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School Leaders, Emotional Intelligence, and Equitable Outcomes in Urban Education

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Handbook of Social Justice Interventions in Education

Part of the book series: Springer International Handbooks of Education ((SIHE))

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Abstract

With the nation’s public schools serving a more diverse student population than ever before, the role of the school leader is becoming increasingly complex. Research indicates principal preparation programs are inadequately preparing leaders to address the systemic inequities hindering non-White students’ achievement. Administrators in urban public schools face particularly well-documented equity challenges. Providing urban school leaders with the tools to navigate the pressures of their jobs while driving equitable student outcomes is a relevant policy consideration. This chapter presents emotional intelligence (EI) as an agent of transformational leadership and positions emotionally intelligent leadership as a meaningful urban education reform. In rooting our analysis in organizational and ecological systems theories, we aim to (1) nest EI literature within extant research addressing challenges uniquely affecting urban schooling contexts, (2) explore how EI can support urban leaders in addressing and mitigating school-based inequities, and (3) examine benefits of building school leaders’ EI capacity in relation to the most current federal education policies and urban demographic data.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Lifelong Education, Administration, and Policy, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA

    Monica Flamini & Whitney Toledo

  2. College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, USA

    Jerome Graham

  3. Department of Educational Administration, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA

    Sheneka M. Williams

Authors
  1. Monica Flamini
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  2. Jerome Graham
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  3. Whitney Toledo
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  4. Sheneka M. Williams
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sheneka M. Williams .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Blacksburg, VA, USA

    Carol A. Mullen

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Flamini, M., Graham, J., Toledo, W., Williams, S.M. (2020). School Leaders, Emotional Intelligence, and Equitable Outcomes in Urban Education. In: Mullen, C.A. (eds) Handbook of Social Justice Interventions in Education. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-29553-0_84-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-29553-0_84-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-29553-0

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