
In seeking to solve this problem, examining the promising practices that begin with principals
building leadership capacity in teachers who will become future school administrators provides
insight into one component of the solution.
Purpose of the Study
A growing need for high-quality leaders to enter into school administration has been
identified in research and recognized by district human resources officials. A demand exists for
educators to fill the increasing number school principal vacancies, particularly in urban areas that
educate students who live in poverty, are from historically disadvantaged backgrounds and are
English learners. While work is being done in states across the nation to address principal
training and preparation (Kearney, 2010; Turnbull et al., 2013), clear understanding of how to
best cultivate leadership capacity in teachers who will enter into school administration has yet to
be fully investigated. What few studies exist reflect a trend that is not heavily based upon
leadership characteristics, particularly transformational leadership, which has been associated
with successful school leadership (Leithwood & Jantzi, 2005).
The purpose of this study was to examine the promising practices that some school
principals engage in to create a reservoir of quality leaders to fill school principal positions. The
study sought to explore how teachers are selected as potential administrators and to identify the
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
18
criteria that principals use to select those they tap for the principalship. In addition, this study
addressed the ways in which principals develop leadership capacity in teachers who will enter
the principalship, what perceptions surround these practices and what factors contribute to and
obstruct the process of developing leadership capacity in the next generation of principals.
Research Questions
This study sought to more fully understand the promising practices being used by
principals to recruit and build leadership capacity in teachers. Often termed tapping, the end-goal
is to guide teachers into successful school administration. The research questions developed for
this study were constructed collaboratively by ten members of a University of Southern
California Ed.D. thematic dissertation group who sought to further understand the nature of
leadership succession in education. This investigation intended to answer the following research
questions:
1) In what ways do principals work to build the next generation of leaders?
2) What are the perceptions of teachers regarding the influence of those practices?
3) What are the factors that both facilitate and inhibit the development and
implementation of strategies designed to build leadership capacity?
Significance of the Study
Leadership has been examined as an important contributing factor to the success of
organizations. Whether in business or in education, leadership has been shown to significantly
impact outcomes. Moreover, explicit types of leadership practices have been associated with
higher levels of school success; specifically those practices that comprise transformational
leadership (Leithwood & Jantzi, 2005). There is growing research on the important role that a
school principal plays in impacting schools. Much of this research can be found in the
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
19
relationship between school leadership and student achievement. Because of the growing
support for the importance of principals, concern with filling principal positions in schools has
grown.
In examining one aspect of how to recruit and develop teachers to be effective principals,
this study served to assist school districts in creating succession plans for school administrative
positions. As Fink (2011) described, districts must begin to see principal replacement as an
investment. In growing teachers’ leadership capacity, districts will be creating what is described
by Fink (2011) as a reservoir of candidates who desire to be principals and who have leadership
capacity that make them well qualified for school administration. As this study sheds light on
how best to tap teachers while they are still in the classroom, districts can use the knowledge and
information to develop effective succession plans.
Current principals, who play a critical role in tapping teachers for the principalship, must
be aware of how to select teachers who show potential for being successful school principals
(Myung et al., 2011). In addition, principals who select teachers for tapping must be aware of
which leadership characteristics are most associated with high student achievement outcomes
(Robinson et al., 2008). Many leadership characteristics that are associated with successful
principals are those found in transformational leadership (Leithwood & Jantzi, 2005). This study
sought to guide current principals in understanding what factors facilitate and inhibit the
leadership development of teachers. Principals can use the results of this study to better mentor
and build leadership capacity in the next generation of principals.
Practitioners at the university level will be able to utilize the results of this study to
improve the selection and subsequent building of leadership capacity in teachers who will enter
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
20
into administrative training programs. Furthermore, they may build the results of this study into
the growing number of promising programs for administrative training.
As this study delved deeper into understanding how best to tap teachers for the
principalship, students are the biggest benefactors. Student achievement is positively associated
with the leadership behavior of principals (Marzano et al., 2005). As promising practices
contribute to the creation of a high-quality principal candidate pool, schools and students will
reap the benefits.
The intent to develop internal talent and skill must begin at the beginning by examining
the promising practices that exists in schools that have principals who seek to develop leadership
capacity in teachers with the aim of preparing them for school administration. A comprehensive
plan for principal succession that fails to address teacher capacity building through tapping
provides an incomplete picture of how best to address the expanding leadership deficit in
education.
Limitations, Delimitations, Assumptions
The limitations of this study are those factors that may influence results but were beyond
the control of the researcher. Time constraints of an Ed.D. program and its concomitant
dissertation schedule only allowed for data collection to be conducted for a span of three months.
This study’s qualitative methodology relied upon interviews with participants. The
validity of this study was dependent upon the reliability of the responses that the participants
provided. Efforts were made to create a research environment where respondents felt
comfortable being forthright in their responses. In an effort to increase validity, triangulation of
data sought to create justifiable themes (Creswell, 2014). ) Interviews, observations and
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
21
document analysis provided the data sources used in this study. In addition, the study’s
dependency on participants who were voluntary in nature produced another limitation.
A fourth limitation was one common to qualitative research. The researcher was the
primary instrument for data collection and analysis (Merriam, 2009) and thus she carried with
her bias that may have impacted the collection and/or interpretation of the data. The
triangulation of data as well as a concerted effort to remain as objective as possible served to
minimize the impact of any bias on the part of the researcher.
The delimitations of the study were the aspects that were within the control of the
researcher. The researcher, together with her thematic dissertation group, collaboratively
decided upon the pre-selected criteria for choosing the unit of analysis for the case study. The
decision was made to examine a school principal who had been successfully leading a school for
three to five years. Principal success was defined as growth in student achievement based upon
multiple measures, reputation within the district, and an observable trend in positive growth of
the school’s programs. In addition, the principal had to indicate that he/she was intentional in
identifying teachers who were potential candidates for administrator positions in the future.
He/she must have purposefully worked to mentor, develop or encourage the identified teachers to
enter the principalship. The principal had to have had at least one former teacher subsequently
move into school administration or into a administrative credential program. Based on the
delimitations, the findings are limited and may not be generalizable to other settings.
Glossary of Terms
There are many terms that are referenced in this study and used to describe and inform
the research. For the purpose of this study, the following terms have been defined as follows:
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
22
a. Leadership capacity – broad-based skillful participation in the work of teachers
as leaders in which they are invited, supported, and appreciated (Harris & Lambert,
2003, p. 24)
b. Next generation of leaders – those in education, primarily teachers, who are in the
process of developing leadership capacity so as to move into education administration.
c. Intentional succession planning – the explicit design and implementation of programs
to identify and develop high-quality principal candidates (Russell & Sabina, 2014, p.
600)
d. Tapping – the informal, active recruitment and leadership capacity building of
teachers who will become school principals (Myung et al., 2011, p. 697).
Organization of the Study
This study sought to inform how a school principal can participate in a principal
succession plan for a district by identifying teachers at his/her school as potential school
administrators. Chapter One furnished an overview of the problem of principal succession in K-
12 schools and the critical need to develop leadership in education to fill school principal
positions. Chapter Two provides an overview of the changes to the principalship and a review of
research on district and school-level succession planning and mentoring practices. In addition,
Chapter Two describes the theoretical framework chosen for this study. Chapter Three will
outline the specific methodology and rational that was used for this case study analysis of a
principal and will contain a conceptual framework for the study, as well. Chapter Four will
report on the findings of the study as they respond to the research questions advanced in Chapter
One. Chapter Five will provide an analysis and synthesis of the findings; it will address the
implications of the results and propose suggestions for future research.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
23
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
This study sought to contribute to the literature on principal succession by illuminating
the promising practices in leadership capacity building of teachers who will fill the principal
pipeline. The school principalship has been a topic of exploration and investigation particularly
in the last 15 years as it has been shown to positively impact student outcomes (Marzano et al,
2005; Robinson, Hohepa & Lloyd, 2009). As studies have examined the expanding complexity
of the principalship, what has emerged is a growing need for principals to enter into the
profession with the skills and characteristics that will promote student learning and growth.
Additional research has revealed a shortage of high-quality principal candidates for vacancies,
particularly in urban and other hard to staff schools (DeAngelis & O’Connor, 2012; Fong &
Makkonen, 2011; Goldring & Taie, 2014). The critical role principals play for students and the
growing need for principals, call attention to the importance of examining leadership capacity
building in order to create a pool of highly-qualified aspiring principal candidates.
To further understand the issues surrounding the development of the next generation of
principals, this review of research will begin by tracing the historical roots of the principal
position in schools. It will examine district-level practices in addressing the need for high-
quality principals by reviewing studies that consider succession planning and collaborative
practices in principal preparation. Next, the review will probe school-level practices in
leadership capacity building, focusing on two key areas. The first area will be how current
principals identify teachers with potential to move into administration. The second area will
focus on the role of mentoring in building leadership capacity. Additionally, the review will
discuss research surrounding the challenges in building teacher leadership capacity.
Transformational leadership theory will be the lens through which this study examines the
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
24
development of leadership capacity in potential principals; a description and discussion of
relevant literature will delineate this theory. The conclusion of this chapter will connect the
current literature to the present study.
Historical Context
The changing role of the modern principal is a topic of interest as studies addressing
student achievement and school success have focused on the implications of school leadership.
But, the role of the principal was not always as it is today. The initiation of the role of school
principal developed from the need for a manager of the school building and through time the
administrative and leadership role evolved. Key time periods of educational reform produced
changes to the role and responsibilities of school principals. These shifts served to shape the
position as it is today.
Rousmaniere (2007) outlined the evolving job of a school principal in her historical
reflection of the role in North America. The birth of the school principal came as a response to
the grade/age-based separation of children and the growth of populations in urban areas at the
turn of the 20
th
century. The role was primarily comprised of managerial duties related to
ensuring a school was running smoothly. Very few opportunities for leadership or influence on
instruction existed. The evolution of the school principal began in the early 20
th
century as the
principal’s role expanded to one that included supervisory duties. By the mid-twentieth century,
the school principal was administrative in nature, requiring not only teaching experience but also
additional degrees and certification. With the onset of an administrative and leadership frame,
school principals also began to involve themselves in curriculum and learning, and to establish
themselves as heroic, powerful, long-lasting school leaders (Bogotch, 2005; Fink & Brayman,
2006).
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
25
Major changes in the role of the principal resulted from reforms and shifts in programs
that began in the 1970s, and continued through two more cycles of change in the 1980s and
1990s (Hargreaves & Goodson, 2006). In their landmark longitudinal study of change in
schools, Hargreaves and Goodson (2006) examined change and leadership in schools, in part
focusing on the role school principals took in shaping and sustaining changes. The authors
revealed transformations in the job from long-lasting principals who were engrained in the
school community in the 1970s to those of the 1980s and 1990s who moved or were moved from
schools frequently in response to the pressures of legislated reforms. Reform demands that came
in the 1980s led to principals trying to balance the accountability measures being sought
bureaucratically. They balanced by either creating school cultures that were collaborative,
channeling or even altering the reforms to meet the goals of the school or through simply
shielding the schools from the reforms altogether (Hargreaves & Goodson, 2006). The shifting
nature of the principalship, including the increased accountability for student achievement, led to
changes in the length of time that principals were either staying or allowed to stay in schools.
The 1990s ushered in more mobility in the principalship and an image of the principal that
depicted those in the position as detached from the school community, focused to a greater extent
upon career advancement and developing quick fixes that would catapult their careers to the next
level (Hargreaves & Goodson, 2006). Fink and Brayman (2006) described the transition from
1970s through the 1990s as a shift from principals serving their schools and students to
principals administering the reform agendas of districts and states. Repercussions of these shifts
have culminated in today’s principals facing multiple, often competing challenges to meet the
interests of all stakeholders, with the pressure to demonstrate they can create swift results to
political reforms often taking precedence. Many are ill equipped to lead organizations in a
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
26
manner that calls for collaborative practices among all staff and in ways that lead to
improvements focused on unique student and site needs.
The onset of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation amplified the pressures on
principals as the punitive nature of NCLB forced leaders to bring on quick fixes and short-term
changes to avoid the negative consequences of school failure labels (Hargreaves & Fink, 2011).
Increasingly, the role of principal entailed moving schools toward higher achievement and
changes based on standardized test scores, but rarely were these changes lasting and often they
did not meet the overall, long term interests of the local school community. As principals were
viewed both legislatively and publically as responsible for student achievement growth, the
position became quite complex, with the principal juggling many hats and often concerned that
his/her job was in jeopardy (Crow, 2006; Davis et al., 2005; Hargreaves & Fink, 2011).
More recent shifts in education brought about by Race to the Top legislation and
implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) continue to link student academic
success to school principals. Race to the Top (U.S. Department of Education, 2009)
requirements link funding to the evaluations of school principals and these evaluations include
student achievement as one measure. State policy makers have begun to address new guidelines
for school administrators’ evaluation and training in response to these national policies (Davis &
Darling-Hammond, 2012). Principals must maintain the role of building manager, overseer of
school budgets, manager of student safety and discipline in addition taking on roles as
instructional leaders, curriculum experts, and agents of change (DiPaola & Tschannen-Moran,
2003). A new wave of changes and responsibilities are yet to come for principals who strive to
educate students in the 21
st
century.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
27
Given the added complexities of the principal position over the years and the
undetermined future accountability measures, the job is now perceived by many as undesirable.
Studies reveal fewer teachers, even among those licensed to fill administrative positions, are
entering school administration (DeAngelis & O’Connor, 2012; Fong & Makkonen, 2011).
DeAngelis and O’Connor (2012) found that after six years, only 50% of those who obtained
administrative credentials were serving as school administrators. Citing job stress, complex
demands for multifaceted expertise, little support, lack of professional development
opportunities, and workload and hours not commensurate with compensation, teachers today are
choosing not to enter the principal pipeline (Fink, 2010; Gajda & Militello, 2008; Howley et al.,
2005). Hargreaves and Fink (2011) described the challenges and resulting undesirability of the
principalship “When leadership turns into management of innumerable imposed initiatives,
exposure to endless and unwanted interventions, and being evaluated according to unfair and
inappropriate forms of accountability, the demand on leaders become unreasonable and few
people are called to lead anymore” (p. 13).
As the role of the principal has changed and the demands of the position have become
more acute, intentional succession planning has been called for to fill the vacancies with
administrators prepared to meet the challenges today’s principals face (Fink, 2011; Fink &
Brayman, 2006). As the following section will describe, succession plans are a viable way to
address the shortage of high-quality administrators. Intentional succession planning by districts
is varied and often excludes or speaks vaguely of the tapping of teachers for the principalship,
the focus topic of this study.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
28
District-Level Practices
In addressing the need for qualified principal candidates to lead schools, school districts
have taken several approaches. Some have chosen to ignore the role they potentially could play
in creating qualified principals from within their organizations, while others are on the frontlines
of promising programs looking to change the way principals are prepared and in doing so create
quality candidates for vacancies. This section will review literature on intentionally planning for
principal succession by districts. It will also examine current practices in collaborative
partnerships in principal preparation programs that serve to contribute to succession plans by
ensuring well-prepared administrators fill the reservoir of principal candidates.
Intentional Succession Planning
This section will examine literature on succession planning by districts and the impact
that succession planning has on creating school administrators who are available and ready to
successfully lead schools. Research supports the idea that intentional succession planning is
important for lasting organizational success (Collins, 2001). Studies show that effective
succession planning by districts must link aspects of identification, induction, forecasting, and
ongoing administrator learning (Fink, 2010, 2011 Fink & Brayman, 2006; Peters, 2011). Fink
and Brayman (2006) and Fink (2011) examined succession practices by districts in three regions
of three different countries, finding that intentional planning for principal succession that
involved developing leadership capacity in those within a district leads to positive outcomes for
schools and students. Peter’s (2011) case study analysis of an incidence of principal succession
in one urban district further supported the idea that schools and students benefit when succession
is planned and supports are provided for schools and administrators who experience leadership
transitions. Intentional succession planning, however, is not a common practice in most school
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
29
districts (Hargreaves & Goodson, 2006), and plans that exist are often widely varied and have
differing levels of success. The literature on district level succession planning contributes to the
understanding of how some districts are attempting to address the problem of filling the growing
number of principal vacancies.
Fink (2010, 2011) challenged education systems to strategically address principal
succession and to create what he called a reservoir of leadership talent that could fill
administrative vacancies from within an organization. Fink (2011) described the most common
approach to principal succession as a “hire and hope” approach. Relying upon a “hire and hope”
approach also means relying upon the unknowns of how principal candidates have been prepared
for school leadership. Fink (2010) chronicled the trajectory many districts take in dealing with
principal succession. School districts are initially uninvolved in the beginning stages as teachers
self-select to attend an administrative credentialing program. These programs, sponsored either
by universities or other educational organizations, vary widely in the quality of the training they
provide to candidates. School districts post openings for school principals and subsequently wait
to see who applies from this group- hoping to get a qualified candidate. A pipeline that extends
from a leadership reservoir, as Fink (2010) describes, takes on a “grow your own approach” to
filling vacancies (p. 681). The approach creates a reservoir of leadership from which the
principal pipeline can be filled.
The reservoir-pipeline approach to leadership capacity building aligns with the works of
Collins (2001) who examined leadership succession in highly successful businesses. In the Good
to Great study, Collins (2001) found the most successful companies developed leadership within
their ranks and were able to maintain the success of the company even as leadership changed
hands. By building leadership capacity within the context of an intentional succession plan,
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
30
districts and schools, like successful businesses, can access leaders who will successfully fill
administrative positions. When succession of leadership is not planned, a negative impact on
school performance may result (Fink & Brayman, 2006). Fink and Brayman (2006) examined
three schools over time and found that increasing principal turnover rates contributed to an
inability of schools to sustain growth and improvements. Increased demands on schools due to
reforms exacerbated the challenges faced by schools when leadership change occurred. Without
any plan for succession, two of the schools examined struggled to maintain growth. Of the three
cases examined in the study, only one had a successful succession plan and the improvements
were sustained through leadership transitions. If schools are to be successful in improving and
positively impacting student outcomes, then succession planning must be a consideration.
Those examining principal succession have called for building a replacement-oriented
culture in school systems (Hargreaves & Fink, 2011; Hargreaves & Goodson, 2006; Fink, 2010,
2011), some studies have investigated exactly how different types of school districts are doing
just that. In their comparative case study, Russell and Sabina (2014) developed a framework for
intentional succession planning by districts. The six case study districts enlisted involvement
from all levels of management. The framework reflected these districts’ practices. Top
managers and superintendents allocated resources and participated in the plans. Human
resources officials on occasion served to evaluate and align succession plans with personnel
policies. Principals and other district middle managers identified and built leadership capacity in
potential principals. The districts were all successful in developing a pool of high-quality
candidates for the principalship from which they could pull when vacancies occurred.
Conversely, Peters (2011) investigated one district’s unsuccessful succession planning
within their high schools and found that without what she terms “dynamic leadership
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
31
succession”, schools fall into organizational instability. Dynamic leadership succession, a
framework developed by the Peters, is simultaneous in nature rather than linear. It involves
districts forecasting the need for school principals while concurrently sustaining and building
leadership capacity in current administrators and teachers. The third component of dynamic
leadership succession concerns districts planning for changes in leadership by specifically
providing time for overlap in leadership as well as allowing faculty to adjust to transitions. The
study reinforced the positive relationship between intentional succession planning and sustained
school improvements.
In a third study, Zepeda, Bengtson, and Parylo (2011), conducted a cross-case analysis of
school districts in United States that claimed to be using succession planning. Their findings,
based on districts of differing sizes from both urban and suburban settings, revealed that there are
varying levels of succession planning and implementation. Larger, urban districts tend to have
more formalized plans for filling administrative positions, while smaller districts have less
formalized succession plans. The researchers found four emergent themes. The first, a sense of
urgency existed for districts, especially the larger districts that were prone to need to fill
vacancies more frequently. A second theme drew attention to the various ways districts provided
for the development of leaders, including some who used standards, such as the Interstate School
Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC), and those of the National Association of Secondary
School Principals (NASSP) to drive learning and assess leadership qualities. A third theme,
mentoring, was a core component of succession planning in all districts. Mentoring as an
element of leadership capacity building is found prominently across many studies examining
administration succession planning, professional growth and credentialing programs (Browne-
Ferrigno & Muth, 2004; Russell & Sabina, 2014; Zepeda et al., 2011). A final theme identified
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
32
in the study was the building of collaborative relationships with organizations outside of the
districts, such as universities who participated in administrator preparation (Zepeda et al., 2011),
a closer examination of research around this topic will occur in the following sub-section.
Research on district-level succession planning has illustrated the importance of filling
vacancies and maintaining school growth in a strategic manner. In doing so, districts can fill
vacancies with effective principals, and can increase the chances that school improvements will
be sustained through the leadership change. Although findings from the examination of districts
implementing succession planning reflect the use of common approaches, they are doing so in
widely varying ways. As districts make decisions to create a pool of principal candidates by
building leadership capacity in potential principals within the district, they are also increasingly
seeking to partner with universities and organizations that provide formal training and licensure.
Collaborative Partnerships in Principal Preparation
Promising partnerships between school districts and universities preparing school
administrators have materialized in research on succession planning and principal leadership
capacity building. Just as effective succession planning for districts has gained popularity in
addressing the topic of the principal shortage, examination of administrative training also serves
to contribute to research on creating a pool of qualified candidates for the principalship.
Superintendents and other district leaders have cited lack of quality candidates as a concern in
filling principal vacancies and as a contributing factor to the perceived principal shortage (Roza,
2003). Collaborative partnerships between school districts and training programs have recently
emerged to explore and experiment in improving the quality of principal candidates through
improved pre-service training. Programs such as The Wallace Foundation’s Principal Pipeline
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
33
Initiative seek to harness collaboration in conjunction with research-based practices to develop
high-quality novice administrators (Kearney, 2010).
Examination of exemplary programs and their effectiveness in developing strong
principal candidates is growing. Davis and Darling-Hammond (2012) found that in five
innovative principal preparation programs graduates were more satisfied with their training, felt
better prepared to handle the job complexities of school administration, and were able to find and
keep administrative jobs better than those trained in other programs. Additionally, the research
is beginning to show the impact these principals are having on student achievement, although the
findings are preliminary at this point (Davis & Darling-Hammond, 2012).
More focused research has examined the specific role of internships in principal
preparation programs. Findings indicated internships that allowed for authentic practice of
administrative duties, coupled with effective mentoring, were important contributors to quality
principal training programs (Anast-May, Buckner, & Geer, 2011; Darling-Hammond et al.,
2007). To provide insight into the types of activities and duties that best prepare pre-service
administrators for the principalship, Anast-May et al. (2011) concentrated their research on
activities within administrative internships. The research results showed that within
internship/fieldwork contexts, pre-service administrators needed opportunities to plan and lead
changes in teaching and curriculum, to develop and maintain cultures of learning in schools, and
to use data to guide and support school improvement.
This section has provided an account of studies concentrating on principal succession and
training that reveal the importance of considering the development and preparation of those who
will be the next generation of principals. Through collaborative partnerships, districts and
schools create programs that bridge the gap between theory and practice and provide research
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
34
driven training in leadership skills that are positively associated with school growth and
improvement. The following section will expand upon the school-level practices in building
leadership capacity.
Building Leadership Capacity at the School-Level
Intentional succession planning includes school-level practices in building leadership
capacity. Literature on leadership capacity building at the school-level has been examined
within and outside the context of tapping teachers for the principalship. Within the context of
principal succession planning, studies have focused on identification of teachers who are
potential candidates to be the next generation of principals (Leithwood et al., 2007; Myung et al.,
2011; Russell & Sabina, 2014). While some district-wide succession plans include principals
actively identifying certain teachers as candidates who show potential for being successful
administrators, problems arise as research reflects that determining characteristics are not always
aligned with leadership qualities. The utilization of mentoring is found both within and outside
the context of principal succession. While most of the empirical research on mentoring is
focused either on the mentoring of teachers or on mentoring of novice administrators,
connections to these findings can be made to the mentoring of teachers who have been identified
as potential candidates for the principalship. Not all mentoring is valuable though, as negative
impacts have been found to exist (Hansford & Ehrich, 2006; Silver et al., 2009).
Examination of how succession planning and leadership capacity building occur at the
school site level broadens the understanding of how best to create comprehensive plans to grow
quality leadership from within an organization. The following three sub-sections will address
how teachers are selected for tapping, the critical role of mentoring in all phases of leadership
succession, and challenges that exist in building leadership capacity.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
35
Selection of Potential School Administrators
If the momentum behind developing a pipeline of highly-qualified principal candidates
continues to grow, the practices that lead toward this aim must be fully understood. Teacher
leadership capacity building aimed at encouraging teachers to move toward an administrative
career path is often referred to as “tapping”. Tapping is a term used to describe a form of
sponsored mobility (Turner, 1960) where informal opportunities for leadership practice and
learning are offered to individuals who have been identified as having potential to move into
administration. Tapping is described as a principal selecting a teacher or teachers who are
viewed as having potential to be principals at some point in the future and assisting them with
and encouraging them in the pursuit of this goal. The tapping is informal in nature but can lead
to advising the teacher to attend workshops on school administration or enrolling in a formal
training program. Tapping encourages teachers to consider school administration as a job target
through conversations, positive reinforcement of potential, and allowing teachers opportunities to
serve in leadership roles. Often while the teacher is still at the classroom level, a mentoring
relationship develops whereby a principal works with the teacher to improve his/her leadership
skills.
There are questions, though, about how selection for tapping takes place. Studies
(Myung et al., 2011) that have examined tapping point toward selection criteria not solely
associated with teacher leadership skills and knowledge. In their study, Myung et al. (2011)
examined the results of a survey given to teachers, assistant principals and principals concerning
the extent that tapping occurred and what motivated it. Their findings showed that principals
favored tapping teachers who were of the same ethnicity and who were male over others. The
authors’ results imply that succession plans would be improved if principals were encouraged to
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
36
tap teachers based solely on leadership qualifications rather than personal attributes. Russell and
Sabina (2014), examined district succession plans that included school-level actions such as
tapping. Similarly, the results showed that most districts did not provide clear descriptions and
training on what qualifications to use in selecting teachers for tapping. Only one of six districts
in the study had a formalized list of qualities. Without such a formal, research-based description
to guide selection of teachers for tapping, selection often occurs based on personality traits,
gender, and ethnicity rather than solely on qualifications that lead to successful school
administration (Myung et al., 2011; Russell & Sabina, 2014). Whether the intent of tapping is
for the principalship or for developing distributed leadership in schools, principals tend to choose
people based upon protypical characteristics that reflect the majority of the group (Leithwood et
al., 2007). Leithwood et al. (2007) found that people are identified as leaders based upon
personality qualities, interpersonal skills, and degree of commitment to the organization in
addition to expertise.
As this study aimed to specifically examine tapping of teachers for the principalship,
selection of those who are tapped must be considered in the literature. One component of tapping
is the mentoring that principals provide to teachers who have been tapped. Mentoring is a
practice found to benefit leadership capacity building in teachers and administrators and will be
discussed in the next sub-section.
Mentoring
Mentoring is a common theme that has emerged in numerous examinations of leadership
succession (Collins, 2001; Fink, 2010; Kearney, 2010; Zepeda et al., 2011) and has been defined
as a relationship where a trusted, higher ranking individual takes an interest in and is committed
to the career development of a less experienced individual (Crosby, 1999). Mentoring has been
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
37
conceptualized as the highest level of involvement with the intent of advancing the mentee’s
career (Mertz, 2004). Research examining the effect sizes of mentoring in various contexts
found that workplace mentoring was significantly related to career outcomes and career attitudes,
indicating that mentoring does make a difference (Eby, Allen, Evans, Ng, & DuBois, 2007).
Extant literature on mentoring contributes to the understanding of how to build leadership
capacity and can be applied to those being tapped for the principal pipeline.
In examining principal succession and developing a high-quality pool of principal
candidates, mentoring is a theme found threaded throughout leadership succession planning.
Mentoring is addressed in research that examines leadership capacity building in pre-service and
novice administrators (Anast-May et al., 2011, Darling-Hammond et al, 2007; Hansford &
Ehrich, 2005; Silver et al., 2009; Simeiou, Decman, Grigsby, & Shumacher, 2010). These
studies reflect the impact on the quality of administrative credential holders who have had
mentoring as part of their formal licensure program. Mentoring also is prevalent in studies
looking at the building of leadership capacity in teachers (Kilburg & Hancock, 2006), including
some that specifically address mentoring of teachers tapped for the principalship (Howley et al.,
2005). Mentoring is associated with greater levels of leadership capacity in mentees, and is
positively associated with factors that contribute to teachers seeing school administration as an
attractive career option.
Mentoring of pre-service administrators. In the principal preparation stage, innovative
approaches to principal development have strongly advocated for mentoring to effectively
prepare principals who are involved in pre-service training. In a multiple case study examining
eight exemplary programs for pre-service and in-service principal development, Darling-
Hammond, LaPointe, Meyerson, and Orr (2007) found programs that developed higher quality
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
38
principal candidates used mature and retiring principals to mentor pre-service administrators. As
discussed in the previous section, Anast-May et al. (2011) found that pre-service principals
needed further opportunities within their internships to develop skills. Based upon the results of
interviews, the researchers identified the three key recommendations for improving principal
preparation- authentic opportunities to lead instructionally, to develop and maintain a positive
learning culture, and to use data to support school improvement. The authors’ findings suggest
the opportunity to develop these skills is maximized in a mentoring relationship (Anast-May et
al., 2011). Mentoring has been positively associated with successful pre-service administrative
training. Research also confirms there is a positive link between mentoring of novice principals
and improved practice in the first years of the principalship; these studies will be examined next.
Mentoring of novice administrators. Mentoring of those already in the principalship
provides a wide range of positive outcomes for principals (Hansford & Ehrich, 2006, Simeiou et
al., 2010). In their qualitative analysis of research on principal mentoring, Hansford and Ehrich
(2006) sought to understand what kind of role mentoring played for those who are new to the
principalship. While some results did indicate negative outcomes, which will be discussed later
in this section, most outcomes were positive, reflecting the importance of mentoring for novice
principals in the areas of support/empathy/counseling, sharing of ideas, problem solving, and
professional development. In a similar qualitative study, Simeiou et al., (2010) found novices
recognized the value in mentoring relationships that guided them in their first year as principals.
The ability to garner knowledge, skills and advice from experienced administrators in a non-
judgmental environment assisted the principals in more effectively navigating the many
challenges of first year administration. Likewise, Silver et al. (2009) also found that recently
graduated administrators in their initial principal positions benefited from mentoring. The study
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
39
was an evaluative examination of a university-based coaching program that provided three years
of mentoring and support for novice principals by established school administrators. The results
of the study found that the novice principals felt more supported and had more frequent
opportunities for reflection on their practice. In addition, the coaching/mentoring relationship
provided opportunities for individualized professional development in specific areas of need.
Those who served as mentors perceived benefits as well, mentors found both personal
satisfaction as well as professional growth emerged from the mentoring activities. Studies on
mentoring at all levels of succession planning in education and in other professions find
mentoring to be beneficial in developing leadership capacity. Mentoring also occurs prior to
entrance into an administrative preparation programs as principals mentor teachers to build
leadership capacity in their schools.
Mentoring of tapped teachers. The initial stages of a succession plan involve the
tapping of teachers and development of leadership capacity with the intent of moving these
teachers into school administration. While there is abundant research on the mentoring of
teachers (Hobson, Ashby, Malderez, & Tomlinson, 2009), less research exists surrounding
principal mentoring in the context of tapping, where teachers aspire to become principals but are
not formally in preparation programs. Mentoring within the context of teacher tapping is often
less formalized in schools and districts, but is advocated for by those who believe succession
planning will solve the leadership crisis (Fink 2010, Fink & Brayman, 2006; Zepeda et al.,
2011). Howley et al. (2005) examined factors that contribute to teachers choosing to enter into
school administration and in doing so related these factors to mentoring. Their study probed
teachers’ view of the incentives and disincentives associated with moving into the principalship.
One significant finding was that teachers who saw school administration as worthwhile were
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
40
more aware of both the incentives and disincentives associated with the principalship because
current school administrators had encouraged and supported them (Howley et al., 2005). The
implications of this study are that mentoring plays a role in helping teachers to see the
principalship as desirable. The authors suggest that this finding is a leverage point for districts
that can cultivate the pool of principal candidates by creating mentoring opportunities for these
teachers. The current study seeks to contribute to the research surrounding the mentoring of
teachers who will be the next generation of principals.
Collateral damage in mentoring. Most of the research examined in this section
describes the positive outcomes of mentoring for both mentors and mentees, but studies also
reflect the negative impact associated with some mentoring relationships (Hansford and Ehrich,
2006; Silver et al., 2009). In addition to the positive findings, these studies reported that when
mentoring relationships were misaligned based upon personality of participants, when time was
not provided for mentoring opportunities, and when professional matches were not precise,
mentoring was not useful. Hansford and Ehrich (2006) were able to differentiate negative
outcomes for mentors and mentees in their findings. Results for both mentors and mentees
reported that negative outcomes for both groups were precipitated by the same factors. First,
negative outcomes were triggered by a mismatch between the mentor’s and mentee’s personality
and expertise/educational interests. Second, negative outcomes existed when a lack of mentor
time to perform the role existed. The findings of this study, which predominantly supported
mentoring for the positive outcomes that it created, cautioned those developing mentoring
programs to take careful consideration in matching mentors and mentees and in providing and
committing time to mentoring relationships (Hansford & Ehrich, 2006). Silver et al. (2009)
found similar results and additionally ascertained that a supervisory relationship between a
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
41
mentor and mentee limited the ability of mentoring to maximize positive outcomes due to the
evaluative nature of the relationship. These findings indicate that if the role of mentor is not
performed well or the relationship is not matched appropriately, the aims of a mentoring program
may not be met.
Literature on mentoring substantiates the significance of such relationships in developing
leadership capacity in those who will be school administrators (Hansford and Ehrich, 2006;
Silver et al., 2009). It also reflects the need to increase the use of mentoring and collaborative
practices in principal preparation programs as well as district development of novice
administrators. As the research indicates, for mentoring programs to have positive outcomes,
attention must be given to creating time for mentoring, establishing clear expectations and
guidelines for the relationships, and careful matching of mentors and mentees. How these
practices are utilized in the context of tapping teachers for the principalship will be investigated
in the current study.
Challenges in Building Leadership Capacity
While studies and articles call for the building of leadership capacity in teachers and
administrators as part of leadership succession planning (Fink, 2011; Gajda & Militello, 2008;
Kearney, 2010), challenges exist in doing so. This section will describe the factors that serve to
inhibit leadership capacity growth in teacher leaders. Some factors, such as cultural conditions
within schools, often cause discord among teachers when some are chosen to serve in leadership
positions (Donaldson et al., 2008; York-Barr & Duke, 2004). This tension keeps teacher leaders
from maximizing their leadership capacity. Additional studies show that principals’ behaviors
and attitudes also serve to inhibit the building of leadership capacity in teachers. Principals who
are controlling, traditional, and show lack of appreciation for teachers who serve as leaders
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
42
discourage further involvement in leadership capacity building roles (Shelton, Birky & Headley,
2008). If leadership capacity is to be built in teachers tapped for the principal pipeline, then the
challenges that confront and inhibit this growth must be understood and addressed. This study
seeks to add to the limited body of literature that contributes to this understanding.
According to a review of literature addressing teacher leadership, school improvement
has been found to be more effective and enduring when teachers are involved in leading the
change thus many districts and schools are enlisting teachers to serve in both formal and
informal leadership roles (York-Barr & Duke, 2004). But the culture of schools has served to
inhibit the development of leadership capacity in teachers. In a cross-case analysis of teachers in
formal leadership roles, such as instructional coaches, department chairs and curriculum leaders,
it was found that a culture of egalitarianism, autonomy and seniority posed challenges for teacher
leadership capacity growth (Donaldson et al., 2008). The challenges were particularly acute in
leadership roles that were designed to directly impact colleagues’ classroom practice. In these
reform roles, as Donaldson et al. (2008) termed them, teacher leaders were faced with strong
resistance from other teachers who saw these teacher leadership positions as threatening the
norms that are entrenched in the teaching profession. Teacher leaders often adjusted how they
performed their roles in an attempt to minimize the resistance. In comparison, the study found
that teacher leaders in roles that did not directly impact classroom practice were not viewed as
threatening the egalitarian and seniority-based norms and did not illicit the same resistance from
teachers.
Other studies took a different approach as they explored the growth of leadership
capacity as impacted by school administrators. Shelton et al. (2008) examined high school
administrators’ positive and negative influence on teacher leadership capacity growth. In a
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
43
decade-long study of three high schools, the researchers’ findings indicated that principals who
failed to show appreciation and recognition of teacher leadership inhibited leadership capacity
growth by discouraging further involvement in leadership roles. In addition, overly controlling
principals also discouraged teachers from exercising leadership capacity and caused them to
retract their involvement as teacher leaders. Finally, the study found that principals who were
traditional in their mindset and resistant to change inhibited the involvement of teachers in
leadership roles and thus failed to build leadership capacity in teachers.
Challenges to building leadership capacity in teachers develop from a climate and culture
created by both other teachers and by school principals. Within the teaching profession,
hierarchy based upon seniority and strong egalitarian views of teachers’ knowledge and skills
create roadblocks for teachers in leadership positions. Further, principals who fail to value
collaboration, change, and recognition of others hinder the growth of leadership capacity in their
teachers. As the building of leadership capacity is crucial to the creation of a reservoir of
principals who can effectively lead schools, it is important to recognize and address the
challenges to building leadership capacity in teachers. This study sought to further
understanding of the conditions that promote and obstruct leadership capacity building in
teachers who have been tapped for the principalship. The following section will outline the
theoretical framework that will be used to conduct this study and examine the conditions and
practices that build leadership capacity.
Transformational Leadership Theory
The theoretical frame utilized for this study was transformational leadership theory.
Transformational leadership is the foundation on which other aspects of school leadership, such
as instructional leadership, can be built (Robinson, Lloyd & Rowe, 2008). This approach to
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
44
leadership originated with the 1978 work of sociologist James Burns who described leadership as
a relationship between leaders and followers. Later work on transformational leadership refined
the theory by providing further details and explanations of the factors that constitute it (Bass,
1985). Unlike so many other leadership theories that examine the power of a leader,
transformational leadership views leadership as a process that includes leaders and followers
working in collaboration to achieve goals (Northouse, 2013). Organizational work is not done for
personal gain of the leader or external incentives provided to the followers. Rather, the vision
developed by the leader inspires followers to meet their fullest potential toward attainment of a
common goal. Leadership capacity is built in followers by transformational leaders who expand
on the strengths of individuals (Northouse, 2013). Self-interest on the part of leaders and
followers is replaced by inspirational motivation.
Transformational leadership can work in conjunction with other forms of leadership to
improve organization performance; findings from research provide evidence confirming the basis
of this argument (Robinson, Lloyd & Rowe, 2008). Transformational leadership addresses the
emotional aspects of leadership that help to develop people by making their work meaningful. If
student achievement is to be the primary focus of our schools, then filling school administrative
positions with effective principals who will be transformational in their role is paramount. The
factors that comprise transformational leadership include idealized influence, inspirational
motivation, intellectual stimulation and individualized consideration (Northouse, 2013). These
factors work to create an environment where teachers and principals can work toward the
common goal of student achievement collaboratively, inspirationally and intellectually.
Transformational leadership theory incorporates five practices of exemplary leadership,
(a) model the way, (b) inspire a shared vision, (c) challenge the process, (d) enable others to act,
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
45
and (e) encourage the heart (Kouzes & Posner, 2008). This study examined the development of
leadership capacity in teachers with the intent of transitioning them into the principal pipeline
through the lens of three of the five practices outlined by Kouzes & Posner (2008). They are:
model the way; inspire a shared vision; and enable others to act. While all five transformational
leadership practices apply to the examination of principal leadership succession, the chosen three
are better aligned to the examination of building leadership capacity in teachers, align to the
strategies best used to build exemplary leadership and fit within the limitation of this study.
Similar characteristics traverse all five practices and therefore applicable components from the
two practices not chosen are also considered in this study. The following sub-sections describe
each of the chosen practices in detail.
Model the Way
Transformational leaders are clear about their values and philosophy. They communicate
these values and philosophy well to their staff and are consistent in the examples they set for
those they lead. Having clear and visible values allows for the development of strong vision and
goals that extend from these values. Transformational leaders model the way by being role
models for those they lead, which is a powerful force in terms of mentoring relationships that can
develop between a leader and others (Kouzes & Posner, 2008; Northouse, 2013). This study
sought to discover how principals build leadership capacity by modeling the way for the next
generation of principals. It ascertained how principals enact this fundamental practice by serving
as role models and mentors.
Inspire a Shared Vision
This two-part practice includes a leader developing and communicating a strong vision
for success of an organization or school by collaboratively enlisting others to share in that vision.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
46
By envisioning the possibilities of an organization and finding common purpose among its
members, leaders are able to move others toward success in reaching inspiring and lofty goals for
the sake of the greater good rather than self-interest (Northouse, 2013). Leaders help others see
how their interests and strengths are aligned with the vision by igniting their hopes and dreams
around shared values so they find unity in creating a remarkable future for the organization
(Kouzes & Posner, 2008). Working together in collaboration and shared leadership allows for
leaders and others to share in the organization’s vision. Through qualitative analysis, the current
study conducted inquiry into how school principals intentionally build leadership capacity in
teachers tapped for the principalship by enabling those teachers to visualize the possibilities for
themselves as leaders.
Enable Others to Act
Transformational leaders create and value teamwork and cooperation within their
organizations (Northouse, 2013). They work to create environments built on trust, respect, and
where others are empowered to make decisions and choices that contribute to the organization’s
shared vision and goals. Transforming leaders listen carefully and value diverse views in order
to build trust, thus making it possible for others to feel encouraged to use their strengths and
capabilities to better the organization. They build leadership capacity in others by providing
opportunities for self-determination and growth, and by enabling others to build confidence and
increase competencies. Leaders give power away to others so as to strengthen the power of the
team (Kouzes & Posner, 2008). In examining how transformational practices are used to build
leadership capacity in the next generation of principals, this study intended to describe the ways
in which principals provide opportunities for teachers to build leadership capacity through
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
47
collaborative involvement in activities that strengthen their leadership skills and develop
confidence and competence.
The Kouzes and Posner (2008) model of transformational leadership provides a method
leaders can use to accomplish extraordinary things within their organization. It emphasizes the
behaviors of leaders and underscores the ability of everyone to access outstanding leadership not
just those with innate abilities (Northouse, 2013). This study used transformational leadership
theory as a lens to examine how principals effectively develop leadership capacity in teachers for
the purpose of tapping the next generation of school administrators.
Summary
Research surrounding the topic of building leadership capacity in educators to fill the
growing need for high-quality principals has been examined in this review. Succession plans
that include district-level and school-level practices show promise in creating what Fink (2011)
calls a reservoir of leadership talent. At the district level, succession practices include
strategically planning for vacancies by creating a replacement-oriented culture, often partnering
in principal preparation with universities and other licensing organizations to help create
successful principals. Furthermore, mentoring throughout the succession process, from district
to school levels, was seen a critical element in developing leadership capacity in aspiring and
current principals. While districts often establish intentional plans for principal succession,
school-level practices and current principals lay the groundwork for ushering teachers into the
principal pipeline. Principal tapping of teachers has shown to not only stimulate increased desire
for entering into administration but allows for early leadership capacity building in those who
will serve as the next generation of effective school principals. Yet, concerns exist as research
on tapping reflects that often those chosen have been selected for reasons unrelated to leadership
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
48
qualities. Successful succession plans include early selection of teachers who show promise in
filling the principal pipeline, but little is known about the practices used by principals who tap
teachers for the principalship.
The intent of this study was to provide insight into how states, districts and schools can
contribute to the principal pipeline by developing the next generation of principals beginning
with teachers. The pool of principal candidates will need to have the leadership capacity
necessary to meet the growing challenges of the principal position. This process of identifying
and building leadership capacity begins even as future principals are still teachers- an area
lacking focus in most studies that have examined leadership succession. It is important to further
investigate principal succession beginning at this juncture to fully understand how to maximize
the potential success of intentional leadership succession. Very little research examined in this
review provided rich descriptions of how principals recruit and work to build leadership capacity
in teachers who have been tapped for the principalship. Teachers’ perceptions of these practices
is also missing from the extant literature. It is the intent of this study to contribute to the body of
knowledge in these areas by uncovering and expounding upon the promising practices used to
build leadership capacity in the next generation of principals.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
49
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
A growing need to fill school principal positions with effective leaders has been
established by research on principal succession planning. This study addressed one component
of principal succession planning at the school-level by examining how one school principal used
promising practices to build leadership capacity in teachers who had been identified to enter into
the principal pipeline. Results shed light on practices principals use to build leadership capacity
in tapped teachers, what teachers’ perception were of these practices, and what factors served to
assist and obstruct the process of leadership capacity building in teachers. The practices
associated with building leadership capacity were viewed through the lens of three
transformational leadership practices, modeling the way, inspiring a shared vision, and enabling
other to act. The results of this qualitative study contributed to the knowledge and understanding
of how best to address the problem of filling a growing number of principal vacancies with
leaders who will contribute to high levels of achievement for all students.
This chapter will delineate the specific questions addressed by this study and the research
methodology employed. It will describe the sample selection process and population then
provide an overview of the individual and organization examined. Transformational leadership,
the theoretical framework for the study, and the conceptual framework will be established.
Further sections will describe the data collection approach, instrumentation, and analysis of the
data. The chapter will conclude by addressing the ethical considerations taken into account for
participants in this study.
Research Questions
This study sought to more fully understand the promising practices being used by
principals to recruit and develop leadership capacity in teachers. Often termed tapping, the end-
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
50
goal is to guide teachers into successful school administration. The research questions developed
for this study were constructed collaboratively by ten members of a University of Southern
California Ed.D. thematic dissertation group who sought to further understand the nature of
leadership succession in education. This investigation intended to answer the following research
questions:
1) In what ways do principals work to build the next generation of leaders?
2) What are the perceptions of teachers regarding the influence of those practices?
3) What are the factors that both facilitate and inhibit the development and
implementation of strategies that are designed to build leadership capacity toward
future administration in schools?
Research Design and Methods
A qualitative case study was the most appropriate method for examining how principals
build leadership capacity in teachers who have been tapped for the principalship. It is through
case studies that one can gain deep, rich “understanding of the phenomenon under study”
(Merriam, 2009, p. 44). To fully understand how principal succession planning begins with the
building of leadership capacity in teachers, one must look in-depth at the experiences of
principals and teachers who are involved in the process. This was best done through interviews,
observations, and document analysis. A qualitative case study “focuses on holistic description
and explanation” (Merriam, 2009, p. 43). The case study approach provided opportunity for
rich, thick descriptions of experiences in leadership capacity building (Gall, Gall, & Borg, 2007).
Because such a description was needed to appropriately address the research questions,
qualitative inquiry was the best choice to examine the phenomenon of promising practices in
leadership capacity building.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
51
Interviews allowed for deeper investigation into principal practices in developing
leadership capacity in tapped teachers, including circumstances that both facilitated and
challenged the process. In addition, interviews allowed for the perspectives of those tapped to be
explored. Only through interviewing were the principal’s and teachers’ perspectives and
experiences made explicit (Patton, 2002).
Observations allowed for information to be gathered that might not have been shared by
those interviewed (Merriam, 2009). More importantly, observations served as springboards to
further interview questions, allowing the researcher to observe an incident of leadership capacity
building and then formulate questions that delved into the practices undertaken by the principal.
In addition to interviews and observations, this study collected documents for analysis.
Document analysis allowed for information to be gathered that was not dependent on the
cooperation of participants or the impact of an observer on a setting (Merriam, 2009). The
analysis of documents allowed for data to be triangulated and contributed to validity of the study
(Creswell, 2014).
Sample and Population
This study examined the promising practices used by one principal to building leadership
capacity in teachers who have been tapped for the principalship. A purposeful, convenience
sample process was used to select a principal for this study so that the researcher could gain clear
understanding of the promising practices and the research questions (Creswell, 2014). The unit
of analysis for this case study was a principal who intentionally builds leadership capacity in
teachers with the intent of facilitating their movement into school administration. Criteria used
to select the principal included (a) the principal had served in that capacity for more than three to
five years, (b) the principal reported he had purposefully built leadership capacity in teachers
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
52
with the intent of encouraging them to move into school administrations, (c) one or more of his
tapped teachers is pursuing or is already in a school administration position. Snowball sampling
led to the identification of teachers and other administrators from whom data were collected
(Merriam, 2009). Six participants were interviewed so that rich data could be collected that
informed the promising practices the case study principal used to build leadership capacity in
tapped teachers.
Overview of the Organization
The location of the case study was a comprehensive high school located in a large
metropolitan area of southern California. Essex High School is located in a middle class
neighborhood serving 2376 students in grades nine through 12. The demographic composition
of the school is 59 percent white, 28 percent Hispanic, 8 percent Asian/Pacific Islander, and 5
percent other ethnicities. Fifteen percent of the school population is socio-economically
disadvantaged. Certificated staff is comprised of five administrators, six counselors, and 105
teachers. Because the intent of this study was to examine the promising practices principals use
to develop leadership capacity in teachers who will become the next generation of principals, the
site was appropriate due to the identification of principal succession practices that exist there.
Overview of the Principal
The principal, John Woods, chosen as the unit of analysis for this case study has been
principal of Essex High School for 12 years. He started his teaching career in 1985 and was
himself tapped for the principalship by principals and district administrators. Prior to moving
into school administration, John was a secondary teacher for 15 years. He moved into Essex
High School’s athletic director position and following that became an Assistant Principal at a
neighboring high school. After working in the assistant principal capacity for three years, John
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
53
returned to Essex High School as its principal, where he has been ever since. John was an
appropriate unit of analysis for this case study because of his clear practice of tapping teachers
for school administration. While interviewing him as a potential candidate for this study, he
expressed his strong beliefs in the power of good leadership. When asked about intentional
leadership capacity building practices at his site, he described the process by which he choses
teachers and through intentional practices moves them into the principal pipeline. Several of his
former teachers whom he has tapped have moved on to assistant principal and principal
positions.
Theoretical Framework
According to Northouse (2005), transformational leadership focuses on a leader’s
development of followers in seeking to attain organizational goals. The theory uses processes
that endeavor to change people or as suggested by the name, transform people. This study was
intent on examining how leadership is cultivated and teachers are transformed into successful
leaders. Thus, transformational leadership theory provided the best lens through which to
examine the promising practices utilized by the study’s principal in building leadership capacity
in teachers tapped for the principalship. Transformational leadership develops people and
motivates them to achieve common goals. The model of transformational leadership includes
four factors that are (a) idealized influence, (b) inspirational motivation, (c) intellectual
stimulation, and (d) individualized consideration (Bass, 1985). Later development of the theory
by Kouzes and Posner (2008) resulted in the five fundamental practices that characterize
transformational leaders. From these five practices, three were selected to be used for this study,
they are model the way, inspire a shared vision, and enable others to act. The three practices
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
54
selected were chosen due to their alignment with strategies used to build leadership capacity and
stronger link to the purposes of this study.
Conceptual Framework
The conceptual framework designed by the thematic dissertation group was based upon
the emerging themes from the review of literature (Figure 1). Historical events in education have
led to the evolution of the school principal role into a complex position that many teachers find
undesirable. Because of this, a shortage of high-quality candidates for school principal vacancies
has developed which has led educational researchers and practitioners to address the need for
intentional principal succession planning. Through Transformational Leadership practices
districts and schools build leadership capacity in teachers who will be the next generation of
school principals. Despite challenges, these practices contribute to the development of a
reservoir of high-quality administrators from which principal vacancies can be filled.

Figure 1. Conceptual Framework, Ed.D. Thematic Group 2015

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
55
Data Collection Approach
All participants in this study were provided with an introductory letter informing them of
the purpose of the study and the role they would play in providing data for the research
(Appendix A). This study’s primary subject was a school principal who used promising
practices to build leadership capacity in teachers he saw as having potential to move into school
administration. The principal and site were selected through recruitment at a state school
administrators’ association conference.
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the principal, current teachers, and
former teachers who were tapped by the principal and have subsequently moved into school
administration (Appendices B and C). Semi-structured interviews allowed for flexibility in the
interview process so that respondents were free to express their definitions and perceptions of
experiences in leadership capacity building. In addition, semi-structured interviews allowed the
researcher to respond to the interview situation in varied ways in order to best explore the
emerging themes and new ideas being expressed by the respondents (Merriam, 2009). These
interviews, coupled with observations (Appendix D) and document analysis, served to provide
data for the study. Questions in the interview protocols addressed the study’s three research
questions and were developed in collaboration with the thematic dissertation group. In advance
of the interviews, all protocols were piloted to ensure that questions were clear and that
responses addressed the research questions (Creswell, 2014).
Table 1 describes the selected participants and the characteristics of each participant that
were relevant to this study

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
56
Table 1
Study Participants
Role Relevant
Characteristics
Relevant
Characteristics
Expected Time
Commitment
to Interview
1. Principal- John Woods Leadership capacity
building principal
Formalized system for
tapping teachers for
principalship

3 x 45 minutes
2. Daniel Former Intern

Current Assistant
Principal

30 minutes
3. Will Current Intern English Teacher

50 minutes
4. Roxanne Current Intern Special Education
Teacher

45 minutes
5. Lew Current Intern STEM Teacher

40 minutes
6. Cordelia Former Intern Current assistant
principal

30 minutes

The table above lists the participants who were interviewed in this study. The principal
who was the primary focus of this study was interviewed three times. Characteristics of the
interviewees that were relevant to the study are listed in the table.
Instrumentation
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with study participants allowing for the
respondents to describe and define the conditions being explored in individualized ways and
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
57
allowing for flexibility within the interview (Merriam, 2009). Appendices B and C outline the
protocol questions used for each group being interviewed. Less structured, open-ended questions
followed the prepared questions allowing for more in-depth analysis and richer descriptions by
participants (Gall, Gall & Borg, 2007). To ensure that the interview protocols addressed the
research questions guiding the study, a matrix was created by the thematic group that aligned the
protocols to the research questions (Appendix D). All interviews were recorded digitally and
transcribed to ensure that the participants’ responses, thoughts, and perceptions were captured
accurately.
Observations were conducted using observation protocols developed by the thematic
dissertation group (Appendix E). These observations served to contribute to the reliability of the
data being collected (Merriam, 2009). Finally, document analysis served to add to the validity of
the results in providing additional evidence for findings.
Table 2 describes the research questions for this study and the appropriate
instrumentation used to gather data in response to these questions.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
58
Table 2
Research Questions as Instrumentation
Research Question Interviews Observations Document Analysis
1. In what ways do principals
work to build the next
generation of leaders?

2. What are the perceptions
of teachers regarding the
influence of those practices?

3. What are the factors that
both facilitate and inhibit the
development and
implementation of strategies
that are designed to build
leadership capacity toward
future administration in
schools?

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

The interviews conducted with all participants served to provide information used to
respond to all three of the research questions. Interviews revealed the understandings and
interpretations of participants by allowing them to verbally express those things that were not
observable by the researcher as she sought to answer the three research questions (Merriam,
2009). Observational data on the three research questions created a context for participant
behaviors and opportunity to observe behaviors as they were happening rather than rely
exclusively on participant’s limited recollections. The document analysis conducted in this study
addressed two of the three research questions. Documents provided data that triangulated
information shared by respondents and observed by the researcher around the ways that
principals build leadership capacity and what factors facilitated and inhibited these strategies.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
59
Data Analysis
In order to fully answer the research questions, analysis of the data derived from the
interviews, observations, and documents was conducted using Creswell’s (2014) six steps for
data analysis. Figure 2 is a graphic representation of Creswell’s six steps designed
collaboratively by the thematic dissertation group.

Figure 2. Creswell’s (2014) Model for Qualitative Data Analysis
As indicated by the model, the first step in analysis of the collected data entailed
organizing and preparing the data analysis through transcription and extended note taking. The
next step included examining the data and obtaining an overall interpretation of the meaning of
the interviews, observations, and documents. The next step began the coding process, whereby
data were chunked into categories, these chunks then developed into themes and descriptions that
added to the complexity of the analysis. Step five served to determine how the themes would be
represented in the qualitative narrative and finally, step six led to data interpretation that made
meaning of the findings and results.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
60
Ethical Considerations
Throughout the study, protection of the participants was ensured and procedures for
ethical conduct were followed. Prior to initiation of the research, the University of Southern
California Institutional Review Board examined the research proposal and gave approval for the
study. Confidentiality was protected by secure record keeping and by the use of pseudonyms for
people, places, and organizations. Upon completion of the dissertation study, all records were
discarded securely.
Summary
This chapter provided an outline of the methods used to conduct this study. A qualitative
case study analysis exploring the ways in which principals build leadership capacity in teachers
tapped for the principalship was conducted. Perceptions of teachers involved in this process
were examined and the factors that both facilitate and inhibit leadership capacity growth were
explored. Through in-depth interviews, observations and document analysis data were gathered
to inform this study and provide validation of the findings. To provide a theoretical framework
for the study, three transformational leadership practices were used, they are modeling the way,
inspiring a shared vision, and enabling others to act. A conceptual framework for the study was
developed based upon the extant literature addressing the research problem. In addition, this
section elaborated upon data collection and instrumentation that served to address the research
questions. Finally, the data analysis procedure, using Creswell’s (2014) model for qualitative
data analysis, was displayed and described. Chapter Four will elaborate on the results of the data
collection and analysis described within this chapter.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
61
CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS
This study sought to illuminate the promising practices that some school principals use to
build leadership capacity in teachers who have been tapped to move into school administration
and fill the reservoir of high-quality principal candidates. The findings of this study aimed to
provide insight for school principals who wish to build capacity in teachers who will become the
next generation of principals. Districts who desire to create intentional succession plans to fill
vacant principal positions may also use these findings in developing such a plan. This chapter
will describe the participants of the case study and report on the findings, which will be
delineated by the following research questions that served to frame the study:
1) In what ways do principals work to build the next generation of leaders?
4) What are the perceptions of teachers regarding the influence of those practices?
5) What are the factors that both facilitate and inhibit the development and
implementation of strategies designed to build leadership capacity?
Overview of Participants
The unit of analysis for this case study was the principal of Essex High School, John
Woods. John obtained his teaching credential from a southern California institute of higher
education after spending five years in the private sector. Feeling called to the education
profession, he spent 15 years as a classroom teacher, all of which took place at Essex High
School. His teaching experience was vast, teaching subjects in English, History and special
education. John’s first formal leadership position at Essex High School was serving as athletic
director. Upon completing a Master’s in Educational Administration, John sought to work as a
school administrator. In 2000, John was selected to serve as an assistant principal of a high
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
62
school located in the same school district as Essex. This position lasted until 2003, when he was
asked to return to Essex High School as its principal.
John was selected as the unit of analysis for this study because of his intentional building
of leadership capacity in teachers whom he has tapped for the principalship. John’s success in
tapping teachers for the principalship is reflected in the fact that many of John’s former teachers
are currently serving effectively as school administrators both inside and outside of his district-
three are principals, and four are assistant principals.
John uses a strategic and systematic approach to building leadership capacity in teachers
who he believes would make good school leaders and who have expressed interest in moving
into school administration. John is strategic in that he includes the tapping of teachers in his
formal organization structure and site plan. These teachers are not mentored or tapped
informally; rather their role is planned for in the organizational structure of Essex High School.
John is systematic in his approach to tapping teachers, he has developed a process
whereby he assigns each tapped teacher specific projects, partners them with an assistant
principal and allows them opportunities for day-to-day administrative work. He describes the
motive behind the initial phase of his system, “I think it is important to give them time out of the
classroom to become saturated in the daily agenda of an administrator.” Finally, when he senses
that an intern is ready to move into administration, he begins to promote or showcase them
through his network of administrators and district officials, thus improving the likelihood that
they may be hired when they apply for vacant school administration positions. John calls the
teachers who he is tapping “interns”. As findings are reported for this study, the term intern will
be used to describe the teachers who John is tapping.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
63
In addition to John, five other participants were interviewed and observed in order to
gather data that would inform the research questions. Three participants are teachers who are
currently being tapped by John for the principalship, two participants were former teachers who
were tapped by John and subsequently moved into school administration; one is a current
assistant principal at Essex High School. In addition to interviews and observations, artifacts
informing the research questions were collected from participants. As stated in Chapter Three,
all participants and places in this study are referred to using pseudonyms to ensure
confidentiality. Table 3 provides a brief overview and description of the participants in this
study, including their years of service in education, number of years as an intern as Essex, and
unique characteristics.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
64
Table 3
Participant Descriptions
Name Years in
education
Years as
intern
Distinct characteristics
John Woods 30 n/a • Principal Essex High School
• Published writer and presenter focused on
school leadership
• Extrovert personality
• Passionate about his life’s purpose and his
role as Essex’s principal
• Avid family man and runner

Daniel 12 3 • Current administrator
• Advocate for underprivileged students
• Former college athlete; shares John’s
athletic interests

Will 14 2 • Intern
• Literary magazine advisor
• Strong opinions about the need for quality
leaders and quality teachers

Roxanne 12 2 • Intern
• Special education teacher
• Immigrated to the U.S. as a child
Lew 12 5 • Intern
• Relational
• Strong leadership interest early in life

Cordelia 27 4 • Current administrator
• Teaching colleague of John’s prior to him
becoming principal

Overview of the Organization
Essex High School serves 2376 students in grades 9 through 12. It is located in a middle
class neighborhood of northern Los Angeles County. Fifteen percent of the school population
comes from families who qualify for free or reduced lunch, a population that is growing at Essex
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
65
High School. In addition to a growing population of socio-economically disadvantaged students,
Essex has also shown small growth in ethnic diversity, with Hispanic students and those from
other ethnicities showing slight increases over the last two years. Currently over half of the
population is white, followed by the second largest population, comprised of Hispanic students.
The third largest population is students from Asian/Pacific Islander backgrounds, and the
smallest population is students from other ethnicities. Table 4 shows a breakdown of the student
population at Essex High School.
Table 4
Essex High School Student Demographics
Student Demographic Report
Student enrollment by Group:
Asian/Pacific Islander
Hispanic or Latino
White
Other Ethnicities
Socioeconomically disadvantaged
English learners
Students with disabilities
Percent of total enrollment
8
28
59
5
15
4
12
Student enrollment by grade
Grade 9
Grade 10
Grade 11
Grade 12
Total
Number of students
638
611
619
508
2376
Note. Data compiled from 2013-2014 California Department of Education Student
Accountability Report Card

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
66
Essex High School is one of six comprehensive high schools in its district. Serving these
students are 105 teachers. Table 5 reflects the demographics of the teaching population at Essex
High School.
Table 5
Essex High School Teacher Demographics
Teacher characteristics
Overview
Total teachers
Female
Male
Fully Credentialed
Teachers of English Learners

Number
105
58
47
105
4

Ethnicity
African American
Asian/Pacific Islander
Hispanic or Latino
White
Other
Number
2
9
8
85
1
Class Size (by subject area)
English
Math
Science
Social Science
Average number of students
29.6
32
33.1
31.3

Average Salary (mid-level) $66,275

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
67
Data Findings
Research Question 1: Strategies in Building Leadership Capacity
The first research question sought to reveal the practices that one principal uses to build
the leadership capacity in teachers poised to enter the principal pipeline and become the next
generation of school principals. As the pool of high-quality principal candidates appears to be
decreasing (Fink, 2010; Gajda & Militello, 2008; Howley et al., 2005), the building of leadership
capacity in teachers serves as a foundation for successful principal succession plans. As data
were collected in this study, three themes emerged addressing the first research question. First,
John creates a culture at Essex High School that contributes to the building of leadership
capacity in tapped teachers through relationship building, and clear values and vision. Second,
he provides ongoing opportunities for his interns to participate in administrative tasks including
long-term projects and day-to-day duties. Third, building leadership capacity in tapped teachers
is part of John’s personal ideology, which predisposes him toward helping others grow and
develop in their personal and professional endeavors.
It is important to note that while an internship is required by the state of California for
administrative credentialing, John’s interns may or may not be working toward fulfilling this
requirement. John’s interns are chosen and their role is clearly communicated to the staff
through formal announcements and documents outlining administrative duties (Appendix F).
Essex High School’s interns are teachers who take on specific administrative tasks, such as
overseeing a project and assisting with day-to-day administration. These duties are voluntary
and interns know that they are being groomed for a future role as a school administrator. It is
clear to them and to all at Essex High School that the duties interns take on are serving to
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
68
provide them with authentic administrative experience and to build leadership capacity. Tapped
teachers more often than not serve as an intern for several years.
School Culture
One of the most powerful ways in which John builds leadership capacity in teachers
whom he has identified as interns is by creating a culture at Essex High School that supports
professional growth and improvement. The term culture refers to the norms, behaviors,
language, expectations, and people interactions that are shared by those who are part of Essex
High School. This culture is attained in two ways, through John’s building of strong, positive
relationships with interns and through John’s clear values and vision about his role as a leader.
As John describes, “Essex is a place where everyone, students, families, classified, and
especially teachers should be able to become better.”
Relationships and accessibility. Building positive relationships is one cornerstone of
John’s leadership practice and a critical element in the culture that allows him to build leadership
capacity in his interns. John sees positive relationships as one of the most powerful tools he has,
impacting his role as a mentor and role model for teachers he is tapping. In describing his
process of building leadership capacity in interns, John’s first response was, “I believe in
relationships.” John believes that relationships also help build quality teams that can accomplish
significantly more than one individual. John uses positive relationships to inspire a shared vision
for leadership, one to which his interns can aspire. When asked about the ways that he builds
leadership capacity in interns, John commented, “Let’s face it, you might have all the qualities of
a great leader, charisma, discipline, knowledge, etc. but if you don’t have a genuine care for
those around you, it will be hard for them to follow you.” John’s interns and assistant principals
confirm John’s ability to build positive relationships. “One thing he does is he makes sure the
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
69
interns feel connected to the rest of the admin,” said Daniel. Roxanne corroborated the
importance of relationships, “John is very relational, he makes people feel important and cared
about.” Observations of John also confirm that he seeks to reach out to his interns and connect
with them on a relational level. During one observation, Roxanne, who was scheduled to meet
briefly with John, arrived at the meeting after experiencing a difficult situation with a student in
her classroom. John voiced his concern and inquired as to how she was feeling and ensured her
that he was there to listen and support her as she dealt personally and professionally with the
situation. Only then did he proceed to his agenda.
Relationships improve the collaborative nature of John’s intern system by enhancing the
work that he, his assistant principals and interns do together. “Many people don’t really
understand the value of building others up and fostering important relationships,” states John.
Recognizing that more can be achieved with a team and that great teams are built upon good
relationships, John adopts the transformational practices of enabling others to act and inspiring a
shared vision when he seeks to build strong relationships with his interns. These positive
relationships help the interns grow and achieve as leaders. As John says, “People realize I do
care about them and I hope that we can build good relationships so that I can then invest in
them.” He goes on to describe good relationships as being invested in people’s personal lives as
well as their professional lives and how this helps him move people toward improvement. He
describes how he intentionally takes time to ask about the personal lives of those with whom he
works in order to build positive relationships:
I go out of my way to know about the circumstances of their lives; who is struggling, who
has a spouse in the hospital, who is giving birth to a new baby, who is getting married,
whose mom or dad just passed away. When you recognize those things and you let
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
70
people know that you want them, above all else to be a family person, this builds good
relationships.
By building strong relationships with his interns, John contributes to a culture where interns feel
safe to grow and develop as leaders. An important aspect of what John does to build strong
relationships is to make himself accessible to his interns. John works to build relationships,
knowing that in doing so he must give of his time:
I believe in pulling people aside and I can't help being here too much, because when
people come through that door, I let them come in, and we talk. Sometimes they talk
forever. This is a place that people come to. And if you are going to build relationships,
you got to do that.
Daniel noted, “John spends a lot of time working with us. The interns and the assistant
principals know they can approach him any time and he’ll listen.”
John’s interns and former interns validate the relational component of John’s leadership.
All five spoke of the strong personal relationship they were able to build with John and how the
relationship enhanced their ability to grow as leaders. For some, like Daniel, it was a shared love
of athletics that helped form the strong relational bond with John “We both started talking about
love of sports and formed a bond on that topic.” A simple shared passion such as sports provided
opportunity for a connection beyond the professional duties that they faced each day. For others,
such as Will, it was John’s respect and consideration for family situations that forged the strong
relationship. Will recounted a time when his daughter fell ill and John’s concern for him as a
father was foremost in their conversation about taking time off from work. “It wasn’t a business
to him [John], it was a human situation and he encouraged me to take whatever time I needed to
be with my family.” Personal crisis could have halted progress in Will becoming an
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
71
administrator, but John’s awareness of and willingness to adjust to the situation allowed Will to
continue on the path toward the principalship without having to sacrifice the attention his family
needed at that time.
Clear values and vision. A second powerful cultural component that enhances John’s
ability to build leadership capacity in his interns comes from his ability to establish clear values
and vision for Essex High School and for the interns. John values people becoming the best they
can be, this applies to all stakeholders at Essex High School and specifically to the interns as
they seek to grow professionally. The vision for Essex High School is to facilitate growth of the
organization and its individuals. For the interns this refers to their growth in leadership abilities,
knowledge and understanding so that they can become effective school principals one day in the
future. John describes the importance of having a vision:
Great leaders have a way of looking into the future and seeing something that others
can’t imagine. They formulate a vision for not only where their organization is going
but also for how they’re going to get there. Along the way, it’s imperative that leaders
bring others into that vision and framework so that collectively they can establish a team
that is unified in purpose and dedicated to the ultimate objectives.
When asked about his vision as a leader, John stated that the focus of Essex is to allow everyone,
students and employees, to have “personal growth and professional success.” When asked about
what they believe John’s values are and about his vision for Essex High School, four of John’s
interns and former interns were able to confidently communicate that John values growing
people and that the vision for Essex is about providing opportunities for students and staff to
maximize their potential. Lew expressed this, “He’s [John] all about making everyone the best
they can be, student, teachers and definitely interns.” “It’s about helping people to become their
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
72
best, students and everyone,” explained Roxanne. John’s interns build leadership capacity in a
culture that values who they are and inspires them to build on that to become successful leaders.
A former intern, who is now an assistant principal, expressed understanding of John’s vision. He
reflects that John was “very consistent about sharing with me the fact that I had the capacity to
do what I wanted to do [as a leader] and I didn't have to change who I was to do it.” John clearly
communicates his vision for the teachers in whom he is building leadership capacity, a vision
that includes providing the interns opportunities to reach their goals and dreams, “John will help
you become the very best at whatever it is you want to do, so when I told him I wanted to work
on my administrative credential, he was behind me 100 percent,” said Will. The
transformational practice of creating and communicating a shared vision for his school and for
the systematic building of leadership capacity in interns is a second critical element of the culture
that is created at Essex High School.
Opportunities for Authentic Experience
In building leadership capacity in his interns, John provides opportunities for them to
participate in authentic administrative experiences, he supports them in mastering skills and
knowledge, and offers networking opportunities with district-level leaders who are responsible
for school leadership succession. Through the transformational practice of enabling others to act
(Kouzes & Posner, 2008), John encourages and support interns’ growth as leaders so that their
competency in administrative leadership and their confidence in managing the duties of a school
administrator are nurtured. It is not uncommon for the teachers whom John has tapped to serve
in their intern role for several years. The work they do is in depth and varied, this extended time
maximizes an intern’s ability to participate in a variety of authentic administrative work and
provides opportunities for improvement.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
73
Authentic administrative activities. Each school year, John intentionally and
strategically plans his interns’ duties and roles, from overseeing special projects to practicing
day-to-day administrative skills. Thus teachers do not just learn about administration second
hand or practice in role play situations, but get authentic or real practice doing administrative
work. John assigns each intern a yearlong project to oversee in collaboration with one of his
assistant principals (Appendix F). John also considers how to use the individual strengths of
each teacher when assigning projects. For example, Will, who is currently on the teaching staff
at Essex High School as an English teacher, was chosen to be the site WASC coordinator. In this
position, Will is responsible for writing the school’s WASC report and working with teachers
and other staff to gather data for that report. One of Will’s strengths is his writing ability and
John decided to couple that strength with opportunities for Will to practice overseeing staff
members who will need to contribute to the WASC process, “Will is the perfect person to lead
this,” John says. Another intern, Roxanne, has spent time after her teaching duties planning and
coordinating a school trip to the Museum of Tolerance and a third intern has worked with an
assistant principal to coordinate the school’s Every 15 Minutes campaign. Each of these tasks
gives interns opportunities to plan and manage projects.
In addition to experiences coordinating special projects, John uses his site funds to pay
for substitutes for his interns on a regular basis so that they can be released from class instruction
to work in the administrative offices on day-to-day administrative duties. John uses shadowing
and supported practice to grow interns’ competence and confidence in their ability to manage
day-to-day events, such as school discipline, scheduling or parent concerns. John empowers his
interns by supporting but not micromanaging their work thus providing them opportunities for
self-determination and growth. In this way he uses the transformational leadership practice of
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
74
enabling others to act to build capacity in the next generation of principals. Cordelia validated
the practice of providing authentic administrative experience for interns, “As an intern you get to
be [emphasis added] an administrator, you may not have the title or pay, but you are doing the
real [emphasis added] work that school principals and assistant principals do.”
The collaborative approach to building leadership capacity means that practice in
authentic administrative duties for interns at Essex High School is more than filling in for an
assistant principal when he/she is out. Roxanne, a current intern, described her work with the
assistant principal with whom she is often paired, “I work with my assistant principal a lot, often
on special education issues, there is so much to manage and maintain within the school setting I
need to learn with her.” John ensures that the interns are guided in strategically building
leadership capacity through support from him and his assistant principals.
John’s collaborative and supportive process is aligned to the research on principal
preparation, which reflects the importance of authentic practice in instructing and developing
pre-service school administrators (Anast-May et al., 2011). John’s interns are provided this
authentic practice along with multiple levels of mentoring from both John and his assistant
principals. Dan, a current school administrator, expressed the value in the collaborative culture
that allowed him to build leadership capacity through authentic practice in administrative duties:
I know what the [administrator’s] environment is because I’ve had real experience doing
it. And that is, to me, one of the critical components of what John does to prepare people.
He makes sure that first you are connected to other administrators at his site but also that
you are doing real work.
Feedback. The authentic practice doing administrative duties is guided for the interns at
Essex High School. John will debrief the experiences with the interns, noting for them areas of
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
75
accomplishment and strength as well as areas for continued work. John describes the value he
places on feedback through a scenario with one of his interns:
I try to follow up and give advice to the interns; it’s really how we all learn, don’t we?
One of my interns was working with a team of teachers and he did well organizing the
meeting, getting a good agenda and outcomes together. But I had to really let him know
that the way he set the tone for the meeting with his speech did not lead to the best
results.
Because authentic opportunities for administrative work are ongoing and not short-lived
experiences for Essex interns, they are able to improve their leadership skills and knowledge.
Lew, a teacher who has been an intern at Essex High School for several years clearly sees the
benefits he has derived from the feedback and guidance he’s received, “I would get to sit in the
office with him [John] and ask, ‘hey how did this go?’ and I knew I would be told where I
succeeded and where I could have done things differently and better. And I knew I would get a
chance to try again.” As John explains, “I tell it like it is, and if they are doing a good job I tell
them so, if they need to do better, I tell them so and show them how.” John’s feedback and
guidance is a critical strategy in building leadership capacity in the interns.
Networking/learning opportunities. Another way that John builds leadership capacity
in the interns is by providing opportunities to network with and learn from district leaders and
others in the education field. John allows his interns to be part of presentations and events where
they can be showcased. John describes this practice:
I want to make sure all four [of the interns] are seen all over the district. If they are really
going to get a job in administration at another campus, they need to be seen by others- on
curriculum committees, doing board presentations. They need to be profiled.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
76
Placing his interns in positions to be noticed by others who are responsible for hiring school
administrators is strategic on John’s part. He does so discriminately; making sure that the intern
has had enough experience and is ready to successfully present him/her-self. “It’s a plan.” John
elaborates:
It’s a strategic, well-organized plan so that the people can be pushed forward when they
are ready. There’s nothing worse for my integrity than for me to push someone forward
who is not quite ready for that, so it’s a plan.
This clear endeavor to promote interns among those who would support their movement into
school administration was corroborated by intern, Will, “Of course there is networking, and he
[John] gets your name out there and your efforts.”
In addition to networking opportunities, John provides his interns opportunities to further
learn about school administration. John invites them to attend leadership meetings and trainings
hosted by the school district. While many of these opportunities are for current administrators,
John consistently invites his interns to attend as well. “We get emails all the time about
invitations to go to vice principals’ meetings. They come from John; we are never excluded,”
states Will. Some of these district-facilitated meetings are targeted at teachers who showed
interest in the principalship. John encourages his interns to attend these sessions as well,
knowing they will support teachers in learning about the principal role and responsibilities.
“Anyone interested in administration could attend these monthly meetings,” said Dan, a former
intern now serving as an assistant principal. “We were offered chances to go and encouraged to
do so, even though we were learning a lot from him [John] as well.” The district is open to
John’s interns attending events for administrators; they view the interns as a source of candidates
for future administrative positions despite being uninvolved in the tapping process. John
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
77
commented, “The Assistant Superintendent is a friend of mine, and he will sometimes just touch
base and ask, ‘Hey, you have anyone good?’ for such-and-such a position.”
Personal Ideology
A third emergent theme that addressed the question of how John builds leadership
capacity in his interns stems from his leadership ideology. John believes that his role as a leader
at Essex High School is to build capacity in all of his employees, particularly those who wish to
go into school administration. He carries out this ideology through the selection of promising
teachers as interns, and subsequently mentoring, encouraging and reinforcing their growth as
potential school administrators.
Selection of interns. John believes that as a school leader, he must build capacity in
teachers who will become future administrators but he approaches the selection of his interns
conscientiously. John uses his personal observations of teachers’ abilities to lead their peers as
an indication of who might be a good intern. “I like to see if they are good leaders of their fellow
teachers, so perhaps as department chairs or athletic directors,” John explains. He also expresses
a desire to see commitment and follow through in his tapped teachers, he says, “They have to be
willing to put in the extra time and effort, if I haven’t seen them do that before, they probably
would not be good teachers to bring in.” While John recruits teachers to be interns based upon
his two criteria, the desire must be mutual. A teacher must express interest in being an intern and
considering school administration as a career goal. Lew explained this process, “He [John] saw
me and he realized I was getting my credential, he asked me if I wanted to be an intern.” Lew
added, “He’s all about helping people be the best they can be, but if you say to him I don’t want
to be an administrator, I want to be a baseball coach, then he will help you be the best baseball
coach you can be.”
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
78
Mentoring. John reflected upon his role as a leader and shared his belief that his
personal mission as a leader is to build capacity in others. “Leadership never stops; I ask ‘How
can I build up new leaders?’ Building the capacity to help others lead is paramount in my
duties.” He adds, “Leadership is a journey that I embrace and, when looking at people, one I can
give back to.” John’s ideology aligns to the transformational practice of model the way whereby
leaders powerfully impact those they lead through the mentoring relationships they develop
(Kouzes & Posner, 2008).
John’s mentoring includes serving as a role model and coaching those he is tapping, in
addition he guides his assistant principals in doing the same. He models for his interns the
characteristics of a high-quality principal. This allows them to follow a clearly seen example. “It
is important to let a person [intern] come in and shadow an A.P. or me and learn.” John also
guides interns in their development of leadership skills through more explicit mentoring and
coaching. The interns interviewed spoke of John’s ability to mentor and encourage, they
described him as a “great role model”, “someone to look up to and follow”, one who “believes in
me and provides me the support and encouragement I need to keep trying to become an
administrator.” Lew describes these practices in building leadership capacity, “He was very
forthcoming in telling me he thought I was going to do a good job and that he was confident in
my abilities.” Lew also added that the mentoring relationship that occurred with the assistant
principals also supported his growth as a future administrator:
There were two A.P.’s I spent a lot of time with, who really helped me along in learning
about administration. Even when something came up spur of the moment, they would
say “Hey, what are you doing right now?”- they had such a willingness to invite me in to
get every bit of experience.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
79
Encouragement. The encouragement that comes through the mentoring relationships
makes it possible for the interns at Essex High School to build confidence and competencies.
Through this transformational practice of enabling others to act, John encourages interns to use
their strengths and capabilities to grow leadership capacity. Dan recounted this practice, “One
thing about John, he is always encouraging. He encourages everybody and this gives you
confidence to go out and try things while you are working as an intern.” John sees the positive
impact of encouragement, “I tell them, ‘You need to trust me that I’m going to do everything I
can to help you learn and to profile you. You need to give me everything you’ve got. I need to
see that excellence in you.’” John knows that there will be setbacks for his interns. As one
struggled with being turned down for assistant principal position, John recalled the conversation
about this disappointing experience, “He worked really hard, I’ve had to just keep encouraging
him, I told him ‘It’s just not your time right now’ I knew he would get a position eventually so it
was important for me to keep him positive and encouraged.”
Discussion of Research Question 1
The three emergent themes from research question one shed light on the practices that
one school principal uses to build leadership capacity in tapped teachers. Results of this study
align to the three transformational practices that form the theoretical lens for examination of
John’s work in building leadership capacity in his interns (Kouzes & Posner, 2008). The culture
that John creates inspires a shared vision and enables others to act. The opportunities interns
have for authentic practice in administrative duties align to the practice of enabling others to act.
John’s leadership ideology draws him to build and mentor the next generation of school
administrators thus reflecting all three transformational practices. Additionally, these findings
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
80
build upon the research reflecting leadership capacity development in those who will become the
next generation of school principals.
Creating a culture that is structured around positive relationships and accessibility, clear
values and vision, and collaboration provides a base from which the intern program at Essex
High School is built. To create an intentional plan for leadership succession, as called for by
Fink and Brayman (2006), John uses the transformational practices of inspiring a shared vision
and enabling others to act. The structured and systematic way in which John builds leadership
capacity in his interns is effective because it begins by being grounded in a culture that builds
relationships between leaders and followers (Bass, 1985). From the positive relationships, stems
the collaborative efforts toward reaching the common goal of moving teachers into the principal
pipeline.
Authentic practice in administrative work that includes support in building leadership
capacity has been found to increase preparedness for those seeking to move into school
administration (Anast-May et al., 2011; Darling-Hammond et al., 2007). The teachers in John’s
intern system at Essex High School have opportunities over extended time periods, often several
years, to work in authentic administrative settings. John effectuates the practice of enabling
others to act. He creates a cooperative system whereby interns are empowered to make decisions
and contribute to the school’s vision and goals (Northouse, 2013). As the interns leave Essex
High School and enter into the principal pipeline, they feel better prepared to handle the complex
duties of school administration.
Findings in this study reveal John’s personal ideology, focused on building capacity in
others, contributes to the growth and development of future school administrators. By enacting
this ideology, John inspires a shared vision with interns by moving them toward success in
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
81
reaching the goal of becoming effective school administrators (Northouse, 2010). He enables
interns to act and models the way by creating a system that uses collaborative opportunities for
increasing capacity and self-efficacy in administrative work. Furthermore, John’s practices in
building leadership capacity align to the literature that reflects the positive impact of mentoring
on pre-service and novice administrators (Hansford and Ehrich, 2006; Silver et al., 2009). John’s
interns are provided positive mentoring relationships that include a sense of encouragement,
which leads to increased competency and confidence in their abilities to do the work of school
administrators. The intern system at Essex High School uses practices that are grounded in
current research and transformational leadership theory to build leadership capacity in tapped
teachers, thus contributing to the reservoir of high-quality principal candidates. John’s practices
provide insight and serve as a model for others to build upon or to begin succession planning at
the teacher level.
Research Question 2: Perceptions of Leadership Capacity Building Practices
The second research question explored the perceptions tapped teachers construct around
the influences of principal practices in building leadership capacity. Exploring the perceptions of
teachers who are interns at Essex contributes to a greater understanding of the promising
practices that principals use to build capacity in teachers who will potentially move into school
administration. Teachers’ perceptions reflect the effectiveness of the promising practices and
validate that the practices have their intended outcome. One emergent theme around this
research question is that interns at Essex High School see positive relationships as a powerful
force in building their leadership capacity. Associated with positive relationships, interns also
view effective mentoring and coaching as constructive influences on their leadership growth. A
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
82
third theme emerging from the data is that the interns recognize value in the authentic
administrative experiences they are able to have within John’s system.
Relationships
The cultivation of positive relationships between John, his interns, and the assistant
principals allows for effective leadership capacity building. Howley et al. (2005) found that
teachers see the role of principal as more desirable when they have a positive relationship with
their principal, one built on encouragement, support, trust and common interests. Interns at
Essex High School see the positive relationships they build with John and with the assistant
principals as critical to their professional growth in school administrative leadership.
Encouragement and support. Connections that John makes on a personal level lead to
positive relationships and enhance his ability to mentor and coach interns on a professional level.
“We had something outside of work that connected us, I think that is one thing that was really
helpful when we got together to talk” said Lew. Will explained that his personal connection to
John provided a sense of “safety in experimenting and trying on the administrative role.” John
genuinely likes his interns and they sense this in his willingness to support them and help them
grow professionally.
Positive relationships allow for interns to feel supported and encouraged in their work,
building efficacy and competency in administrative duties and roles. Lew stated, “John really
welcomed me, and not just me but other interns who were interested in administration with open
arms. He cared about us wanting to really learn.” In addition, Cordelia saw the connection
between this positive relationship and the building of her leadership skills and abilities, “He is
really someone who cares for people and because of that people like me are willing to learn from
him.”
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
83
Positive relationships support the mentoring and coaching John does so that correction or
difficult discussions can be springboards to capacity building rather than discouraging
experiences. Lew described a time when he had made a mistake in carrying out one of his
administrative duties, he recalled John’s response was one that helped him feel supported in
learning through the failure, “He’s like, ‘This can’t happen again,’ and then he went on to say,
‘Hey, pick yourself up and brush yourself off, let’s go.’ I felt like it was safe to fail, that he
doesn’t judge, he models improvement and he’s trying to push people to be better.”
Relational model. John models positive relationship building and the power it has to
help people build leadership capacity, his interns perceive positive relationship building as a
quality of effective leadership. After facing a difficult time in his life, Will recognized that
John’s support of him personally and professionally was a model of good leadership, “Now
that’s a good administrator in my opinion, because there is a human level first to life.” Daniel
also credits John with helping him learn to lead effectively by developing relationships; “I think
one of the talents I possess is to build relationships with people, that has helped me here.” He
continued, “When I was an intern, he really showed me what it meant to care about people and
build good relationships.” Lew also perceived the relationship building that John does as a
model for good leadership, “In order to excel, you have to be a good relationship builder, you
have to know how to relate to people. I am really fortunate to be able to work with someone
[John] who does this.”
Value in Mentoring and Coaching
Interns at Essex High School attribute their leadership capacity growth to the mentoring
relationships that they are able to build with John and with his assistant principals. Interns see
the need for mentoring as it provides strong role models for administrative work and creates
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
84
learning opportunities whereby administrators work along side teachers to guide their
development as future administrators. Much of the research on capacity building in novice
administrators and those in administrative credential programs indicates that mentoring plays a
powerful role in developing effective school administrators (Anast-May et al., 2011; Hansford &
Ehrich, 2006; Simenon et al., 2010).
Administrative role model. Interns view John and his assistant principals as role
models, who provide examples of effective leadership. Lew reflects on his work with them,
“They were great models to have. Not perfect, but really leaders I could pattern myself after.”
He continues by describing how John’s system is the only opportunity for teachers to have
mentors who are distinctly helping guide them into administration, “The district doesn’t really do
much, it mostly is what John does at Essex.” The other interns agreed that John’s system, which
allows for mentoring relationships to develop between administrators and tapped teachers, offers
positive role models for school administration. Roxanne expressed the value she sees, “It’s just
so helpful to have people come alongside you and show you what it means to be a good
administrator.”
Guiding growth through mentoring. The mentoring of interns at Essex High School
also provides opportunities for John and his assistant principals to guide the leadership capacity
building of teachers. While all interns felt supported and encouraged through the mentoring
relationships, they also valued the explicit learning that takes place within the mentoring
relationship. Daniel described when interns are given opportunities to do administrative tasks,
they are supported in the process of learning; the mentoring relationship is where guidance and
feedback occurs. “What John does is certainly not just throwing it to interns and saying ‘good
luck.’ It’s a partnership, he is not afraid to let them try to spread wings taking on an assignment.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
85
And he’s always there for feedback and questions.” Roxanne described a time as an intern when
she served on a committee tasked with hiring a new teacher:
I got to see how he [John] interviewed the teacher, how he directed his questions and then
he asked me to ask some questions, too. After the candidate left, we shared our ideas, he
confirmed that my questions and insights were good.
The mentoring and coaching that occurs within the intern system at Essex High School is of
great value to interns like Roxanne who see the guidance that results as critical to her growth as a
future administrator. Roxanne concluded her description of the interview by stating, “I can now
feel good about my ability to interview.”
Value of Authentic Experiences
Interns at Essex High School perceive the most powerful component of John’s
leadership capacity building system to be the opportunities they have to do authentic
administrative tasks, to “practice the real work of school administration,” says Daniel. Aligned
to the research by Anast-May et al. (2011) that points to authentic practice as a way to improve
principal preparation, interns are given multiple and varied opportunities to work in an
administrative capacity. The interns view the performance of administrative duties, such as
WASC coordination, special programs oversight, working in school discipline, master calendar
preparation and having opportunities for parent and community interactions as significant in
building leadership capacity in them in preparation for school administration.
Opportunities for authentic experience. The theme of authentic practice was one that
permeated all interviews. “As an intern, you’re really going to learn the job. Whether it be
spending days in the office, or substituting when an administrator is out for meetings or having
the opportunity to take care of a project,” Lew expressed the perceptions of many of the interns.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
86
Roxanne articulated the value in experiencing a wide variety of duties in helping her be more
prepared for administration:
There is always something new to learn, you know, from a different situation, a different
parent, a different student. So being able to work in the larger capacity opens up the
world and merges my understandings so I get a big picture view like an administrator
would need.
Daniel entered into his current role as vice principal with a lot of confidence, he credits John
with providing him the opportunities to learn so much about administration before he stepped
into the job, “Except for maybe the EL duties I have here, I feel like I’ve had experience in
almost everything that I do as a vice principal. The years I spent at Essex doing the intern work
really prepared me for this job.” Cordelia also felt well-prepared for her move into the assistant
principal position and expanded this to her current feeling of preparedness for the principalship,
“I’m going to be looking for a school, I know that at this point with my experience here at Essex
and now as an assistant principal, I am ready for the job.” John noted the assistant principals he
currently has working under him and indicated that he was confident that Cordelia was ready and
would be moving into a principal position by the end of the current academic year, “This one
[gesturing toward administrative duties chart], she is fantastic, she’s ready to have her own
school. I doubt I’ll get her back next year.”
Feedback. Coupled with the opportunities to do authentic administrative work, interns
saw benefits in the feedback they received when doing such work. Because the authentic
practice is often done alongside John or an assistant principal in a mentoring relationship,
opportunities for feedback that support mastery of administrative tasks is available. Lew
described how this process made him feel ready to be an effective administrator, “You can’t
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
87
expect people to do things they are not prepared for, and that’s where the whole system of John
plugging people in and giving them experience and guidance really makes them ready.” Daniel
described his work with John and the feedback that he received through the intern system, “So,
we reflected a lot, on scenarios and situations. How we could have done better and how we
could have done it more efficiently.” This feedback, often in the form of reflective discussions
has a twofold effect on interns; first, their skills and knowledge improved, second, their sense of
efficacy and preparedness for administration increased. Daniel recalled, “John really went step-
by-step as we reflected on my work with the group I was leading, I could see where I screwed up
and how to change that and where I was doing pretty good.” Roxanne also commented on the
reflective conversations with John after her days working in the office, “I always leave feeling
like I learned something. I know where I did fine and how I have to get better. I have that list of
things from our conversation to try out next time.”
As Silver et al. (2009) found in their study of novice administrators, the feedback for
interns at Essex provides them with opportunities for more reflection on their work. Will
described this as a component of John’s work with him in an intern capacity, “I usually include
him [John] on email communications to staff or parents. He will give me feedback about my
wording, tone or whatnot. I never realized how sometimes even the little things you say or how
you word them could make a difference.” This reflection with John aided in further
understanding of areas of leadership strength and areas needing improvement for the interns.
Discussion of Research Question 2
As the data reflect, teachers perceive the practices that John uses to build leadership
capacity in them as valuable. The three prevailing and interrelated themes of this study include
the benefits of positive relationships, the power of mentoring, and the ability to do authentic
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
88
administrative work in an environment that provides feedback and support. These themes align
to studies by Darling-Hammond et al. (2007) and Anast-May et al. (2011) that reflect increased
preparedness in potential principals who receive authentic practice in administrative work and
mentoring.
Teachers in this study find that the positive relationships form a base from which they
can work with John. Interns sense John’s concern about them on a professional and personal
level, through this transformational practice of enabling others to act, the relationship building
contributes to an environment that is safe and accepting. This environment is one in which the
interns can grow through self-determination (Kouzes & Posner, 2008). While very little research
speaks exclusively about relationships, the studies on mentoring of pre- and in-service
administrators reflects the power of mentoring on the development of effective school principals
(Hansford & Ehrich, 2006; Simeiou et al., 2010). Positive relationships between the interns,
John and his assistant principals result in well-aligned mentoring opportunities whereby
leadership capacity growth can result.
Mentoring has been shown to be effective in building leadership capacity at numerous
levels, examination of pre-service administrators’ opportunities for mentoring (Darling-
Hammond et al., 2007) and those that look at mentoring current administrators (Silver et al.,
2009) find value in well-matched mentoring experiences. The teachers who are part of John’s
intern system benefit from mentoring relationships often before they enter into an administrative
training program or become school administrators. The benefits of mentoring have more time to
impact the leadership capacity growth in the teachers being tapped by John. Similar to results in
the research by Simeiou et al. (2010), interns at Essex recognize the value in the knowledge,
skills and advice that result from mentoring they receive through the intern system.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
89
Additionally, the relationship building and mentoring that John does with interns serves to
provide a model for these future administrators of how the transformational leadership practices
of modeling the way, inspiring a shared vision and enabling others to act are applied (Kouzes &
Posner, 2008). Interns valued John’s modeling of these three transformational practices and
sought to incorporate them into their own leadership.
Interns as Essex High School perceive the opportunities for authentic administrative work
to be effectively preparing them for school administration. Because of these opportunities they
are confident in their leadership skills and abilities. Research indicates significant work in
authentic administrative roles and effective mentoring positively impact quality of principal
training programs (Anast-May et al., 2011; Darling-Hammond et al., 2007). Whether or not the
interns participate in an administrative credential program that provides substantial authentic
work and mentoring, they will still enter the principal pipeline well prepared and confident in
their abilities because of the intern system that John has developed.
Research Question 3: Factors that Facilitate and Inhibit Leadership Capacity Building
The third research question sought to delineate the factors that both facilitate and inhibit
the leadership capacity building of teachers who are working as interns at Essex High School.
John’s formalized and systematic intern program is the most notable facilitator of strategies that
build leadership capacity. Within this system, the commitments of time, site monies, and
district-level networking and learning opportunities enhance the ability of John to carry out his
leadership capacity building practices. Those factors that inhibit the development and
implementation of the intern system emanate from psychological components that include
additional stress and negative attitudes on the part of interns’ teacher colleagues and the failure
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
90
of John’s district to be formally involved in leadership succession planning thus impacting
scheduling, time commitments, and conflicting financial demands.
Factors that Facilitate
Two emergent themes resulted from the data collection examining the factors that
facilitate the building of leadership capacity in interns working under John. First, just as the
literature calling for intentional leadership succession indicates, John is successful in building
leadership capacity in interns because of the systematic, formalized nature of his tapping of
teachers (Fink, 2010; Peters, 2011). Second, because of the district’s open acceptance of John’s
intern system, he is able to acquire access to district leadership activities for his interns.
School systems and structures. At Essex High School, the factor most influential in the
building of leadership capacity in tapped teachers is John’s intentional, systematic approach to
doing so. John has created what he calls an “intern system” whereby he taps teachers for the
principalship and provides structured leadership capacity building opportunities over a period of
time, often equating to several years.
In every interview and observation, John, his interns and other site administrators,
referenced the intern system used to build leadership capacity in teachers. It is a formal process
at Essex High School, orchestrated by John. The intentional planning is evidenced by inclusion
of the interns on the site administrative duties table (Appendix F). This table outlines what
special projects interns will be working on during the course of an academic year. When
speaking to John prior to the start of the school year he referenced the table, he described the
work of his interns, “There are our four interns. These are our job descriptions for this coming
year, so those four I’ve given them specific duties to be responsible for here on our
administrative chart.” John realizes that the systematic and structured way that he builds
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
91
leadership capacity in teachers with the intent of moving them into school administration is not
the norm. “This chart shows the areas of responsibility for each of us, including my interns. I
would venture to say that most other schools don’t do something like that.”
The allocated time that teachers commit to working as interns also facilitates the
strategies that are used to build leadership capacity in them. Within the structure of the intern
system, John provides tapped teachers with opportunities to vary their responsibilities. Because
so often a teacher remains an intern for more than one year, opportunities for a variety of
authentic administrative experiences are possible. As noted earlier, Anast-May et al. (2011)
proposed that authentic opportunities to practice school leadership, coupled with positive
mentoring, results in school administrators that are better prepared for the job. Several programs
aimed at improved preparation for school administrators, such as the Wallace Foundation’s
Principal Pipeline Project (Kearney, 2010) also reflect the importance of authentic administrative
work. In accordance with this research, John feels that varying the authentic experiences helps
interns be more prepared for the principalship:
If I gave all these leaders the same thing every year, they’re not going to grow to the
point where they have a variety of experiences that get them ready to be principal or get
them to the assistant principal chair, so you want them to have something different each
year.
What is effective in the building of leadership capacity in interns at Essex is the opportunity to
perform in a variety of authentic administrative roles and time commitments by all involved
facilitate these opportunities.
The commitment of site financial resources is also a factor that facilitates the
implementation of capacity building practices within the intern system. John commits a portion
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
92
of his site funds every year to the leadership capacity building he does with the interns. These
funds are used to cover substitutes so that each intern can spend up to 10 days a year working on
authentic administrative tasks, “I am probably spending more money that way than any other
principal in our district. I think it’s important though.” The commitment of financial resources
to building leadership capacity in teachers reflects the importance John places on cultivating
future school administrators and as he says, “giving back to the profession.”
District. The district in which John’s school resides facilitates the practices John uses to
build leadership capacity through their open support and acceptance of his intern system. While
it does not provide funding or dictate structure for the purpose of tapping teachers, the district
does allow John’s interns to attend administrator workshops and to be profiled by John at district
and community events. For example, Will recalled emails that John had forwarded to all the
interns “When I say we, I mean all the interns, we were asked if we wanted to go to luncheons
for assistant principals and principals where discussions take place about areas of concern in
administration in the district.” Lew also commented on the opportunities to attend district
administrator meetings, “We get emails all the time about invitations to go to vice-principals’
meetings, to be honest I think they are coming from John, telling them to invite us.”
Additionally, the district encourages and reinforces the work John does with his tapped teachers
through the intern system by looking to him to provide high-quality candidates for vacant school
administration positions, “The district will often come to me and ask who I might have ready and
who might be a good fit for an assistant principal position. They really benefit from what I do
with my interns, but they really aren’t involved in anyway.” While the district’s approval and
acknowledgement of John’s system facilitates the building of leadership capacity in interns, its
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
93
lack of direct involvement serves to inhibit the intern system as well and will be discussed in the
following sub-section.
Inhibiting Factors
As data were collected in response to the third research question, two themes emerged
that suggested that factors exist that inhibit the implementation of strategies that build leadership
capacity in teachers at Essex High School. First, there are psychological factors that act as
inhibitors; these include additional stress and negative attitudes/reactions on the part of some
teaching colleagues. Second, there are district and structural factors such as funding constraints
and the impact of scheduling intern activities that serve to impede the implementation of
strategies intended to build leadership capacity in tapped teachers.
Psychological. Teachers who serve as interns within John’s system all mentioned that
the additional work they do in an administrative capacity caused additional stress in their lives.
Cordelia, a former intern who is now an assistant principal recalled that as an intern she felt the
stress of being a teacher and the stress of being an administrator, “It was like I had both jobs
putting pressure on me that was hard.” Will also felt the pressure of managing his teaching load
and doing his administrative duties, “My project is pretty intense and very important to the
school, but my students are important to me too, it’s difficult to manage the two things
competing for my attention.” Another intern found that he struggled with the higher levels of
stress that staffing decisions bring:
I had difficulties over the summer having to let teachers go when the student population
did not equate to classes; that was really difficult. Also, I had a situation where there was
sexual harassment that I witnessed and while it needed to be done, it was hard to be part
of removing that person from his job.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
94
In addition to higher levels of stress, several interns and former interns who were
interviewed suggested that negative attitudes, comments and resistance about their being tapped
for the principalship were part of their experiences. This negativity impacted the interns in
differing degrees. Roxanne, while noting intentional jabs at her, took the comments lightly,
“...they would always joke around saying ‘Oh you’re going over to the dark side,’ but when they
joke there is always a hint of seriousness. When those perceptions come and they joke around, I
have to put them to the side.” Like Roxanne, Daniel recalled times when fellow teachers had
made comments about his role as an intern:
They would say, “Oh you are a teacher today, right?” Or they would say something like,
“You’ve gone to the dark side,” or “You’re wearing a tie” or “You are one of them now,
watch what you are saying in front of him.” As if they would have to speak differently or
act differently depending on the role I was in at the time.
Comments were only one form of negative response from teachers. Both Will and Lew
experienced resistance from teachers who were asked to do tasks that supported their
administrative projects. Will had a couple of teachers simply refuse to provide him with the
information he needed for a report, “Without saying no, they say no to my requests for further
information. They say that they don’t have time, but realistically, they just don’t want to do it
and they don’t.” Lew shared a similar experience with teachers resisting professional
development he was leading, “there were some teachers who felt like the training was not
something they needed; they were polite but didn’t feel like they had to implement it.” Will’s
and Lew’s experiences mirror the findings by Donaldson et al. (2008) who found teacher leaders
faced increased resistance when their roles directly impacted classroom practices and threatened
established norms.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
95
Structural/district level. While school-based inhibitors exist in the form of stress and
negative responses from colleagues, other impediments are structural in nature and are in large
part impacted by the lack of district involvement in succession planning being done by John.
Much like the small school districts examined by Zepeda et al. (2011), John’s district is less
formalized in their succession planning and does not feel a strong sense of urgency in filling
administrative vacancies. In the previous section, the acceptance of John’s system by his district
allowed him to provide networking opportunities for his interns, but this acceptance does not
represent an involvement in or commitment of resources toward the intern system. Therefore,
the factors that inhibit the development and implementation of leadership capacity building at
Essex can be attributed to district-level insufficiencies in financial and structural support. Time
constraints, scheduling and funding challenges all provide obstacles for John in implementing
the promising practices he uses to build leadership capacity in his interns.
Time was by far the most noted challenge faced by John and his interns. For John,
working with the interns constitutes an additional duty beyond those required by his district. In
interviews, he recognized that despite his passion for building leadership capacity in his interns,
the mentoring, meetings, and strategic planning all appropriate time. Being a principal takes an
enormous amount of time, John asserts, “When I get criticisms it’s usually about me being here
too much. I hear that often, but I say I can’t help being here too much.” John feels the pull of
the competing duties, including the time he spends developing and maintaining the intern
system. John reflects that he feels the pressure of all of the things he has committed to as the
school’s leader, “We have seven sports going on in the spring and everyone says they never see
me enough.” Roxanne acknowledges John’s time commitment to her and her development as a
future administrator, “I don’t know how he [John] balances everything; that’s like amazing. He
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
96
really tries to get himself involved with as much as he can within the school but there’s just not
enough time in a day to really get all of it in. I’m so thankful.” Comparable to the findings of
Fink and Brayman (2006), John battles the multitude of competing administrative duties that
command his time and serve to inhibit the implementation of his intern system.
Likewise, the interns also feel the pressure of time as they function in multiple roles at
Essex High School. Cordelia recollected the difficulty in being both an intern and a teacher,
“Time... time is always a challenge, finding time to do everything!” Lew also touched upon the
time battle that occurs for interns, “Finding a way to teach, be in school, do my administrative
intern stuff, and also not miss out on any of the extracurricular responsibilities that I signed up
for was a big challenge.” John also notices how the limitations of time hamper the opportunities
for interns to be working in various administrative capacities, “I don’t think Will has spent
enough time in the office doing discipline, my goal is to try to get him there a little more. That
just takes time and that’s hard.”
An additional structural inhibitor to implementing the intern system at Essex is the
impact of class release time on students and on the site budget. When a tapped teacher is
released from class to work on administrative duties a substitute is responsible for instruction in
his/her classroom. John worries about the impact of this practice on student instruction, “When
you take an up and coming administrator out of their class for several days the learning
environment suffers. It’s one of the downsides, those kids are not going to have that true teacher
there, and I have to worry about that.” Additionally, the substitute coverage is a drain on the site
monies at Essex High School. John finances the intern system by using his site funds. He is not
given any additional financial support from his district to implement this system. He makes
difficult decisions to direct funds toward the building of leadership capacity in the interns.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
97
“Funding is a big challenge for me. I have to make a decision to spend money on releasing the
interns from their teaching duties, so time and funding give me the greatest challenge.”
Discussion of Research Question Three
There are a variety factors that both facilitate and inhibit the building of leadership
capacity in teachers at Essex High School who are being tapped for the principalship. Parallels
exist between the literature on developing high-quality administrators and the intern system
developed by John.
Advocated for by studies focusing on leadership succession planning as a means of
addressing the leadership crisis in schools (Fink, 2010; Fink & Brayman, 2006; Zepeda et al.,
2011), John’s formalized, structured plan that involves authentic administrative work and
mentoring built on positive relationships provides the greatest support for practices that build
leadership capacity in interns. The commitment of time and site financial resources toward the
formalized system allow for the interns develop the skills and knowledge necessary for
successful school administration. Coupled with the intentional leadership capacity building done
by John within the Essex intern system are the opportunities that interns have at the district level
to network and increase learning.
Inhibitors of the leadership capacity building strategies implemented by John are also
confirmed by the literature on teacher leadership and succession planning. Negative attitudes
and resistance toward interns occur at Essex, similar to those found by Donaldson et al. (2008) in
their examination of teacher leadership. The stress of being responsible for both teaching and
administrative duties was another noted psychological inhibitor. Because very little research has
revealed practices as intentional and structured as those used by John, these findings are unique.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
98
Structural and district-related inhibitors are tied to the demands of time placed upon John
and the interns as well as the impact on instruction and on site funding needed to implement the
intern system. These findings are distinctive and reflect the uncommon practices that John uses
to build leadership capacity in teachers who he has tapped for the principalship. Limitations
exist for John in implementing his intentional succession planning at the school-level due to the
absence of a structured district-level plan that financially and structurally supports John’s intern
system at Essex High School.
Summary
This chapter explored the study’s findings by research question; in doing so it delineated
the practices that one principal uses to build leadership capacity in tapped teachers. It identified
the perceptions of tapped teachers with regard to the practices and specified the factors that
facilitate and inhibit the development and implementation of those strategies that build
leadership capacity in teachers who serve as interns at Essex High School. John has a clear
vision for developing others. He carries out this vision as he builds leadership capacity in
teachers by systematically and intentionally creating an intern system where positive
relationships contribute to powerful mentoring relationships. These relationships in turn support
teachers in their extensive work doing authentic administrative tasks.
Teachers who serve as interns under John value his relational focus not only for its
impact on their own growth as future administrators, but on how it serves as a model for
effective school leadership. The mentoring opportunities provided by John and the assistant
principals at Essex help interns feel more supported and encouraged as they navigate the
dynamic and varied responsibilities of school administration within the context of the intern
system.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
99
This study identified several factors that serve to influence the strategies John develops
and uses to build leadership capacity in teachers. Factors that promote these strategies include
the intentional planning and execution of the intern system by John along with his district’s
acceptance and inclusion of the interns at district level forums. Findings indicate that there are
also factors that impede the building of leadership capacity in John’s interns, those being
psychological factors such as added stress and negative attitudes by teaching colleagues. Other
challenges result from the time constraints that impact John and his interns. Further
impediments involve financial and instructional complications that arise due to the intern system
being solely a site-based and fiscally supported program.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
100
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY
Studies abound indicating the importance of leadership on an organization’s success
(Bass, 2008; Collins, 2001; Leithwood et al., 2010). Educational leadership is critical to the
success of schools that serve our children, yet studies have indicated a growing need for the
recruitment and development of high-quality school administrators. Many call for intentional
leadership succession planning as a means to develop a reservoir of high-quality principal
candidates (Fink, 2011). Factors that contribute to the shortage of principal candidates include
increased exits from the position due to retirements and a growing complexity in the position,
which makes it undesirable to many who meet even basic qualifications. The sparsity of high-
quality principal candidates is exacerbated in urban areas serving low-income and English
Learner student populations. This shortage is further broadened to include the quality of
candidates available for principal positions as district human resources personnel report a lack of
quality candidates for vacancies (DeAngelis & O’Connor, 2012; Fink, 2011). As a shortage of
high-quality principal candidates is being felt across the nation, some studies have looked toward
how administrators are being trained. Many administrative credential programs are perceived to
inadequately prepare individuals for effective leadership thus promising programs, such as The
Principal Pipeline Initiative, are emerging that address the improved preparation needed for pre-
service administrators.
As attention has focused toward intentional succession planning for school administrative
leadership, examining the initial phases of this planning must include consideration of how
teachers are being identified and developed for the principalship. Limited research exists that
illuminates the practices that current principals use to build leadership capacity in teachers who
will become the next generation of school administrators. If comprehensive succession planning
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
101
is to successfully create a reservoir of high-quality principal candidates who will impact schools
and student learning, it must include the practices that begin with the building of leadership
capacity in teachers.
Purpose of the Study
Research has identified a growing need for high-quality leaders to enter into school
administration. There exists a demand for filling the increasing number of principal vacancies
brought on by a myriad of causes including the perception of the job as undesirable, increasing
retirements, and minimally qualified candidates entering into the field. Work is being done in
states across the nation to address principal preparation and training (Kearney, 2010; Turnbull et
al., 2013). A clear understanding of how best to cultivate leadership capacity in teachers who
will enter into school administration has yet to be fully investigated. Several studies that do exist
reflect a trend that is not heavily based upon leadership characteristics, particularly
transformational leadership, which has been associated with successful leadership in schools
(Leithwood & Jantzi, 2005).
The purpose of this study was to contribute to the body of research on the promising
practices that some school principals employ to build leadership capacity in teachers who will go
on to be the next generation of school principals. The study sought to identify and explore the
specific ways in which principals develop leadership capacity in teachers who will enter into the
principalship, what perceptions surround these practices, and what factors both facilitate and
inhibit the implementation of these leadership capacity building strategies. The following
research questions framed the study:
1) In what ways do principals work to build the next generation of leaders?
2) What are the perceptions of teachers regarding the influence of those practices?
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
102
3) What are the factors that both facilitate and inhibit the development and
implementation of strategies designed to build leadership capacity?
Summary of the Findings
Findings reveal that the Principal systematically and structurally builds leadership
capacity in his teachers with the intent of helping them move into successful school
administration. John sees the cultivation of future administrators as part of his role as a school
principal. He recognizes the need for high-quality school administrators and takes on the task of
leadership succession planning at his school-level. While his district does offer seminars for
teachers who may have an interest in school administration, John’s work in preparing teachers to
enter into the principal pipeline is more substantial. Interns are provided long-term opportunities
to work in an administrative capacity, such as school discipline, managing projects, overseeing
accreditation requirements, and leading colleagues in trainings and programs. Furthermore,
interns gain authentic experience in doing the work of a school administrator coupled with
support and feedback from John and his assistant principals. The intern system developed by
John at Essex High School provides select teachers opportunities to learn about and practice
school administrative tasks in order to better prepare them for future principal positions. The
foundation of this system is built upon the three transformational leadership practices that
provide a theoretical framework for this study and will be discussed next.
John uses the transformational leadership practices of modeling the way, inspiring a
shared vision, and enabling others to act to create his intern system, which builds leadership
capacity in teachers who will become the next generation of school principals. John and his
assistant principals model the way for interns by serving as role models for interns and modeling
transformational leadership practices to effectively lead a school. In addition, John develops
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
103
positive, supportive relationships with his interns, which allows for powerful mentoring
opportunities to arise as interns work on administrative duties. The mentoring relationships are
the conduit through which teachers can receive feedback on their administrative practice. These
findings are consistent with the recent literature on the benefits of mentoring (Anast-May et al.,
2011; Darling-Hammond et al., 2007; Howley et al., 2005). John’s intern system provides
teachers opportunities to develop into effective school administrators. While modeling the way
is one leadership practice identified in John’s leadership capacity building system, he also
inspires a shared vision for professional growth and achievement for his tapped teachers.
John utilizes a second transformational practice to build leadership capacity within his
intern system by inspiring a shared vision for school leadership. He encourages the interns in
their quest for the principalship and works alongside them making it clear that he values personal
and professional growth and achievement. The ongoing opportunities for authentic practice in
administration help interns develop a positive view of school administration and the value they
will have as principals. John works in collaboration with his interns and assistant principals to
help interns develop and reach the goal of becoming effective school administrators. As will be
discussed further, the interrelated transformational practice of enabling others to act then assists
in supporting interns in achieving the shared vision.
Collaborative, authentic work doing administrative tasks is supported by the
transformational practice of enabling others to act. John works within the intern system at Essex
High School to build a culture and climate that supports interns in growing their skills,
knowledge and efficacy in school administration. The learning opportunities build upon interns’
strengths and provide occasion for detailed feedback and improvement in a range of duties that
administrators undertake. Furthermore, in making assistant principals part of the leadership
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
104
capacity building of tapped teachers, John is also building capacity in his assistant principals.
John enables his assistant principals to contribute to a shared vision that values preparing the
next generation of school administrators for effective leadership. Much aligned to Peters (2011)
framework of dynamic leadership succession that addresses the building of capacity in both
current and future administrators, John builds capacity in his assistant principals through their
inclusion in the intern system at Essex. Through the three transformational leadership practices,
John has designed his intern system at Essex High School whereby teachers are tapped for the
principalship; this system, described next, is deliberate and formulated by John to build capacity
in teachers for school administration.
John uses the three transformational leadership practices that frame this study to
implement a systematic process for building leadership capacity in his tapped teachers. First,
teachers are selected based upon mutual interest. John identifies potential interns through
observations of teachers’ abilities to effectively lead peers and their ability to stay committed to a
goal that requires additional time and energy. Teachers must express an interest in becoming an
intern and be open to the idea of considering a career move into school administration at some
time. While some interns have already completed administrative credential requirements, others
do so at some point during their time as an intern. After selection, interns are assigned projects
and duties that vary over the years so that they experience a wide variety of authentic
administrative tasks. Throughout the intern process, mentoring and explicit feedback on
leadership capacity growth are provided by John and by his assistant principals. Coupled with
the authentic practice in school administration, John also works to provide opportunities for his
interns to showcase their achievements, leadership skills and administrative knowledge. John
uses his professional network to help interns further their careers when they are ready to apply
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
105
for an administrative job within or outside of the school district. While the promising practices
enacted by John were revealed by this study, so too were factors that served to facilitate and
inhibit his building of leadership capacity in tapped teachers. The following paragraph will
discuss these factors.
This study found that the culture at Essex High School, which values personal growth
and achievement for everyone, facilitates the building of leadership capacity in interns.
Additionally, John’s ideological view that his role as a leader includes the cultivation of
leadership capacity in future administrators also facilitates the practices that comprise the intern
system. Factors that inhibit the capacity building by John within his system also emerged from
this study. Time constraints, stress of additional duties, challenges to traditional teacher norms,
academic impacts and limited financial resources all serve as obstacles to the intern system John
has created.
The data revealed that despite the challenges, teacher interns see great value in the
authentic practice, feedback, and mentoring they receive from John through the intern system.
Those who are currently being tapped by John feel supported and encouraged in their
development as leaders, they recognize the value in John’s system and the opportunities it
provides to build leadership capacity through guided practice in school administration. Both
current and former interns perceive the system as a way to learn about and improve their school
leadership skills and abilities. Former interns attribute their current success as administrators to
the opportunities to practice authentic administrative duties, to the positive mentoring
relationships and to the feedback provided by the intern system at Essex. Despite the studies that
reflect a growing disillusionment with school administration among teachers (Fink, 2010; Gajda
& Militello, 2008; Howley et al., 2005), John’s intern system at Essex High School is developing
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
106
capacity in teachers who are not only viewing the principalship as desirable, but are entering into
it more confident and better prepared for the complex challenges that make up the job.
Implications for Practice and Policy
Findings from this study show that intentional principal succession planning that begins
at the school-level by building leadership capacity in teachers who will become school
administrators, contributes to the need for a reservoir of high-quality principal candidates.
Implications for practice and policy are targeted toward school principals, districts, and
education organizations that provide formal administrative licensure. These three groups can
utilize the findings from this study to better prepare future school principals and to contribute to
the growing number of quality candidates for school administration.
Principals
Based upon the findings of this case study, school principals will contribute to a pool of
high potential candidates for the principalship when they view tapping teachers for school
administration as a component of their leadership role and develop a formal and structured plan
for doing so. John Woods’ intern system goes beyond suggesting or informally encouraging
teachers to look at school administration as a viable career goal. Tapped teachers at Essex High
School felt strongly that their involvement in the intern program increased their skills,
knowledge, and efficacy in school leadership and management. As discerned from John’s intern
system, systematic tapping of teachers might include long-term opportunities for authentic
administrative work, feedback on that work to guide toward mastery, and emotional support
through mentoring as teachers seek to grow as future administrators.
Much of this study’s data which point to the value in working in authentic administrative
settings, mentoring, and feedback, aligns to the studies of promising administrative training
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
107
programs, such as The Wallace Foundation’s Principal Pipeline Initiative and California’s
Integrated Leadership Development Initiative. Preparing future administrators for the
principalship should begin while candidates are still teachers as indicated in John’s intern
system. This can be accomplished if school principals take on the task of intentional succession
planning through a formal and structured plan to provide opportunities for authentic
administrative work and mentoring. The additional time to build leadership capacity and the
extended and varied opportunities to do administrative work will better prepare those who enter
the principal pipeline. Additionally, the attractiveness of school administration will increase as
teachers have opportunities to learn to manage the complex job and grow their leadership
capacity within a supportive setting.
Former interns interviewed for this study attributed their success and confidence as
novice administrators to the opportunities that were provided by John through his intern system
at Essex. John’s system is an example of how principals, through transformational leadership
practices, can develop and carryout a system to effectively build leadership capacity in future
administrators.
Districts
Recommendations from this study for districts might include the incorporation of schools
and teachers in district leadership succession plans so as to promote a replacement-oriented
culture within the school systems as a whole. School districts like the one in this study,
frequently offer information sessions as part of their succession management plans but do little to
support the leadership capacity building work at the site level. Districts who align their
succession plans more closely with school-level work, such as John’s, can more effectively
contribute to the reservoir of high-quality principal candidates. Structured leadership capacity
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
108
building of teachers by principals might become a component of districts’ succession plans and
effective school administration would include tapping teachers for the principalship.
As school principals then form the initial component of a succession plan through the
tapping of teachers, districts could support these practices in tangible ways. This study found
that factors which inhibit the leadership capacity building of teachers were those that can be
mitigated by district support. Districts who financially support succession management done at
sites, by financing a reduced teaching load for tapped teachers for example, would reduce the
time and stress placed upon both tapped teachers and the principal. Time and stress were issues
identified by all participants in this study as factors that inhibited the intern system.
Additionally, financial support for a reduced teaching load would allow teachers
additional time to do administrative work without impact on student learning, as tapped teachers
would not be leaving classes of students in the hands of substitute teachers. Moreover, districts
might assist principals in building leadership capacity in teachers by shifting district-based
responsibilities and requirements, thus taking into consideration the time that is needed for
managing intern programs such as John’s. Districts might accomplish this by either providing
support in the form of additional human capital or through the removal and/or reduction of other
non-essential meetings and tasks currently required of principals. The principal and teachers in
this study described the conflicting demands on principal time and the negative impact of time
constraints on his leadership cultivation of the interns. Formal district involvement would serve
to lessen the impact of the inhibiting factors identified in this study.
There seemed to be a disconnect between John’s work with his interns at Essex High
School and the succession planning done by his district. A more aligned succession plan that
begins at the school-level, moves into the district level through trainings and seminars and
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
109
concludes with ongoing professional development and mentoring of novice administrators would
lead to effective district succession management much like that described by Fink (2011).
Education Organizations
Collaboration between all organizations involved in building leadership capacity in the
next generation of principals will result in better outcomes for schools and students. As an
educational community, teachers, principals, districts and educational organizations that provide
administrative credentialing should partner to work toward optimizing educational benefits for
students. As literature reflects (Marzano et al., 2005), principals make a difference in schools
therefore succession management should begin at the school-level with tapping teachers and
move upward to incorporate partnerships with those institutions that are providing formal
preparation and licensure in school administration. Universities and other organizations that
provide credential coursework for school administrators can work with districts and principals to
begin using research-based best practices to build capacity in future school administrators while
they are still teachers.
In this case study, it was found that many of the promising practices that John uses to
build leadership capacity in his interns, such as mentoring, authentic practice, and support are
those validated by research. Studies reflect the importance of authentic work and mentoring in
preparation of effective school administrators (Davis & Darling-Hammond, 2012). Based upon
this study’s findings, collaborative administrator preparation might begin with teachers being
systematically tapped at the school-level and include the research-based components such as
those found in John’s intern system. Institutes of higher education might support the tapping of
teachers for the principalship first by providing information and training on research-based
practices for principals who are building leadership capacity in teachers. Then, as tapped
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
110
teachers decide to enroll in formal administrative credential programs, institutes of higher
education could partner with principals and districts in seamlessly continuing the leadership
capacity building of these teachers who seek to become principals.
This study found that teachers at Essex who were tapped by John obtained administrative
credentials and completed required hours by using their work at Essex. Missing from this was
any collaboration between John and the institutes of higher education in building leadership
capacity in interns. Universities and other administrative licensing organizations should
integrate work that teachers are doing in capacity building systems such as John’s. As a result,
administrative credential programs, day-to-day practice in school administration, and research
would be better integrated and aligned. As a consequence of this alignment, tapped teachers
would have additional time to perform administrative tasks, to receive feedback, to build skills
that will lead to effective school leadership, and finally, to develop a desire to enter into school
administration following official credentialing. As progressive principal training programs, such
as the Wallace Foundation’s Principal Pipeline Initiative, show promise in preparing the next
generation of effective school principals, school-level leadership capacity building systems such
as John’s may be incorporated into these preparation programs to further strengthen the
candidates who exit them and enter into the principalship.
Finally, education institutions that prepare school principals should consider the strong
capacity building ideology, such as that observed in John Woods, as something desirable in
principal candidates. While ideology may not be something that can be taught, schools can
influence the behaviors and strategies that are associated with a strong belief in building capacity
in others. Principal candidates would leave credentialing programs with the knowledge and
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
111
skills that would allow them to support the building of subsequent generations of effective
principals.
Recommendations for Future Studies
This study has contributed to the understanding and analysis of the promising practices
used by principals to build leadership capacity in teachers who will desire and advance into
effective school administration. While thorough examination was conducted in this case study,
further questions beyond the scope of this study’s research questions have emerged. This section
outlines three recommendations that have resulted from this study’s findings.
First, while this case study has served as a heuristic for how and why one principal builds
leadership capacity in teachers, it is limited. A cross-case analysis of several principals who
systematically tap teachers for the principalship would serve to make the results more useful for
application. A cross-case analysis might reveal common effective practices and selection
criteria. In addition, such a study would identify the differentiating factors that may exist
between principals who effectively build leadership capacity in teachers who go on to become
school principals. These factors may include motivation and strategy implementation
differences. Data from a cross-case analysis would deepen understanding and perhaps suggest a
broader theory that could be applicable to capacity building by principals. If Fink (2011),
Collins (2001), and Leithwood et al. (2008) are correct in their analysis of the role leadership has
in an organization’s success, then findings from case studies such as this one must be used to
contribute to improved succession planning. A cross-case analysis of several principals who
build leadership capacity in teachers who will go on to be school principals may yield valuable
data on what promising practices are found most frequently to be effective in initiating principal
preparation at the teacher level. As common practices emerge they can be incorporated into
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
112
succession plans and result in better preparation of teachers who will enter into the principal
pipeline. Moreover, differences that emerge between principals may serve to illuminate different
pathways that result in teachers moving into the principal pipeline.
Associated with the first recommendation, a second recommendation would be to
compare how principals in urban, rural and suburban schools build leadership capacity in
teachers who will move into the principal pipeline. In this study, the principal led a school in a
suburban area and the interns develop capacity within this demographic. A comparison of urban,
rural, and suburban principals who tap teachers for school administration would serve to improve
understanding of how intentional succession planning may have common and divergent practices
depending on the school setting. As the need for effective leaders, particularly in urban areas has
been revealed (Loeb et al., 2010), promising practices that build leadership capacity in tapped
teachers should address effectively filling the administrative vacancies in schools that are
considered high need. Better understanding the similarities and differences in teacher tapping
would be worthwhile as it may contribute to the need to fill principal vacancies in urban areas.
A final recommendation emerges from the role of the assistant principals in John’s intern
system at Essex High School. Further studies might examine the leadership capacity growth of
assistant principals who participate in tapping teachers for school administration. While not a
focus of this study, the succession management system that John has created at Essex enlists the
assistant principals at his school. Questions surround the influence this participation has on
assistant principals’ leadership development. Examination of how involvement in tapping
teachers builds leadership capacity in assistant principals would contribute to a broader
understanding of how to develop high potential principal candidates in those who are already
novice administrators. As Peters’ (2011) dynamic leadership succession framework suggests,
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
113
effective leadership succession builds capacity not only in teachers who are the future
administrators, but also in assistant principals who are already in administrative positions.
Exploration of the role assistant principals play in tapping teachers and the outcomes from this
involvement might contribute to a broader understanding of comprehensive leadership
succession management.
Conclusion
As a qualitative analysis of one principal, this study sought to increase understanding of
how leadership capacity can be built in teachers to begin to prepare them for effective school
administration. Findings suggest that initiating administrative leadership capacity building in
individuals while they are still teachers allows for more extensive preparation, additional
opportunities to practice tasks that are part of a principal’s role, and time for substantial
mentoring relationships to develop. In addition, the tapping of teachers in this study provided
greater opportunity for pre-service administrators to get feedback and move toward mastering the
complex duties and responsibilities that principals face in today’s schools. As teachers are able
to prepare to be effective administrators, they will see the job as more desirable, be more likely
to enter into school administration, and be better prepared to effectively lead schools. Well
aligned succession plans that incorporate school-level practices by principals, district-level
succession planning and collaborative relationships with educational institutions would lead to a
more qualified pool of principal candidates. Because school leadership impacts student
achievement and growth (Leithwood et al., 2010) students in schools will ultimately benefit from
the development of teachers who will fill the reservoir of high potential leaders and go on to be
successful school principals.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
114
References
Anast-May, L., Buckner, B., & Geer, G. (2011). Redesigning principal internships: Practicing
principals’ perspectives. The International Journal of Educational Leadership
Preparation, 6(1), 1-7.
Bass, B. M. (1985). Leadership and performance beyond expectations. New York: Free Press.
Bass, B. M. (2008). The bass handbook of leadership: Theory, research, and managerial
applications 4th Edition. New York, NY: Free Press.
Boerema, A. J. (2011). Challenging and supporting new leader development. Educational
Management, Administration & Leadership, 39(5), 554-567.
Bogotch, I. E. (2005). A history of public school leadership. The SAGE handbook of educational
leadership: Advances in theory, research, and practice, 7-33.
Boyd, D., Grossman, P., Ing, M., Lankford, H., Loeb, S., Wyckoff, J. (2011). The influence of
school administrators on teacher retention decisions. American Educational Research
Journal, 48(2), 303-333.
Branch, G. F., Hanushek, E. A., & Rivkin, S. G. (2012). Estimating the effect of leaders on
public sector productivity: The case of school principals (No. w17803). National Bureau
of Economic Research.
Brooking, K., Collins, C., Court, M., & O’Neill, J. (2003). Getting the below the surface of the
principal recruitment ‘crisis’ in New Zealand schools. Australian Journal of Education,
47(2), 146-158.
Browne-Ferrigno, T., & Muth, R. (2004). Leadership mentoring in clinical practice: Role
socialization, professional development, and capacity building. Education
Administration Quarterly, (40)4, 468-494. doi: 10.1177/0013161X04267113
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
115
Burke, C. S., Stagl, K. C., Klein, C., Goodwin, G. F., Sales, E., & Halpin, S. M. (2006). What
type of leadership behaviors are functional in teams? A meta-analysis. The Leadership
Quarterly, 17, 288-307.
California Professional Standards for Educational Leaders (2014). Commission on Teacher
Credentialing. Retrieved from http://www.ctc.ca.gov/educator-prep/standards/CPSEL-
booklet-2014.pdf.
Collins, J. (2001). Good to Great. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.
Commission on Teacher Credentialing. (2014). Report of services credentials issued in
California 2008-2009 to 2012-2013. Retrieved from http://www.ctc.ca.gov/reports
/services-cred-08-09-to-12-13.pdf.
Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research and Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods
Approaches (4
th
ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishing.
Crosby, F. J. (1999). The developing literature on developmental relationships. In A. J. Murrell,
F. J. Crosby, & R. J. Ely (Eds.), Mentoring dilemmas: Developmental relationships
within multicultural organizations (pp. 3-20). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Crow, G. M. (2006). Complexity and the beginning principal in the United States: perspectives
on socialization. Journal of Educational Administration, 44(4), 310-325.
Darling-Hammond, L., LaPointe, M., Meyerson, D., & Orr, M. (2007). Preparing school
leaders for a changing world: Executive summary. Stanford, CA: Stanford University,
Stanford Educational Leadership Institute.
Davis, S. H. & Darling-Hammond, L. (2012). Innovative principal preparation programs: What
works and how we know. Planning and Changing, 43(1/2), 25-45.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
116
Davis, S., Darling-Hammond, L., LaPointe, M., & Meyerson, D. (2005). Developing successful
principals. Retrieved from Stanford University, Stanford Educational Leadership
Institute: https://edpolicy-stanford-edu.libproxy.usc.edu/sites/default/files/
npublications/school-leadership-study-developing-successful-principals.pdf
DeAngelis, K. J., & O’Connor, N. K. (2012). Examining the pipeline into educational
administration: An analysis of applications and job offers. Education Administration
Quarterly, 48(3), 468-505.
DiPaola, M., & Tschannen-Moran, M. (2003). The principalship at a crossroads: A study of the
conditions and concerns of principals. NAASP Bulletin, 87(634), 43-65.
Dohm, A. (2000). Gauging the labor force effects of retiring baby boomers. Monthly Labor
Review, 23, 17-25.
Eby, L. T., Allen, T. D., Evans, S. C., Ng, T., & DuBois, D. L. (2007). Does mentoring matter?
A multidisciplinary meta-analysis comparing mentored and non-mentored individuals.
Journal of Vocational Behavior, 72, 254-267.
Educational Research Service (ERS) (1998). Is there a shortage of qualified candidates for
openings in the Principalship? An exploratory study. Prepared for NASSP and NAESP.
Arlington, VA: ERS
Fink, D. (2010). The succession challenge: Building and sustaining leadership capacity
through succession management. London, England: SAGE Publications.
Fink, D. (2011). Pipelines, pools and reservoirs: Building leadership capacity for sustained
improvement. Journal of Educational Administration, 49(6), 670-684.
Fink, D., & Brayman, C. (2006). School leadership succession and the challenges of change.
Education Administration Quarterly 42(1), 62-89. doi: 10.1177/0013161X05278186

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
117
Fong, A. B., & Makkonen, R. (2011). Projecting the need for California school administrators
over 2010/11-2017/18: the effects of projected retirement and projected changes in
student enrollment over two-year increments (REL Technical Brief, REL 2011- No. 016).
Washington, DC: US Departments of Education, Institute of Educational Sciences,
National Center for Educational Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Regional
Educational Laboratory West. Retrieved from: http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs.
Gajda, R. & Militello, M. (2008). Recruiting and retaining school principals: What we can learn
from practicing administrators. AASA Journal of Scholarship and Practice, 5(2), 14-21.
Gall, M., Gall, J., & Borg, W. (2007). Educational research- An introduction (8
th
ed.).
Pearson Education, Inc.
Goldring, R., & Taie, S. (2014). Principal Attrition and Mobility: Results from the 2012-13
Principal Follow-Up Survey. First Look. NCES 2014-064. National Center for Education
Statistics.
Hallinger, P. & Heck, R. H. (2010). Collaborative leadership and school improvement:
Understanding the impact on school capacity and student learning. School Leadership
and Management, 30(2), 95-110.
Hansford, B, & Ehrich, L. (2005). The principalship: How significant is mentoring? Journal of
Educational Administration, 44(1), 36-52.
Hargreaves, A., & Fink, D. (2011). Succeeding Leaders: Supply and Demand. In Principals in
Succession (pp. 11-26). Netherlands: Springer.
Hargreaves, A. & Goodson, I. (2006). Educational change over time? The sustainability and
nonsustainability of three decades of secondary school change and continuity.
Educational Administration Quarterly, 42(1), 3-41.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
118
Harris, A. (2013). Distributed school leadership: Developing tomorrow's leaders. New York,
NY: Routledge.
Harris, A. & Lambert, L. (2003). Building Leadership Capacity for School Improvement.
England: McGraw-Hill International.
Hobson, A. J., Ashby, P., Malderez, A., & Tomlinson, P. D. (2009). Mentoring beginning
teachers: What we know and what we don't. Teaching and Teacher Education, 25(1),
207-216.
Howley, A., Andrianvaivo, S., & Perry, J. (2005). The pain outweighs the gain: Why teachers
don’t want to become principals. Teachers College Record, 107(4), 757-782.
Hunzicker, J. (2012). Professional development and job-embedded collaboration: How teachers
learn to exercise leadership. Professional Development in Education, 38(2), 267-289.
Kearney, K. (2010). Effective principals for California schools: Building a coherent leadership
development system. San Francisco: WestEd. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
Keigher, A. (2010). Teacher Attrition and Mobility: Results From the 2008–09 Teacher Follow-
up Survey (NCES 2010-353). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National
Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved [date] from http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch.
Kilburg, G. M. & Hancock, T. (2006). Addressing sources of collateral damage in four
mentoring programs. Teachers College Record, 108(7), 1321-1338.
Kouzes, J. M. & Posner, B. Z. (2008). The leadership challenge 4
th
ed. San Francisco, CA:
Jossey-Bass.
Lambert, L. (2003). Leadership capacity for lasting school improvement. Alexandria, VA:
ACSD.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
119
Leithwood, K., Harris, A., & Hopkins, D. (2008). Seven strong claims about successful school
leadership. School Leadership and Management, 28(1), 27-42.
Leithwood, K., & Jantzi, D. (2000). The effects of transformational leadership on organizational
conditions and student engagement with school. Journal of Educational
Administration, 38(2), 112-129.
Leithwood, K., & Jantzi, D. (2005). A review of transformational school leadership research
1996-2005. Leadership and Policy in Schools, 4, 177-199.
Leithwood, K., Mascall, B., Strauss, T., Sacks, R., Memon, N., & Yashkina, A. (2007).
Distributing leadership to make schools smarter: Taking the ego out of the system.
Leadership and Policy in Schools, 6, 37-67.
Leithwood, K., Patten, S., & Jantzi, D. (2010). Testing a conception of how school leadership
influences student learning. Education Administration Quarterly, 46(5), 671-706.
Loeb, S., Kalogrides, D., & Horng, E. L. (2010). Principal preferences and the uneven
distribution of principals across schools. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis,
32(2), 205-229.
MacBeath, J. (2006). The talent enigma. International Journal of Leadership in Education,
9(3), 183-204.
Marks, H. M., & Printy, S. M. (2003). Principal leadership and school performance: An
integration of transformational and instructional leadership. Educational Administration
Quarterly, 39(3), 370-397.
Marzano, R., Waters, T., & McNulty, B. (2005). School leadership that works: From research
to results. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
120
Merriam, S. B. (2009). Qualitative research: A guide to design and implementation. San
Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Mertz, N. T. (2004). What’s a mentor anyway? Educational Administration Quarterly, 40(4),
541-560.
Myung, J., Loeb, S., & Horng, E. (2011). Tapping the principal pipeline: Identifying talent for
future school leadership in the absence of formal succession management programs.
Education Administration Quarterly, 45(5), 695-727.
Northouse, Peter G. (2013). Leadership – Theory and Practice (6
th
ed.). Thousand Oaks:
Sage Publications.
O’Reilly, C. A., Caldwell, D. F., Chatman, J. A., Lapiz, M., & Self, W. (2010). How leadership
matters: The effects of leaders’ alignment on strategy implementation. The Leadership
Quarterly, 21, 104-113.
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications.
Parylo, O., Zepeda, S., & Bengtson, E. (2013). Career paths in educational leadership:
Examining principals’ narratives. Alberta Journal of Educational Research, 58(4), 565-
599.
Peters, A. (2011). (Un)Planned failure: Unsuccessful succession planning in an urban district.
Journal of School Leadership, 21, 64-86.
Printy, S. M., Marks, H. M., & Bowers, A. J. (2009). Integrated leadership: How principals and
teachers share transformational and instructional influence. Journal of School
Leadership, 19, 504-532.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
121
Robinson, V., Hohepa, M. & Lloyd, C. (2009). School Leadership and Student Outcomes:
Identifying What Works and Why. Best Evidence Synthesis. Wellington: Ministry of
Education. Available at: http://www. educationcounts.govt.nz/publications
/series/2515/60169/60170.
Robinson, V. M., Lloyd, C. A., & Rowe, K. J. (2008). The impact of leadership on student
outcomes: An analysis of the differential effects of leadership types. Education
Administration Quarterly (44), 635-674. doi: 10.1177/00131 61X08321509
Ronfeldt, M., Loeb, S., & Wyckoff, J. (2013). How teacher turnover harms student
achievement. American Educational Research Journal, 50(1), 4-36.
Rousmaniere D. (2007). Go to the principal’s office: Toward a social history of the school
principal in North America. History of Education Quarterly, 47(1), 1-22.
Roza, M. (2003). A matter of definition: Is there truly a shortage of school principals?
Retrieved from The Center on Reinventing Public Education website: http://www
.crpe.org/. For full text: http://www.crpe.org/ pubs/pdf/mroza_princshortagewb.pdf.
Russell, J. L., & Sabina, L. L. (2014). Planning for principal succession: A conceptual
framework for research and practice. Journal of School Leadership, 24, 599-639.
Shelton, M., Birky, V. D., & Headley, W. S. (2008). Encouraging teacher leaders. In W. Hoy
& M. DiPaola (Eds.), Improving Schools: Studies in Leadership and Culture (pp. 169-
191). U.S.A.: Information Age Publishing.
Seashore Louis, K., Dretzke, B., & Wahlstrom, K. (2010). How does leadership affect student
achievement? Results from a national US survey. School Effectiveness and School
Improvement, 21(3), 315-336.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
122
Silver, M., Lochmiller, D., Copland, M., & Tripps, A. (2009). Supporting new school leaders:
findings from a university-based leadership coaching program for new administrators.
Mentoring and Tutoring: Partnership in Learning, 17(3), 215-232.
Simieou, F., Decman, J., Grigsby, B., & Schumacher, G. (2010). Lean on me: Peer mentoring
for novice principals. International Journal of Educational Leadership Preparation, 5(1),
1-9.
Turnbull, B. J., Riley, D. L., & MacFarlane, J. R. (2013). Cultivating talent through a principal
pipeline. Retrieved from The Wallace Foundation website: http://www.wallace
foundation.org/knowledge-center/school-leadership/principal-training/Pages/Building-a-
Stronger-Principalship-Vol-2-Cultivating-Talent-Through-a-Principal-Pipeline.aspx
Turner, R. H., (1960). Sponsored and contest mobility and the school system. American
Sociological Review, 25(6), 855-867.
U.S. Department of Education. (2009, November). Race to the Top program: Executive
summary. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from http://
www2.ed.gov/programs/racetothetop/executive-summary.pdf
Wahlstrom, K., Seashore Louis, K., Leithwood, K., & Anderson, S. (2010). Investigating the
links to improved student learning: Executive summary of research findings. Retrieved
from The Wallace Foundation website: http://www.wallacefoundation.org/knowledge-
center/school-leadership/key-research/Documents/Investigating-the-Links-to-Improved-
Student-Learning-Executive-Summary.pdf

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
123
White House Council of Economic Advisors. (2014). The Labor Force Participation Rate Since
2007: Causes and Policy Implications. Report from the Council of Economics Advisors
Executive Office of the President of the United States, retrieved from:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/labor_force_participation_report.pdf
White, M.E., Fong, A.B., & Makkonen, R. (2010). School-site administrators: a California
county and regional perspective on labor market trends (Issues & Answers Report, REL
2010–No. 084). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Institute
of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional
Assistance, Regional Educational Laboratory West. Retrieved from
http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs
York-Barr, J., & Duke, K. (2004). What do we know about teacher leadership? Findings from
two decades of scholarship. Review of Education Research, 74(3), 255-316.
Zepeda, S. J., Bengtson, E., & Parylo, O. (2012). Examining the planning and management of
principal succession. Journal of Educational Administration, 50(2), 136-158.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
124
Appendix A
Participant Recruitment Letter

You have been selected to participate in this study due to your experiences with leadership
capacity building strategies in your school or district. As a participant in this study, your
contribution will assist those interested in implementing or expanding leadership capacity
building strategies in the educational settings in which they work.

The intent of this study is to discover how some schools and districts are building leadership
capacity and creating the next generation of school and district leaders. Some schools and
districts are able to shape the next generation of leaders despite the increasing rates of retirement
and attrition of educational leaders, teachers’ lack of desire and/or motivation to enter leadership,
and the increasing demands of educational leaders.

To that end, the following research questions are posed in an effort to gain insight into successful
leadership capacity building strategies:

1) In what ways do principals work to build the next generation of leaders?

2) What are the perceptions of teachers regarding the influence of those practices?

3) What are the factors that both facilitate and inhibit the development and implementation
of strategies that build leadership capacity?

Identifying strategies that schools and districts use to successfully build the next generation of
education leaders may provide a guide for other districts to follow. Exploring the perceptions of
stakeholders regarding the leadership capacity building strategies may improve the content,
execution and reach of such programs. Finally, the identification of facilitators and inhibitors of
the strategies may help others recognize catalysts and pitfalls for their current or future
leadership capacity building efforts.

Your participation in this study should take approximately a few hours of your time over a period
of six weeks and will consist of the following activities:

• One to three interviews

• One or more observations of you in your work setting

Thank you in advance for considering my request for you to participate. Your involvement is
critical to the success of this study.

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
125
Appendix B
Administrator Interview Protocol

1. Tell me briefly about your experience and role as a leader at the school.

2. What is the mission/vision of your school?

3. What was significant in you becoming an administrator?
A) Who was influential in your decision to become an administrator?

4. What informs your daily leadership practices?

5. Your school is identified as having promising practices in leadership succession, how would
you articulate those practices?

6. What does a succession plan look like to you?
A) How is that communicated to the different stakeholders?
B) How do they respond?

7. How do you support potential leaders at your school?

8. When you are thinking about identifying a potential leader, what are you looking for (skills,
traits, qualities, etc.)?

9. Give me an example of a leader you identified. Tell me about the process from you
recognizing him or her, to him or her becoming a leader (principal, etc.)

10. What opportunities that you provide to potential leaders on your staff do you find most useful
in developing their leadership capacity?
A) How are those communicated?

11. How do you address those that aren't ready to be leaders but show an interest in leadership?

12. What district/institution/school supports are in place to help develop future leaders?
A) What support have you received from your district/institution/school in
developing leadership capacity?

13. What obstacles have you faced in helping to develop leadership capacity in future leaders?

14. What forms of formal and informal mentoring is available at your site?
A) How have these mentoring relationships led to leadership succession?

15. What are the areas that need the most development/attention before moving teachers into
leadership roles?

16. Give me an example of how you build upon the strengths of future leaders.
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
126
Appendix C
Teacher Interview Protocol

1. Tell me briefly about your experience and role at this site.

2. What is the mission/vision of your school?

3. What influenced you to take on a leadership role?

4. What informs your daily leadership practices?

5. Your school is identified as having promising practices in leadership succession, how are
those practices communicated to you?

6. What does your site/organization succession plan look like?
A) How has that been communicated to you?
B) What has been your response?

7. How have you been supported by the leadership at your site/organization?

8. When you think about a dynamic or transformational (great) leader what
qualities/characteristics stand out to you?

9. What leadership opportunities have been offered to you?
A) How did you benefit from these opportunities?
B) How were these opportunities communicated to you?

10. What district/institution/school supports are in place to help develop future leaders?
A) What support have you received from your district/institution/school in developing
leadership capacity?

11. What obstacles have you faced in growing as a leader?

12. What forms of formal and informal mentoring are available at your site?
A) Can you give me an example?

13. What else would you like to share with us about your experience as a leader?

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
127
Appendix D
Matrix of Interview Protocols to Research Questions

Teacher Questions

Administrator
Questions
Research
Question 1

In what ways do
principals work
to build the next
generation of
leaders?
Research Question 2

What are the
perceptions of teachers
regarding the influence
of those practices?
Research Question 3

What are the factors that
both facilitate and inhibit
the development and
implementation of
strategies designed to
build leadership capacity?
Tell me briefly about
your experience and role
at this site

Tell me briefly about your
experience and role as a
leader at the school.

What is the
mission/vision of your
school?

What is the
mission/vision of your
school?

What influenced you to
take on a leadership role?

What was significant in
you becoming an
administrator?
A) Who was
influential in your
decision to become an
administrator?

X X X
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
128
What informs your daily
leadership practices?

What informs your daily
leadership practices?

X X
Your school is identified
as having promising
practices in leadership
succession, how are those
practices communicated
to you?

Your school is identified
as having promising
practices in leadership
succession, how would
you articulate those
practices?

X X X
What does your
site/organization
succession plan look
like?
A) How has that
been communicated to
you?
B) What has been
your response?

What does a succession
plan look like to you?
A) How is that
communicated to the
different stakeholders?
B) How do they
respond?

X X X
How have you been
supported by the
leadership at your
site/organization?

How do you support
potential leaders at your
school?

X X X
When you think about a
dynamic or
transformational (great)
leader what
qualities/characteristics
stand out to you?

When you are thinking
about identifying a
potential leader, what are
you looking for (skills,
traits, qualities, etc.)?

X
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
129
Give me an example of a
leader you identified. Tell
me about the process
from you recognizing him
or her, to him or her
becoming a leader
(principal, etc.)

X X
What leadership
opportunities have been
offered to you?
A) How did you
benefit from these
opportunities?
B) How were these
opportunities
communicated to you?

What opportunities that
you provide to potential
leaders on your staff do
you find most useful in
developing their
leadership capacity?
A) How are those
communicated?

X X X
How do you address those
that aren't ready to be
leaders but show an
interest in leadership?
X X
What
district/institution/school
supports are in place to
help develop future
leaders? What support
have you received from
your
district/institution/school
in developing leadership
capacity?

What
district/institution/school
supports are in place to
help develop future
leaders? What support
have you received from
your
district/institution/school
in developing leadership
capacity?

X X X
BUILDING PRINCIPALS
130
What obstacles have you
faced in growing as a
leader?

What obstacles have you
faced in helping to
develop leadership
capacity in future leaders?

X X
What forms of formal and
informal mentoring are
available at your site?
A) can you give me an
example?

What forms of formal and
informal mentoring are
available at your site?
A) How have these
mentoring relationships
led to leadership
succession?

X X X
What are the areas that
need the most
development/attention
before moving teachers
into leadership roles?

X
Give me an example of
how you build upon the
strengths of future
leaders.
X X
What else would you like
to share with us about
your experience as a
leader?

X

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
131
Appendix E
Observation Protocol

Name of Site: ________________________ Date: __________________________
Type of Observation: ________________________
Participants: _________________________________
Purpose/Focus: ________________________________
Time Started ______________ Time Ended ____________ Total Time ______________

Environment
Observation Observer’s Notes
Setting/Location
• What does the environment look
like?
• What is the physical set up?
• How are people positioned?
• What does the agenda look like?
• Does the meeting follow the
agenda?
• How many people are in the
meeting?

Participant(s)
• Attire of participants
• Participant engagement
• Who is leading the meeting?
• Who sits where?
• Are they talking?
• Are they making eye contact?
• What are the leader’s practices in
interacting with others?
• People coming late/leaving early
• Diversity of the room (gender
balance, ethnic balance)

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
132
Interactions
Observation Observer’s Notes
Context
• Who is talking to whom?
• What is their relationship?
• What are the roles of the
participants?
• What is the topic of the interaction?
• Where is the interaction taking
place?
• What is the length of the
interaction?
• What is the purpose of the
interaction?
• Is the interaction planned or
unplanned?
•

Overall Tone
• What is the tone of the interaction?

BUILDING PRINCIPALS
133
Appendix F
Administrative Duties Chart- Essex High School

Abstract (if available)

Abstract This study utilizes the transformational leadership theory practices of inspiring a shared vision, modeling the way and enabling others to act to examine intentional leadership succession planning in K-12 public schools. The purpose of this study was to detail the promising practices that one principal used to build leadership capacity in teachers who will become the next generation of school principals and to describe the perceptions of teachers regarding those practices. Additionally, this study sought to ascertain the factors that both facilitated and inhibited the implementation of those strategies used to build leadership capacity. One high school principal served as the case study for this research and data was gathered through interviews, observations and collection of artifacts. Findings from this study showed that the principal built leadership capacity in future administrators by creating structured opportunities for authentic work in administration coupled with mentoring within a culture that values helping others to develop professionally and personally. Findings also showed that teachers tapped by the principal found value in the practices and expressed growth in capacity because of them. Factors that inhibited the practices included psychological and structural challenges. While factors that facilitated the practices were the structured and systematic way in which the principal tapped teachers along with commitments of time and site funding. This study furthers understanding of how intentional succession planning for the principalship can be initiated at the school-level by effectively building leadership capacity in future principals while they are still teachers.

Linked assets

University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Conceptually similar

PDF

Promising practices: developing principal leadership succession

PDF

Building leadership capacity to support principal succession

PDF

Principal leadership succession: developing the next generation of leaders

PDF

Building leadership capacity: Practices for preparing the next generation of Catholic school principals

PDF

Leadership pipeline and succession: promising practices for building leadership capacity in a K-12 school district

PDF

Leadership capacity building within a Hawaiian-based nonprofit organization

PDF

Building the next generation of leaders in K–6 institutions

PDF

Leadership capacity and pipeline in higher education

PDF

Building the leadership capacity of women in K-12 education: successful strategies that create the next generation of women school and district leaders

PDF

Leadership succession: promising practices to develop a sustainable leadership pipeline at a secondary school

PDF

Leadership capacity building within a Native Hawaiian nonprofit organization

PDF

Promising practices for developing leadership capacity in future school administrators

PDF

Promising practices for building leadership capital in educational organizations

PDF

Leadership capacity building: promising practices in principal preparation

PDF

Influences on principals' leadership practice

PDF

A new era of leadership: preparing leaders for urban schools & the 21st century

PDF

Sustaining quality leadership at prep academy charter schools: promising practices for leadership development in public schools

PDF

An exploration of leadership capacity building and effective principal practices

PDF

Promising practices for building leadership capacity: a community college case study

PDF

Building charter school leadership capacity: a look into leadership practices at accelerated academy

Asset Metadata

Creator Bryant, Jennifer Edic (author)

Core Title Promising practices: building the next generation of effective school principals

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Education (Leadership)

Defense Date 03/01/2016

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag leadership capacity,leadership succession,OAI-PMH Harvest,principals,tapping,Teachers,transformational leadership

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Stowe, Kathy (committee chair), Malloy, Courtney (committee member), Picus, Lawrence (committee member)

Creator Email bryantj@usc.edu,jennbryant@att.net

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c40-218562

Unique identifier UC11278363

Identifier etd-BryantJenn-4189.pdf (filename),usctheses-c40-218562 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-BryantJenn-4189.pdf

Dmrecord 218562

Document Type Dissertation

Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Bryant, Jennifer Edic

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA