Dimensions of Educational Leadership: Cultural, Ethical, and Moral

Given the current state of affairs in the school districts of America, almost any observer could proclaim that a change in policy and leadership is urgently needed. The national pundits and politicians continue to blame the usual suspects: entrenched school cultures, teacher unions, shortened school years, and administrative bloat, to name a few. National educational leadership organizations (NCPEA, UCEA, and AASA) are hard at work defining a Knowledge Base (KB) for the training of educational leaders of the future. While this author certainly applauds the efforts of these professional organizations, there are some things that university professors can do within leader preparation programs across America. As will be discussed in this article, universities can begin to prepare new and current leaders in the key dimensions of leadership. Training in administration science, e.g. finance, law, human resources, facilities management, and technology are necessary and should be required. However, the key leadership dimensions of ethical, moral and cultural leadership are and remain, critical to the success of the school leader and the organization