Number of African American Superintendents in Texas.
Historical Perspective
Superintendents as a teacher-scholar was dominant from 1865 to 1910 (Spring, as cited in
Smothers, 2012). They functioned as lead educators who were subordinate to board members but
were considered superior to principals, teachers and students (Kowalski, 2006). The
superintendent as a business manager emerged after 1910. Some school boards placed more
emphasis on a superintendent’s managerial skill than they did on his or her teaching skills. Prior
to this time, there were neither courses nor academic degrees offered in educational
administration (Cubberly, 1924).
Minority Representation
The United States of America has faced a significant shift in demographics and
population over the past 20 years. According to the U.S. Census Bureau (2010), the numbers and
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Experiences of African, Page 3
diversity in the U.S. population will continue to grow, especially among minority students. The
racial composition of superintendents, teachers and student populations appears to be facing the
same changes but at a much slower increase (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2005).
The President of the Association of California School Administrators (2008) advocated that “it is
important to address the needs of African American education leaders and students because we
want all members of our society to achieve” (para. 8). A disparity in the number of
superintendents in districts where the majority of the population consists of minority African
American and Hispanic students creates a serious setback in the success of these students
(Campbell, 2015). Domenech, Executive Director of the School Superintendents Association,
stated, “we are nowhere near representing the population that is in our schools” (as cited in
Campbell, 2015, para 4). He further stated that “these students need role models. When they see
a brown or black face walk into their classroom, especially as the superintendent, they think and
say ‘wow’ that could be me” (Domenech, as cited in Campbell, 2015, para. 4). According to
Carpenter and Diem (2014), as of today, African American superintendents continue to struggle
for employment in districts. Educational theorists have stated that not unlike the principal, the
superintendent’s impact on learning is facilitated through the establishment of climate and
culture and the direct impact of the district/school. Therefore, having superintendent populations
reflective of the population of the district is the key to learning and student achievement. As
noted by Bandura (1986), equitable representation ensures students will identify and model
themselves after other successful educators, mentors and superintendents.
Significant Research Studies
Research inquires have been conducted concerning various aspects of the school
superintendent over the previous years. The American School Superintendent: 2010 Decennial
Study (Kowalski et al., 2011) is an expansion with inquires that have been organized every 10
years and was developed in 1923. However, there were matters that were the main points of
specific time epochs such as the 1933 investigation that included the role that public schools
would have in changing economic and social expansion after the Great Depression. The 1952
investigation concentrated on the difference between urban and rural superintendents. The 1960
investigation concentrated on superintendent readiness, and the 1971 investigation included
around 100 questions about attributes of the position, the individuals in the position and the
school districts employing them. The NABSE (2011) mentioned that there are around 13,893
school districts in the United States. Nevertheless, only 361 or 2.5% are African American male
and female superintendents. Ethnicity of the superintendency appears not to be a thing similar to
that of the population of students and teachers those superintendents serve and supervise (Volp,
2001).
Leadership Practices
As leaders of change, school leaders must therefore engage strategies favorable to
comprehensive practices among the elements such as shared vision, collaboration and effective
support, to play a central role (Salisbury & McGregor, 2002). It is imperative that school leaders
participate in a balancing act where issues of improving achievement, equity and social justice
are on the front lines of their agenda (Devecchi & Nevin, 2010). However, school leaders
regardless of ethnicity are evaluated by what they do. According to Boyatzies and McKee
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