African-American school superintendents in the state of Texas : a study of their career path, barriers, and the characteristics of the school district they serve /
A qualitative study on African-American superintendents within the state of Texas was done to examine their career path, barriers, and the characteristics of the school district they serve. At the time of this study, Texas had 1,042 school districts, and African-American superintendents headed only...
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| Format: | Thesis Book |
| Language: | English |
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[Place of publication not identified] :
[publisher not identified] ;
2002.
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| Online Access: | http://proxy.library.tamu.edu/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=726447551&sid=1&Fmt=2&clientId=2945&RQT=309&VName=PQD |
| Summary: | A qualitative study on African-American superintendents within the state of Texas was done to examine their career path, barriers, and the characteristics of the school district they serve. At the time of this study, Texas had 1,042 school districts, and African-American superintendents headed only 14 of these school districts. Of the 14 African-American superintendents in the state of Texas, five males were selected based on two criteria: (a) they must be superintendents of school districts that have a minimum enrollment of 3,000 students, and (b) they must be career-bound superintendents. The data collected and analyzed responded to four research questions that guided the study: 1. What are the career paths of the African-American superintendents in this study? 2. What are the characteristics of the districts headed by African-American superintendents in this study, specifically their size, composition of school board, and race of students? 3. What are the barriers that these African-American superintendents have faced? 4. How have these superintendents overcome these barriers? The study's findings revealed that all five African-American superintendents identified the following barriers: (a) the perception of race, (b) school boards, (c) the "good old boy" network, (d) search firms, and (e) having professional experiences. The researcher provided the five African-American superintendents an opportunity to tell their story. The superintendents within this study overcame these barriers by (a) having a successful track record, (b) creating a professional network, (c) persistence, and (d) a willingness to relocate to obtain future employment. |
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| Item Description: | Vita. "Major Subject: Educational Administration". |
| Physical Description: | x, 116 leaves ; 28 cm. Issued also on microfiche from University Microfilm Inc. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references (leaves 105-110). |