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School Leadership in the United States: Evolving Responsibilities in Times of Change

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The Cultural and Social Foundations of Educational Leadership

Part of the book series: Educational Governance Research ((EGTU,volume 16))

Abstract

This chapter examines school leadership in the United States as it relates to the changing context for public education. In the midst of demographic shifts that have led to growing diversity across the country, public schools serve as key points of contact for immigrant youth and their families. At the same time, an expanding accountability system has put pressure on administrators to demonstrate academic achievement. Balancing the values of embracing diversity on the one hand and accountability pressure on the other challenges leaders to take responsibility for building school cultures that promote learning for all students. School leaders, empowered to shape school culture, curriculum, and teacher practice, rely on more than technical expertise as school leadership includes social and moral dimensions. As school leaders work to adapt and build capacity, they take on new roles as community advocates, innovators, and policy brokers. Helping educators to adapt instruction to incorporate language, identity and socioemotional learning, leaders are responsible for supporting professional learning within schools. Grounding their work in the needs of their communities and working toward the common good, they also serve as bridges to external resources and support. The chapter ends with implications for leadership training and support.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    This and many other conversations with new principals took place as part of a large study of new urban school leaders led by Dr. James Spillane at Northwestern University. Themes from that collaborative project ultimately became a book, Navigating the Principalship (Spillane & Lowenhaupt, 2019).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, USA

    Rebecca Lowenhaupt

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  1. Rebecca Lowenhaupt
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Correspondence to Rebecca Lowenhaupt .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France

    Romuald Normand

  2. Danish School of Education, Aarhus University, Copenhagen, Denmark

    Lejf Moos

  3. Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China

    Min Liu

  4. Campus Brugg-Windisch, FHNW University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland, Windisch, Switzerland

    Pierre Tulowitzki

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Lowenhaupt, R. (2021). School Leadership in the United States: Evolving Responsibilities in Times of Change. In: Normand, R., Moos, L., Liu, M., Tulowitzki, P. (eds) The Cultural and Social Foundations of Educational Leadership. Educational Governance Research, vol 16. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-74497-7_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-74497-7_10

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