A study of policy changes in a small, rural, Missouri high school student handbook with respect to building a culture of high expectations
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[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] The purpose of the study was to enhance the knowledge base of rural school officials who are leading change by creating policy to raise expectations for achievement in rural schools. This study outlines the development, or further development, of policies in a student handbook, analyzing policy changes and their relationship to building a culture of high expectations. The findings from this study provided insight into how the policy changes were crafted and implemented, then how stakeholders viewed those initial actions. The interview process gathered information from actively involved parents, teachers, and administrators. These participants were purposefully selected because of their involvement in and knowledge of processes that led to changes in the student handbook. As the study unfolded themes began to emerge including: the leader as effective communicator, the leader as advocate of change to board policies, the inclusive leader, and the reflective leader. I realized the data was pointing to an overarching theme of leadership, and more specifically leadership during change. This study was important in my small rural school district but has implications for school districts of all sizes. Future research or practice might include: (a) students in the interviews rather than relying on data collected from adults only, (b) the study needs to be conducted at multiple districts comparing the processes used for policy. (c) a follow-up program evaluation to evaluate the outcomes that resulted from the policy change process could be used to measure the impact leadership may have had during change.
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Ed. D.
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Access is limited to the campuses of the University of Missouri.