African American Women Attaining and Maintaining the Position of Superintendent
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National Louis University Digital Commons@NLU Dissertations 12-2020 African American Women Attaining and Maintaining the Position of Superintendent Twyla Harris Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/diss Part of the Educational Leadership Commons Recommended Citation Harris, Twyla, "African American Women Attaining and Maintaining the Position of Superintendent" (2020). Dissertations. 544. https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/diss/544 This Dissertation - Public Access is brought to you for free and open access by Digital Commons@NLU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons@NLU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN ATTAINING AND MAINTAINING THE SUPERINTENDENCY Twyla Y. Harris Educational Leadership Doctoral Program Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of Doctor of Education in the Foster G. McGaw Graduate School National College of Education National Louis University November 2020 AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN ATTAINING AND MAINTAINING THE POSITION OF SUPERINTENDENT Twyla Y. Harris Educational Leadership Doctoral Program Approved: ________________________________ ________________________________ Chair, Dissertation Committee Director, EDL Doctoral Program ________________________________ ________________________________ Member, Dissertation Committee Dean, National College of Education ________________________________ ________________________________ Dean’s Representative Date Approved © by Twyla Y. Harris, 2020 All rights reserved. ABSTRACT There is an underrepresentation of African American women in the position of school district superintendent. The purpose of this research was to uncover the barriers and challenges African American women face both as aspiring and sitting superintendents. To gain a lived experience perspective on the problem, five African American women superintendents were interviewed. The primary research question was: How have African American female superintendents attained and successfully held the superintendent position? Using narrative inquiry, interviews were recorded, transcribed, and coded for the discovery of common themes. Findings include the value of networking for mentoring and support, accepting and bearing the burden of being “twice as good,” taking calculated risks, and always keeping in mind as an African American female you are not as likely to be afforded a second chance “do-over” as your White peers - you need to get it right the first time. Strategies, practices, and long-term solutions for ameliorating these barriers and challenges are proposed. i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Above all else, I thank Jesus Christ, my Lord, and Savior for seeing me through this journey. Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.” Anyone who knows my story, knows that this journey has been filled with tears, pain, and joy. It is because of Him that I live, move, and have my being. My utmost thanks to my Dissertation Chair, Dr. Norman Weston, my Rock! Thank you for the sacrifices that you made to see me through to the end. Thank you for believing in my work and my voice. He, along with my husband, never allowed me to quit. I thank my three sisters for the many telephone calls, text messages, and words of inspiration. Our family adage is “blood is thicker than water.” I thank the women who allowed me to share their personal experiences in this study. I am forever grateful to them for the pathways they have laid before me and other women of color who aspire to the superintendency seat. ii DEDICATION I dedicate this work to my entire family. My boys were awesome! I especially want to salute my husband, Kenneth Harris, the memory of my father, Samuel Johnson, and the strength of my mother, Burdella Johnson. My husband promised my father that he would see me through to the end of all my educational endeavors. My husband kept his promise to my father. If it had not been for the LOVE and SUPPORT of my family, I would not have been able to make it through this journey. Concerning my husband and his constant and consistent encouragement through the early mornings, late nights, and pep talks, he became my supreme motivator. Thank you for not allowing me to quit! His words were: “You can do this.” iii Table of Contents ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................................... i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................ ii DEDICATION ................................................................................................................... iii CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................1 Autobiographical Statement ............................................................................................2 Statement of the Problem ................................................................................................4 Rationale .........................................................................................................................4 Primary and Related Research Questions .......................................................................5 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ......................................................................7 Introduction .....................................................................................................................7 Ways Women Lead .........................................................................................................7 Relational Leadership .........................................................................................7 Leadership for Social Justice ..............................................................................8 Spiritual Leadership ..........................................................................................10 Leadership for Learning ...................................................................................12 Balanced Leadership .........................................................................................13 Women in the School Superintendency ........................................................................15 Women’s Suffrage and the Superintendency .....................................................15 Notable Early Women Superintendents ............................................................18 Evolution of the Role of the Superintendent .................................................................22 Phase One: Superintendent as Teacher-Scholar ..............................................23 Phase Two: Superintendent as Manager ..........................................................24 Phase Three: Superintendent as Democratic Leader .......................................25 Phase Four: Superintendent as Applied Social Scientist ..................................26 iv Phase Five: Superintendent as Communicator .................................................29 Attaining and Maintaining the Position of Superintendent ...........................................32 Getting There ....................................................................................................32 Staying There ....................................................................................................36 Strategies for Success and Longevity ................................................................37 African American Women in the School Superintendency ..........................................41 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ..........................................................................47 Introduction ...................................................................................................................47 Research Questions .......................................................................................................48 Methodology .................................................................................................................48 Setting ...........................................................................................................................50 Participant Selection Criteria ........................................................................................50 Success Defined ............................................................................................................50 Data Collection .............................................................................................................51 Data Analysis ................................................................................................................52 Limitations ....................................................................................................................53 CHAPTER FOUR: FINDINGS .........................................................................................55 Introduction ...................................................................................................................55 Participant Biographies .................................................................................................55 Tracey ................................................................................................................55 Suzette ...............................................................................................................56 Makayla .............................................................................................................56