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The role of the shared superintendency: The perceptions of eight superintendents in the state of Nebraska

Jeffrey E Edwards, University of Nebraska - Lincoln

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of eight superintendents in the state of Nebraska who served in a shared capacity with two or more school districts. The eight standards for the superintendency developed by the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) served as a foundation for the study. The standards served as the guidelines for the desired leadership competencies a superintendent should possess. A qualitative research procedure, specifically that of case study research, was the methodology used to conduct the study. Eight superintendents who served as educational leaders in two or more school districts simultaneously were interviewed for the study. Surveys were also mailed to the school board presidents and building principals served by the superintendents to ascertain their perceptions of the role of the shared superintendent. Five themes emerged from the study: (a) the importance of delegation of duties: informants referred to duties generally reserved for the superintendent being delegated to building principals and staff; (b) the time factor: informants discussed the amount of time required to meet each individual district's expectations for the shared superintendent; (c) the superintendent as chief executive office: informants related their position to that of a chief executive officer in an organization with multiple sites; (d) the formulation of realistic expectations about the role of the person serving in a shared superintendency by school boards and communities: all eight informants perceived that expectations about time, availability, and visibility had to be realistic for the position to succeed; and (e) the financial aspect: many school districts perceived the shared arrangement to be a financial savings to the district, however, it was not necessarily the case.

Subject Area

School administration

Recommended Citation

Edwards, Jeffrey E, "The role of the shared superintendency: The perceptions of eight superintendents in the state of Nebraska" (2003). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI3117797.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI3117797

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