Integration of ISLLC leadership standards into Rhode Island principal preparation programs

Significant changes in the world continue to impact education. Today's leaders are expected to transform education and prepare students to meet the global demands of the 21st century. Educators and policy makers have redefined the role of school leaders to be the proponents of change. Bureaucracy and red tape, overwhelming workload, money and mandates, lack of control, and testing and accountability are among the top frustrations of public school administrators (Johnson, 2002). Research suggests that many of today's leaders may not be prepared for these demands and responsibilities. Much of their educational preparation and experiences have prepared them for a management role rather than for a leadership role (Institution for Educational Leadership, 2000). The Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) was formed in 1994 to develop a framework that includes standards for redefining school leadership. Considerable effort is being made to link the ISLLC Standards to the reform of formal training programs for school administrators throughout the country. Rhode Island is one of the 36 states attempting to align its principal preparation programs with the ISLLC Standards. The study investigated how two Rhode Island Institutions of Higher Education and one approved aspiring principals' program are integrating the ISLLC Standards into their principal preparation programs. Emphasis was placed on how they assess their students' performance on these Standards. Interviews were the primary means for collecting data accompanied by document review and literature review. The outcome of the study will furnish Rhode Island Institutions of Higher Education with recommendations for changes in the design and/or implementation of their principal preparation programs. The results of the study will also serve to raise public awareness about the critical problems facing educational leadership and to determine if Rhode Island's principal preparation programs are integrating the