Leadership in Comprehensive School Reform Initiatives: The Case of the Modern Red SchoolHouse (Leadership for School Reform: Lessons from Comprehensive School Reform Designs edited by Joseph Murphy & Amanda Datnow. 2003. Pages 37 – 56. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press)
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Authors: James D. Jones, Mississippi State University and Sally B. Kilgore, MRSH

Relation of authors to model: independent evaluator and developer
Date evaluation report completed: Fall, 2001

Months/years covered by evaluation: 1998-2001

Number of schools involved: 3

Demographics of sample population: All Title I schools in an urban district in the South, predominantly African-American

Purpose of study: To assess challenges associated with developing participative management at MRSH sites.

Methodology: Case study

Measures/indicators used to assess effectiveness: Incidence of teacher involvement in school decision-making

Findings: Participative management achievable under most leadership styles. However, boundaries imposed by principals vary in contextually “reasonable” ways—i.e., depending on the degree to which professionalism institutionalized at school. Where principal is highly autocratic, it appears difficult to develop either a sense of professionalism or participative management.