The Reality and Myth of the Superintendent Shortage: Implications for Research and Educational Policy

Abstract

An examination of research findings on the perception of a precipitons decline in the quantity and quality of superintendent applicants was undertaken by leading scholars in the field and is reported in two consecutive issues of the Journal of Sclwol Leadership. We trust that this authoritative body ofwork adds to the knowledge base, informs the national debate, and will guide policy deliberations in the coming years. The intent of the authors of this brief end piece is to reflect on empirical findings as weil asto introduce a number of provocative scholarly observations that will hope-Cully elevate and focus future policy debates. Policymakers, practitioners, professors, and heads of professional associations are engaged in a heated debate about whether there is a crisis in the superintendency. This debate, by and large, is being driven by widespread perceptions of declining numbers and quality of individuals in superintendent search pools and is raising concem as to who willlead school districts in the coming decade. A number of analysts are concemed that if the daims supporting the rhetoric of a crisis in the field go unchallenged, it will create an atmosphere in which policymakers will be compelled to offer simplistic solutions to problems that don't exist.