Charter School Leaders and the Transition to the Principalship at Title I Schools
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LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations 2020 Being Scrappy: Charter School Leaders and the Transition to the Principalship at Title I Schools Kalin Balcomb Loyola Marymount University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/etd Part of the Educational Administration and Supervision Commons, and the Educational Leadership Commons Recommended Citation Balcomb, Kalin, "Being Scrappy: Charter School Leaders and the Transition to the Principalship at Title I Schools" (2020). LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations. 945. https://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/etd/945 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by Digital Commons @ Loyola Marymount University and Loyola Law School. It has been accepted for inclusion in LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons@Loyola Marymount University and Loyola Law School. For more information, please contact [email protected]. LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY Being Scrappy: Charter School Leaders and the Transition to the Principalship at Title I Schools by Kalin Balcomb A dissertation presented to the Faculty of the School of Education, Loyola Marymount University, in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Education 2020 i Being Scrappy: Charter School Leaders and the Transition to the Principalship at Title I Schools Copyright © 2020 by Kalin Balcomb ii ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My dissertation journey was often daunting and sometimes disheartening. While my dissertation journey was incredibly valuable to my work and my own growth as a school leader, writing a dissertation while working full time was a difficult process, and I owe the following people endless gratitude. To my hardworking and ever supportive Chair, Dr. Jill Bickett, who was the Program Director for the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership for Social Justice at Loyola Marymount University during my time completing my dissertation and doctoral work, I am so thankful that you took me on. You provided feedback, support, hope, and an unwavering belief that I could complete this work, and complete it on time! You are such an integral part of my LMU experience, and I am so grateful for you. To my committee member and professor, Dr. Heather McManus, your questioning and feedback pushed me to challenge my work and my writing, and your suggestions were helpful, thought provoking and thorough, and pushed me to do better. To my committee member, Dr. Maureen Kindel, your perspective on the Los Angeles political landscape brought an added dimension to my research and findings, and reminded me that my dissertation research is the beginning of my leadership journey, not the end. To my team at Arts in Action, thank you for giving me the chance to lead, and for patiently forgiving my mistakes. I am honored to work with all of you. And lastly, to my sister Elli, who has supported and celebrated my journey throughout. Thank you for helping to edit in the eleventh hour, I could not have gotten past the finish line without you! iii DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to all of the strong Title I charter school leaders in Los Angeles that I have encountered in both my leadership journey and my dissertation research. Working in charter schools can be brutal work. Charter schools are often subjected to the shifting tides of politics and the ever-evolving landscape of educational reform. Charter school leadership can be lonely, and entails long hours, wearing multiple hats, learning quickly, and constantly adapting to changing policies and reforms. My own charter school leadership journey has been fraught with challenges, and times where I have given up hope that the work means something, and makes a positive difference. Sometimes it is hard to see the end goal, and to see the successes amongst the struggles. However, my belief in charter schools as a tool towards K-12 educational reform is fortunately not bounded by my own limitations and experiences as a charter school leader. I have encountered charter school leaders who encapsulate transformative leadership for social justice. I have seen an unwavering passion for eradicating inequity in education that is bolstered by relentless hard work and sacrifice, but most of all hope. Hope that the status quo doesn’t have to be so forever, and that education can do more and be better for our students. Charter school leaders are a diverse set of people, with different journeys to leadership, however, every charter school leader that I have known has inspired me to critically reflect on my own leadership practices, and have pushed me to do more and be better. This dissertation is about charter school leaders and is for charter school leaders, with the hope that together we can work towards a new vision for leadership in education. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................ iii DEDICATION ................................................................................................................. iv LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................. ..............x LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... xi ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................... xii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY ..................................................... 1 Background and Problem .............................................................................................. 5 Research Question ......................................................................................................... 9 Theoretical Frameworks .............................................................................................. 10 Transformational Leadership ........................................................................... 10 Transition Theory ............................................................................................ 12 Purpose of the Study ................................................................................................... .13 Research Design and Methodology ............................................................................. 14 Limitations .................................................................................................................. 15 Positionality ................................................................................................................. 16 Significance ................................................................................................................. 16 Organization to the Study ............................................................................................ 18 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ...................................................................... 20 Search Strategy ............................................................................................................ 21 History of Charter Schools and Public Education Reform .......................................... 22 Inequity in Public Education ........................................................................... 23 The US Educational Reform Movement and Inception of Charters ............... 24 The Reform Movement and Charter School Growth ...................................... 25 Early Charter Schools ...................................................................................... 25 The Second Wave of Charter Schools ............................................................. 27 NCLB and Every Student Succeeds Act ......................................................... 28 Current Context of Charter Schools ............................................................................ 29 Charter Schools by the Numbers ..................................................................... 29 Charter Schools in California ..................................................................................... 30 California Charter School Law ........................................................................ 30 History of Educational Reform in Los Angeles .............................................. 30 California Charter School Expansion .............................................................. 31 Los Angeles Charter School Expansion .......................................................... 32 Structure of Charter Schools in the United States ....................................................... 33 Standalone Charter Schools and Charter Management Organizations ............ 34 Structure of Charter Schools in California and Los Angeles .......................... 35 Demographics of Charter Schools in the United States .............................................. 36 Demographics of Charter Schools in Los Angeles .......................................... 38 For Profit vs. Non Profit Schools ................................................................................ 38 Charter School Accountability Measures in California and Los Angeles ................... 39 Financial Impact of Charter Schools ........................................................................... 42 Financial Impact of Charter Schools in Los Angeles ...................................... 42 v Current Political Landscape of Charter Schools in Los Angeles ................................ 45 Success of Charter Schools