Which Principal is the Right Principal? Student Achievement, School Finances, and Community Stakeholders

Abstract

When a struggling high school may be placed on turnaround status during a bid for a school bond, the district considers replacing a beloved principal with a record of low test scores with an unpopular principal whose record shows increased student achievement. The school board must decide whether to prioritize finances, community support, student achievement, or state-level demands. This case presents many difficult decisions schools and districts are required to make. Key factors discussed in the case include principal turnover, student academic achievement, teacher retention, school culture, and power.

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“…This finding is supported by Bush (2013), Leithwood et al (2006), and Peterson and Deal (1998) and confirms the important role of school management and leadership in relation to the expected performance of the educational process in schools (cf. Nielsen and Taggart, 2021;Pavlidou and Efstathiades, 2021;Wu and Shen, 2022). The research also found positive relationships between the dimensions Leadership and management and Communication, including Teacher motivation, similar to research by Lubis, Sagala, S., Saragih and Sagala, G. H (2021) in which trust building in school settings is further emphasized.…”

“…Dolton and Newson (2003) found that negative changes in school culture also influenced student achievement, a result which confirms the association between leadership and expected teaching and learning outcomes within school culture (cf. Nielsen and Taggart, 2021). The analysis by Lee and Louis (2019) suggests a clear link between schools with a strong culture and their continuous improvement in school-level achievement.…”