Review of Research

School Leadership Study
Developing Successful Principals

Stephen Davis Linda Darling-Hammond Michelle LaPointe Debra Meyerson

Stanford Educational Leadership Institute

Commissioned by The Wallace Foundation

SELI Stanford University School of Education 520 Galvez Mall Stanford, CA 94305-3084

Phone: 650.724.7384 Fax: 650.723.9931 Email: principalstudy@stanford.edu http://seli.stanford.edu

This report was commissioned by The Wallace Foundation and produced by the Stanford Educational Leadership Institute in conjunction with The Finance Project. © 2005 Stanford Educational Leadership Institute (SELI). All rights reserved.

Principals play a vital role in setting the direction for successful schools, but existing knowledge on the best ways to prepare and develop highly qualified candidates is sparse. What are the essential elements of good leadership? How are successful leadership development programs designed? What program structures provide the best learning environments? What governing and financial policies are needed to sustain good programming? “School Leadership Study: Developing Successful Principals” is a major research effort that seeks to answer these questions. Commissioned by The Wallace Foundation and undertaken by the Stanford Educational Leadership Institute in conjunction with The Finance Project, the study will examine eight highly developed pre- and inservice program models that address key issues in developing strong leaders. Once effective processes have been identified they can be replicated, ensuring that more and more schools become vibrant learning communities under the direction of outstanding leaders. Citation: Davis, S.; Darling-Hammond, L.; LaPointe, M.; & Meyerson, D. (2005). School leadership study: Developing successful principals (Review of Research). Stanford, CA: Stanford University, Stanford