Reflections on a reality : the decline of female administrators in the public schools of North Carolina

The number of female administrators in the public schools of North Carolina and the nation has significantly declined in the past fifty years. The purpose of this inquiry was to identify the major factors that have contributed to this problem. Information for this descriptive study was gained from two sources: (a) a review of the available literature, and (b) direct dialogue with five administrative educational powerholders in the field. The dialogues and the literature findings suggested that the reasons for the decline of women administrators are numerous and complex, and can be classified into two groups: reasons that relate to economic, political, or sociological factors, and reasons that grow out of internal or external causes. Overall, gender is seen as the pivotal point for all reasons