Journal of K-12 Educational Research 55 Introduction The role of a school principal has never been more demanding. In recent years, principal attrition has surged, with the Texas Education Agency (Landa, 2024) reporting that over 21% of principals left their positions during the 2023–2024 school year. Nationally, urban school districts face even higher turnover rates, particularly among new principals, many of whom depart within their first five years (Pendola, 2022; Superville, 2019). Leadership instability directly impacts student outcomes, as consistent research has affirmed that principals are the second most influential factor in school effectiveness after teachers (Bartanen et al., 2019; Kraft et al., 2016). The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted the educational landscape, intensifying existing challenges and creating new complexities for school leadership. Among the most severely impacted areas was special education. Students receiving special education services experienced heightened learning loss, inconsistent service delivery, and emotional trauma during and after the pandemic (Dey, 2022; FitzGerald et al., 2023). As a result, principals are now tasked with managing not only the academic recovery of students but also the legal and instructional responsibilities associated with supervising special education. Summary of Study In response to these compounding demands, some districts have developed internal leadership pipelines—districtdeveloped principal preparation programs—to “grow their own” leaders. The current study examines one such program in a large urban district in North Texas. This research aims to identify the competencies that matter most when supervising special education, examine the challenges faced by practicing principals, and illuminate how district-developed preparation models can better support leadership development in this specialized area. Research Questions The current study was based on the following research questions: Research Question 1 (RQ1) What principal competencies are most important for the role of the modern principal? Research Question 2 (RQ2) What are current challenges facing school principals in a large urban district in North Texas regarding supervising special education on their campuses? Research Question 3 (RQ3) What are the essential elements of supervising special education in school principal preparation programs? Research Question 4 (RQ4) How does a large, urban school district in North Texas develop future school principals to prepare them to face the current challenges of supervising special education? Literature Review Summary There is a crisis facing the education profession as droves of teachers and school leaders are leaving their positions. A recent study reported that 33% of new principals assigned AN EXAMINATION OF THE ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF PROGRAMS PREPARING FUTURE PRINCIPALS TO SUPERVISE SPECIAL EDUCATION Lindsay Henderson Luján , Ed.D. Journal of K-12 Educational Research 2025, VOL. 9, ISSUE 1 dbu.edu/doctoral/edd
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODc4ODgx