Leadership Ecosystems: Navigating the Synergies of Relationship-Building, Trust, and Community to Foster Student Success in Experienced US Principals' Practice
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: An effective instructional and shared leader fosters student success and school sustainability through fostering relationship-building, trust-based learning, and community engagement. This descriptive qualitative study investigates how US principals explore relationship-building, trust, and community for student learning outcomes and school effectiveness. A total of 12 principals participated in this study, including male (n=6) and female (n=6), through purposive and snowball sampling in the United States. Findings show principals face three challenges: (1) establishing effective communication channels, (2) managing diverse stakeholder expectations, and (3) developing leadership capacities for trust and stakeholder relationships. Findings also shows that principals have three benefits, including (1) a solid relationship between school stakeholders, (2) community engagement, and (3) sustainable success. Three strategic approaches emerged, including (1) fostering personal connections, (2) cultivating inclusive communities, and (3) sharing leadership for success. Based on the findings, a convergent mixed-methods study will survey 3,000 principals and conduct interviews with 600 principals across 50 states in the United States
Authors: Wei Zhang, Shuzhen Xie
Institutions: Western Michigan University, Marquette University
Language: English
Subfield: Education
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W6949375430
FWCI:
Cites:
Cited by:
Related to: