Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of school board members and advisors to identify the skills, attitudes, and experiences that would increase the probability of women being hired as superintendents in California. Research methodology. Descriptive research was used for this study. A questionnaire was mailed to the entire study population of 205 randomly selected school board members and principal advisors. One hundred and twenty five questionnaires or 61 percent were returned by board members, 75 percent were returned by the advisors. The results of the questionnaire supplied the data for this study. The format called magnitude estimation was determined to be most appropriate to assess the degree of importance by the respondents. The geometric mean was used to analyze the data. Findings. The respondents indicated that being highly skilled interpersonally was critically important, while task orientated skills were not as important. Attitudes which display respect for others, modeling strong values and respecting teachers and being classroom oriented were also reported as significant. Advisors emphasized the significance of a successful board/superintendent relationship. Prior experience as an administrator was identified as essential. Four of the five most important experiences identified by the respondents as important could be considered generalist positions, such as experience in curriculum and as an assistant superintendent. Prior experience in special education, bilingual education and maintenance and operations were reported as less important and could be considered as specialist positions. Conclusions. Both board members and advisors emphasized the importance of being an interpersonally skilled leader. Modeling publicly the attitudes viewed as important, such as commitment and being people oriented were also viewed as critically important. Successful experiences in generalist positions was reported as being significant. Recommendations. The aspiring women superintendent ought to be an interpersonally skilled leader. She ought to have the ability to model both strong values and respect for all staff and community members. She ought to understand the significance of the board/superintendent relationship.