PurposeWe sought to identify codes and themes in the mission statements of Kentucky's school districts and examine the relationship between district characteristics and the mission statements.Design/methodology/approachWe undertook a mixed methods design, specifically, a sequential transformative strategy with a theoretical lens overlaying the sequential procedures and guiding the analysis.FindingsAnalysis revealed a range of 1–7 codes per mission statement and a mean of 3.05. Generic student success and individual attention represented the most frequently occurring codes in the mission statements. Chi-square tests of bivariate association yielded no significant differences between districts by locale. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the percentage of students in the district scoring proficient or distinguished in both reading and mathematics was associated significantly (p < 0.05) with the theme of student support.Research limitationsAlthough we cannot establish causation between mission statements content and student outcomes or vice-versa, district mission statement remain a visible and public expression of why an organization exists that should guide actions and decision-making, whether instructional, financial or otherwise.Practical implicationsOur study revealed shared institutional language within mission statements across Kentucky's school district, largely without regard to local context. Our analysis suggests that federal and state policy makers are influencing mission statements more so than those at the local level.Originality/valueOur analysis provides further evidence that suggests that federal and state policy makers are influencing mission statements more so than those at the local level.

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Rooted in an antiquated curriculum, the traditional model of schooling remains a persisting factor in student disengagement at all levels, but especially in high school (Labaree, 2008). At a time when college and career readiness is vital to a school's accountability, principals must rethink ways to educate a diverse student population. Given the need to provide both academic and vocational aspects, career academies create career-themed small learning communities in an effort to increase student engagement, belonging, and post-secondary success. This study uses a multiple case study design to explore the much-needed perspective of high school principals as they collectively implemented career academies in their schools through the 2017 Academies of Louisville initiative. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven high school principals during their first year of implementation. Triangulation of the data was completed through readily available document analysis, member checks, and an interview with the program's district director. Both inductive and deductive coding using the conceptual framework of Crafting Coherence helped to structure the findings within a thematic vi narrative (Honig & Hatch, 2004). The study shows that successful implementation of career academies is heavily dependent upon principals and districts to "bridge and buffer" needs through regular systems checks (Honig & Hatch, 2004, p. 26). This entails principals selling the vision to teachers and students, assessing facility needs, and implementing the model with fidelity, but also entails districts ensuring that it is a priority at the top level by guaranteeing fiscal support, appropriate training, qualified candidates for hire, and program equity.