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Listening to others gives a variety of perspectives on how to resolve problems. “…there are many ways to solve any given issue. ….So, I think that it is important to hear their voices,” (High School Principal 83, 6/18/2006). In referring to historically unheard parents, Southwest Elementary Principal 52 (6/8/2006) equated the lack of voice with lack of power. “ ..those parents will not speak up, you know, maybe that don’t feel they have a voice or—or they….—feel powerless”

Examples of shared decision-making that included parents, faculty and students were related to decisions which impacted the entire school. Implementation of block scheduling and seeking input on the best way to be successful on state accountability assessments were cited as successful shared decision-making experiences.

...parents, staff members—certified and classified and students are part of that give and take… if you’re going to do something that’s going to affect everybody’s lives, they need to have some ownership and opportunity to be a part of constructing that, and so kids are heavily involved… (Midwest High School Principal 75, 10/17/2005)

Principals' belief that they were in the middle between school level stakeholders and the district office and superintendent influenced their decision-making. They also desired to be included in the superintendent and district level decision-making process.

…we as building principals, are on both sides …hit from both directions... One is staff members or those that we supervise or are responsible for are asking for more ownership in decisions or more participation in them and we in turn are asking those above us to allow us to be more a part of those decisions that really matter. I don’t think any group of people would understand the full ramifications of that issue better than building principals, because they are truly in the middle (Midwest School Principal 75, 10/17/2005).

Midwest High School Principal 80 (6/18/2006) was even more explicit as he detailed his perception and how he advised those preparing for administration to be cautious of being perceived by the district office of not being supportive or of teachers’ perception of not inviting input. Although in the middle, principals equated the trust of the superintendent with opportunities to provide input and the reciprocal trust represented support of principals’ decisions. “District support equals trust,” (Southwest Elementary Principal 33, 1/3/2006). “Relationships with superintendents build trust in your decisions,” (Southwest Elementary Principal 41, 10/11/2005).

Discussion

Knowledge and skills in decision-making and communication are essential to successfully lead change in schools to improve learning for all students. Creation and implementation of new mental models of schooling can serve all students at a high level and become a reality if principals have the knowledge and skills in decision-making, communication, and empowerment to create a school culture for change. Such change has the potential to lead to equity and access to excellence for all students regardless of family background or economic status, leading to social and professional opportunities (Jean-Marie, Normore,&Brooks, 2009).

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Source:  OpenStax, Education leadership review, volume 12, number 2 (october 2011). OpenStax CNX. Sep 26, 2011 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col11360/1.3
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