DEGREES OF VISION ALIGNMENT BETWEEN A SUPERINTENDENT AND PRINCIPALS

At the beginning of the twenty-first century, school§districts face a myriad of challenges including a§steady stream of calls for reform, major shifts in§demographics and increasing accountability standards.§Despite the calls for reform and the threat of§sanctions, school districts have found it difficult§to affect significant changes in the gaps between the§academic success rates for those who are identified§as Economically Disadvantaged or minority and their§more affluent, white students. The literature on§change, on motivation, and on successful§organizations quite often suggests having a shared§vision as a prerequisite for success. The research§specifically examining vision as a critical variable§in school district-level success is limited. This§study sought to examine vision as a shared or§aligned component of success as perceived from the§perspectives of the superintendent and principals in§a successful urban school district. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, school§districts face a myriad of challenges including a§steady stream of calls for reform, major shifts in§demographics and increasing accountability standards.§Despite the calls for reform and the threat of§sanctions, school districts have found it difficult§to affect significant changes in the gaps between the§academic success rates for those who are identified§as Economically Disadvantaged or minority and their§more affluent, white students. The literature on§change, on motivation, and on successful§organizations quite often suggests having a shared§vision as a prerequisite for success. The research§specifically examining vision as a critical variable§in school district-level success is limited. This§study sought to examine vision as a shared or§aligned component of success as perceived from the§perspectives of the superintendent and principals in§a successful urban school district.