733787
h-article2017
JELXXX10.1177/1555458917733787Journal of Cases in Educational LeadershipWilliams et al.
Article
The Case of a Dysfunctional
Administrative Team: Star
Player Questions Status Quo
Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership
2018, Vol. 21(2) 77­–88
© 2017 The University Council
for Educational Administration
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https://doi.org/10.1177/1555458917733787
DOI: 10.1177/1555458917733787
journals.sagepub.com/home/jel
Ashley Hayden Williams1, Stella Egbert1,
and Richard Coronado1
Abstract
This case study is a combination of real-life events that describe the complexity of
dual roles within a small school. The administrators in this case have to determine
the consequences in response to a student’s misbehavior, who happens to be the
godchild of the superintendent and the daughter of a middle school principal. The
child’s high school principal has to choose between following policy guidelines and
winning a basketball championship.
Keywords
ethics, nepotism, administrator behavior, role conflict, community, leadership, dual
roles
Context
The Graham School
The Graham School is located in a fairly busy area in central Atlanta and serves students from all over the state of Georgia. The student body consists of 594 students in
Grades 6 to 12, of which 31% are ethnically diverse and 55% of the students receive
free or reduced price lunches. The Graham school operates as a charter school receiving federal funds. The majority of its funding comes from the Graham family who
originally founded the school and continues to govern its existence through its philanthropic and charitable work created in an established trust. A small portion of students
receive full tuition coverage based on both financial need and academic excellence.
1Texas
State University, San Marcos, TX, USA
Corresponding Author:
Ashley Hayden Williams, Texas State University, 3509 West Ave., Austin, TX 78705, USA.
Email: ah1675@txstate.edu
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Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership 21(2)
Roughly, 80% of all students are residents of the Atlanta or the surrounding suburban
areas, while the others are selected through an allotted lottery application system,
which creates space for students in need who meet preestablished criteria. Many of
these are recent immigrants from Mexico and South America. Students can either live
on campus, in their homes, or with host families who provide boarding for those with
financial need or who live too far to commute. A large portion of the host families,
especially those with great influence, live within the established community. Parents
of a majority of the students work in varying capacities throughout the Atlanta metro
area, and many serve in executive capacities within their profession. Thus, The Graham
School would be considered to have a high enrollment of students from a higher socioeconomic background. For more than 150 years, the school has provided education to
students who are bilingual in Spanish and English and serves them on a continuum,
including those who also receive special education services. Because of this unique
infrastructure, The Graham School serves as a single district with the superintendent
located on the same campus as the principal.
Basketball has been an integral part of the school culture for many years as it has a
rich history of success. Many former athletes matriculated to colleges and universities
to continue both their basketball and academic careers. Lately, the basketball program
has fallen on difficult times, and the school, most importantly its alumni, has been
rather vocal in expressing its displeasure with the lack of success and ineffectiveness
of the program.
Over one third of The Graham School staff consists of returning alumni who work
for in a variety of capacities. Because the school has served a specific population,
those who have returned to work at the school also have family members who have
attended the school. The alumni often encounter their former teachers and staff as they
begin their career at the school.
Mrs. Host
Barbara Host is the current principal of the middle school. She has a long-established
association with The Graham School. In addition to being the principal for the past 5
years, she is an alumna and the daughter of two well-respected retired teachers who
were working at the school when she was a student there. Through her legacy and
continued commitment to the students and school, she has developed strong relationships with families and a powerful reputation in the community. Her bond with members in the community goes even deeper through her daughter Emory, who is currently
a junior at the school and a star basketball player.
This year, Emory has continuously expressed her disgruntlement with her algebra
teacher, Mr. Bentley, claiming that he is an unfit teacher and has unfair expectations.
Mrs. Host is not only Mr. Bentley’s colleague, but she also took his class when she was
a student. Being a parent and a close friend of the parents of Emory’s classmates, Mrs.
Host is involved in many conversations regarding what is happening at the high school
from a different perspective than what she encounters as a school employee. Many of
the parents in the school community approach her to learn information pertaining to
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teachers or situations because they believe she is a trusted source for inside information. Although Mrs. Host is careful about discussing confidential information, she
often finds herself in uncomfortable situations when the parents express their grievances about her colleagues and supervisors. She not only strives to maintain the strong
bonds she has with members within the school community but also is cognizant of her
role as an administrator.
Mr. Bentley
Bill Bentley is an experienced teacher with a strong background in mathematics. He
has 30 years of teaching experience with the past 25 years being at The Graham
School. During his tenure, he has worked on establishing relationships with his colleagues and the community, while developing a rigorous algebra program for the students. He focuses on challenging his students and has set high expectations for their
academic success. He believes that students are responsible for following all classroom and school policies. Some students feel that he is too “rigid” when it comes to
these procedures and have outwardly expressed their discontent with him as a teacher.
Mr. Bentley not only has reflected on and considered their concerns but also realizes
that he is dealing with a challenging situation.
He does not come from a long lineage of graduates of The Graham School and does
not have any children currently enrolled there. He has seen how certain students are
treated differently by the administration based on their affiliation with the student’s
parents. He has been struggling with the inconsistencies and he feels that special treatment is given to those who have a high status or influential connections in the community, which has caused recent problems in his classroom. He feels that these actions
are unacceptable and need to be handled according to policy rather than how a student
and/or parent may react. Unfortunately, his hands are tied.
Mr. Bentley is having an exceptionally difficult time this year due to Emory’s influence on the other students. In class, Emory distracts her classmates, which enables
them all to continue to be off-task when Mr. Bentley is teaching. Given that Emory is
a star basketball player and most of her classmates are on the same team, they would
have a hard time not following what she does. The fact that he previously taught her
mother who is now one of his colleagues increases the complexity of the situation. He
recalls experiencing similar issues when Emory’s mother was a student in his class.
Knowing the influence that she has in the community and her persuasive personality,
Mr. Bentley is hesitant to express his concerns to Mrs. Host and is uncertain of the best
approach to handle situations regarding Emory.
Mr. Johnson
Stan Johnson is the current high school principal who has an extensive background in
administration. Prior to his employment at The Graham School, he spent 10 years
working as a principal at a rural high school in Ohio. In his previous position, he
reformed a poor performing school with his leadership, focusing on professional
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development for his staff and connecting the school to the community. After this success, Mr. Johnson felt he wanted a new challenge and pursued the principal position at
The Graham School. The Graham School boasts a larger student population with students who are more ethnically and socioeconomically diverse than his previous school.
He hoped to bring what he had learned from his previous position to The Graham
School and positively affect a new and more diverse community. After an extensive
interview process, he was offered the job and he transitioned well into his new
position.
He quickly saw that members within the community had remarkable ties with one
another. His understanding of the connections among school personnel and families
was enhanced with discovering that those who have graduated or worked at the school
remain in the area and send their own children to receive the same educational experience. This is what makes The Graham School legendary within the bilingual
community.
Superintendent Yearn
Bob Yearn has spent nearly 35 years as an educator, all of which being at The Graham
School in some capacity. He started as a teacher, basketball coach, assistant principal,
principal, and currently is the superintendent. As an alumnus and the son of former
employees of The Graham School, he has established many deep connections within
the school community. His father served as superintendent for many years, which
further depicts his lineage and roots in the long history of the school. Following in his
father’s footsteps, Mr. Yearn is directly responsible for either having taught or hired
every current employee at The Graham School. He hired both Mr. Johnson and Mr.
Bentley, while also serving as a former teacher, principal, and mentor to Mrs. Host as
she transitioned into an administrative position.
Mr. Yearn undoubtedly possesses total autonomy in making decisions, wielding
power over all matters regarding The Graham School, including decisions being made
at the campus level. Mr. Yearn trusts his campus administrators but feels that he has
the experience and knowledge to make the final decision on most matters. When necessary, he will intervene to make the decisions that he feels will best impact the school
as a whole, and seeks to make the majority happy and fulfilled. In the past, he has had
several parents and employees claim that he is prone to being partial to some and that
he has tried to micromanage situations to manipulate the outcome on the sides for
which he has favored.
Mr. Yearn realizes that working as a superintendent can generally be extremely
political, but he enjoys the challenge and the opportunity to continually build alliances
within The Graham School community. Through his years in his current position, Mr.
Yearn has dealt with several prominent issues on the campuses. Throughout the process of resolving each situation, he maintained the belief that his qualifications and
capabilities made him the best person for that role. Despite the controversial nature of
an issue and speculations claiming that he frequently failed to separate himself as
superintendent from his other role as a member of the community, he feels as though
Williams et al.
81
there is no one better than he to ensure that The Graham School will continue to thrive
and be a successful institution of learning.
Case Narrative
Skipping Class
Mr. Johnson felt it has been difficult to work on the administrative team with Mrs.
Host within the last year. It began when her daughter, Emory, started having difficulties with her algebra teacher, Mr. Bentley. In the last few months, Mr. Bentley had
struggled with Emory’s class. She has been outspoken and has influenced some of
her classmates to join in the refusal to complete assignments or to cooperate with
simple requests. Although Mr. Bentley is an experienced teacher with clear expectations in his classroom, these actions have left him feeling powerless and questioning
how to maintain a positive learning environment for those not involved with this
defiance. To address the issue, Mr. Johnson has assigned Mr. Bentley an assistant to
provide support in the classroom. Having an assistant would allow Mr. Bentley to
have smaller groups to minimize the distraction that Emory may cause in class and
incite her classmates to follow suit. Mr. Johnson periodically visited the class to
monitor the instruction and evaluate the classroom management. He feels Mr.
Bentley is responding well to the students despite the disruptions and disrespect
from Emory and her friends. Emory, however, is convinced that Mr. Bentley should
not be teaching her algebra. In previous discussions with Mrs. Host when addressing
Emory’s concerns and behaviors, Mr. Johnson feels that she is not being impartial in
terms of separating herself from being a mother of a student and star basketball
player, and being an administrator at the same school who should understand the
expectations of all students.
As the high school principal, Mr. Johnson was at a crossroad when he was faced
with the responsibility to address and handle an infraction of school policy. He suspected that an email message that he had drafted to Mrs. Host regarding Emory would
generate conflict. Normally, Mr. Johnson would not have worried about addressing an
issue with the parents of a student. However, because Mrs. Host is a colleague, he hesitated based on the difficulties he had already experienced with her throughout the year.
Earlier that day, Emory decided to walk out of Mr. Bentley’s class and walked off
campus. She did not notify anyone of where she was going. Emory’s teacher noticed
she was not in her fifth block class and alerted the front office. After an hour of searching, Emory returned to campus on her own in time to get ready for her basketball
game. This was not the first time she had walked out of class, but it was the first time
she had left campus for an extended period of time. Her parents were notified that she
did not attend her fifth block class. At the end of the day, after speaking with Emory,
Mr. Johnson finally had the opportunity to complete and send the email message to her
mother. He needed to inform her that he had instructed Emory’s basketball coach that
she would not be permitted to play in the game that evening. He also assigned her to
in-school suspension (ISS) the following day. He knew this information would upset
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Mrs. Host because Emory was a star player of the basketball team, and these consequences would prohibit her from participating.
After learning of the effects of her actions, Emory expressed that her mother had
bad experiences when she was in Mr. Bentley’s class and that something needed to be
done. Enraged by her punishment, Emory continued to relay her frustrations to Mr.
Johnson as she quickly realized that ISS meant that she would have to sit out of the
next three basketball games. Mr. Johnson knew the impact ISS would have on Emory;
however, he felt that she needed to be reminded of the Code of Conduct and understand the severity of her decision to skip class and leave campus.
Trying to convince Mr. Johnson of the reasons for her actions, she proceeded to list
all of the reasons that she felt that Mr. Bentley was an unfit and unfair teacher and
ultimately the one at fault for causing her to leave to calm down when he would not
accept a late assignment. As Emory realized that Mr. Johnson was not taking her side
on the matter, she informed him that her mother would overturn the decision as she,
along with many other students’ parents, agrees that Mr. Bentley is not a competent
teacher. As she stormed out of his office, she told Mr. Johnson that he will be the reason that the basketball team will lose all of the games that she will miss.
Unhappy with the disciplinary actions given to Emory, Mrs. Host met with the
superintendent, Mr. Yearn. She expressed her anger with the decision to suspend
Emory from the upcoming games while sharing her opinions of Mr. Bentley. She
reminded Mr. Yearn of her complaints from her experience as a student in class and the
connection to similar issues being reported by her daughter. Mr. Yearn listened attentively to her frustrations and acknowledged her concerns. He reminded himself
throughout the conversation that Mrs. Host’s dual role as an employee of the school
and a parent advocating for her child increases the complexity of the situation. When
he addressed the severity of Emory’s action and the appropriate consequences for this
type of infraction, Mrs. Host was quick to escalate and continue to place the blame on
Mr. Bentley’s lack of competence in the classroom. She revealed her discontent with
his ability to generate a positive learning environment for the students as well as questioning his ability to effectively present the content. She continued by stating that other
parents with students in this class share the same thoughts and feelings. Mrs. Host
knew that including other people in her argument would catch his attention because
Mr. Yearn strived at keeping peace and pleasing the members of the school community. After sharing what she had thought about the situation, Mrs. Host crossed her
arms across her chest and deeply sighed. Superintendent Yearn looked at Mrs. Host,
thinking about all the times she had been in his office as a student, agreed to talk to Mr.
Johnson and see what they could do in response to her concerns. He explained that
they would collaborate and see how they could make this a positive outcome for
everyone involved.
When Mrs. Host left the Superintendent’s Office, she felt assured the situation
would be addressed and handled in appropriate manner. She was sure that
Superintendent Yearn recognized how Mr. Bentley was as a teacher and how the fault
lies on the fact that Mr. Johnson should have addressed these concerns earlier to prevent Emory from leaving the classroom and missing the upcoming games.
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After dinner that evening, Ms. Host decided to respond to Mr. Johnson’s email. In
her response, she stated that she felt Emory’s punishment should be reconsidered
because after all, she had talked to him before about Mr. Bentley. She also shared that
she had met with Superintendent Yearn earlier in the day and he told her daughter,
Emory, that she would still be able to play the following three games. She assured Mr.
Johnson that Emory has received consequences at home for what occurred at school.
She continued by explaining her opinion that prohibiting her to play in the games is
excessive due to the fact that as a parent, she has previously communicated the issues
and concerns about Emory’s frustration with Mr. Bentley. As an administrator, Mrs.
Host is knowledgeable of the guidelines and protocol for disciplinary action and the
ability to override the Code of Conduct based on the circumstances of the situation.
She ended the email expressing her belief that Emory’s case qualifies for a call for an
override and that she expects he will feel the same.
Unsure of how to respond to such a grave request, Mr. Johnson forwarded the email
to Mr. Yearn for guidance. Although Mr. Johnson recognized that he was in a difficult
position knowing the connection between Mrs. Host and Mr. Yearn, he also understood the power that Mr. Yearn had as the Superintendent related to making the final
decisions in complex situations. Through his hesitation with responding to Mrs. Host,
Mr. Johnson knew that Mr. Yearn had a lot of experience when it came to dealing with
her and could provide insight to help guide him to a resolution.
Mr. Yearn and Mrs. Host have a long, interesting history and some would say possibly even a conflict of interest, as he is Emory’s godfather. Their interconnection
began years earlier when Mr. Yearn taught alongside Mrs. Host’s parents and continued when he taught her for a short period before becoming her principal. Having
always been opinionated and assertive, Mrs. Host spent many hours in Mr. Yearn’s
office as a student. Their strong relationship continued when it came time for Ms. Host
to seek her first teaching position, Mr. Yearn offered her the job on the spot without a
formal interview. In addition, he immediately appointed her to the current principal
position once she earned her credentials. The complexity of the background between
Mr. Yearn and Mrs. Host made the situation problematic, but Mr. Johnson hoped that
Mr. Yearn would be able to convince Mrs. Host that the consequences for Emory’s
actions would not be overturned due to the severity of the infraction.
Mr. Johnson encountered Mrs. Host as he waited to meet with Mr. Yearn regarding
the email he had sent requesting assistance with Emory’s situation. The interaction
was brief, and very few words were exchanged except Mrs. Host expressing her hopes
that he would do what was right for her daughter. This contact added to Mr. Johnson’s
uncertainty and anxiety about the issue. Mr. Johnson did not waste time and quickly
asked how Mr. Yearn thought he should handle the situation. While given much freedom in the past, Mr. Johnson always felt as though highly charged situations of this
nature could affect his career due to the positions of power held by many parents and
employees of The Graham School.
Mr. Yearn sat silent for a few minutes contemplating the appropriate response
before reminding Mr. Johnson about how this community works and the history of
issues that Mr. Bentley has created. He expressed that although it is ultimately up to
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Mr. Johnson, he wanted him to consider the fact that Emory was a star in the making
and several college basketball coaches had informed her mother that they will be in
attendance to watch her play that evening. He also reminded him that The Graham
School had not had a successful basketball team in some time. To further emphasizes
his point, he expressed his love for the game and how much a winning season would
mean to the alumni. Mr. Yearn concluded the meeting by assuring Mr. Johnson that he
believed that he would make the right decision regarding Emory’s circumstances.
Making It to the Playoffs
The following morning, Emory arrived to Mr. Bentley’s class with her peers gloating
that her mother was able to get her out of trouble. Mr. Bentley overheard this and
became furious of the outcome for her actions. This will never stop; he thought to
himself as he wrote the agenda on the board for that period. He knew that Emory’s
punishment would not match the infraction.
The previous night, Emory played in the winning game that sent the school to the
district playoffs. The entire gym roared in excitement; it had been a number of years
since the basketball program has gone to the playoffs, and this accomplishment would
bring such positive attention to the school.
The next morning, while Superintendent Yearn sent out a campus-wide email that
commended the team for their success and highlighted Emory’s performance, Mr.
Johnson sat in his office, facing a student who had left the school grounds during first
period because of a conflict with his homeroom teacher. The student was new to The
Graham School and the community. Although he does not play any sports, he was a
member of the music club that met after school. According to the Code of Conduct,
this violation would require a student to be assigned ISS and be prohibited from participating in the next three extracurricular activities, which would mean missing the
next three music club seminars. Knowing Emory’s outcome, Mr. Johnson is conflicted
with how to respond to this student’s situation.
Teaching Notes
Nepotism Within the School Community
Mr. Johnson is faced with a difficult decision dealing with Emory’s consequences for
her violation. Principals are frequently faced with discipline issues however the status
of Emory’s mother within the community raises the complexity of this particular situation. Bolman and Deal (2013) stated, “Because organizations are complex, surprising, deceptive, and ambiguous, they are formidably difficult to comprehend and
manage” (p. 39). When analyzing The Graham School, it is clear that the connections
among individuals and members of the community affect the communication, relationships, and the interworking of the group.
The dynamics of the connections and dual roles of the employees present the potential for favoritism and cronyism as a result of nepotism within the organization. It is
Williams et al.
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important to define these terms to fully understand the role they play in organizations
and the problems that can arise for leaders when dealing with these complex situations. Jones (2012) described nepotism as the “actual and perceived preferences given
by one family member to another” (as cited in Jones & Stout, 2015, p. 2). Aydogan
(2008) defined favoritism as “the inclination to favor some person or group not for
their abilities but for some irrelevant factor” (p. 159). He continued by explaining that
“favoritism interferes with fairness because it gives undue advantage to someone who
does not necessarily merit this treatment” (Aydogan, 2008, p. 159). Through the analysis of the data from his research in “The Politics of Favoritism: A qualitative Analysis
of the Teachers’ Perspectives,” Blase (1988) stated, “Favoritism refers to the perceived
inequitable (unfair) use of authority and power, particularly by school officials, for the
general purposes of protection and control” (p. 152). Cronyism indicates the favoring
and preferential treatment based on “personal relationships and social networks”
(Turhan, 2014, p. 296). Jones and Stout (2015) referred to all of these terms as “social
connection preferences,” noting that these preferences are often “assumed to be unethical and to reduce organizational effectiveness” (p. 2).
It is essential for educators to be aware of the effects this can have on relationships,
trust, and morale within the entire school community. Favoritism can be seen throughout the entire case beginning with the process for hiring of Mrs. Host to the reduction
of consequence for Emory’s actions. The impact of the “social connections preferences” (Jones & Stout, 2015, p. 2) created a difficult situation for Mr. Johnson when
faced with assigning the appropriate consequences for Emory’s infractions. The status
of Emory’s mother within the community left Mr. Johnson with a difficult ethical
decision.
Ethics and Discipline Decisions
As Findlay (2015) stated, “Clearly, a number of conflicting interests, standards, expectations, and obligations exist within the highly complex organizations that are schools;
however, within that sphere there is considerable opportunity for discretion to flourish” (p. 474). Discretion is at the heart of many of the decisions that principals face,
and as a result, ethics plays an integral role in each situation. Many researchers have
emphasized the notion of ethics in relation to education.
Starratt (2005) outlined “five domains of responsibility that are central to educational leadership” (p. 125). These domains refer to a leader’s role as person and
member of a community as well as outline his or her role within an education setting. He strongly believed, “if educators violate the rights and trust of people in the
school, they are not only breaking the law, but they also are acting unethically in
their role of citizen and public servant” (Starratt, 2005, p. 126). Shapiro and
Stefkovich (2001) identified four ethical paradigms for responding to issues, involving ethics, justice, caring critique, and profession (as cited in Stefkovich & O’Brien,
2004). Gross and Shapiro (2004) defined each of the four paradigms in response to
dealing with issues faced by administration. They explained that the ethic of justice
“focuses on rights and law” (p. 47), while the ethic of caring critique requires
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educators to handle questions addressing difficult topics, such as “who benefits from
the law, rule or policy; who has the power; and how are the silenced voices” (p. 48).
The ethic of care “asks that individuals consider the consequences their decisions
and actions” and the ethic of profession “placed the interests of the student at the
center” (p. 48). When examining the ethical dilemma that Mr. Johnson faced, the
situation can be examined through each of the domains and paradigms. Leaders in
education are expected to acquire and possess a strong foundation in ethical frameworks and perspectives. However, upholding these standards through complex situations and decisions can be difficult when dealing with individuals of elevated status
within the community. Turhan (2014) stated, “Exercising privilege over others is a
common ethical problem, both in public and private institutions” (p. 295).
Power Relations
Power is present in many aspects of the situation involving Emory’s actions and the
decision regarding her consequence. Hinchey (1998) discussed how critical theory
is related to questioning power and the notion that it is a “constructed consciousness” that promotes the advantage of one group while putting others at a disadvantage (p. 19). In regard to teachers, he stated, “they allow others to make decisions
and policy without question and challenge” (Hinchey, 1998, p. 27) .This can be
seen through Mr. Bentley’s reaction to Emory’s consequence. He did not question
the decision and just accepted it as a typical and expected outcome based on his
previous experiences with highly regarded individuals with elevated status in the
community.
Discussion Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
What are the issues in this case that are affecting the team of educators?
Given the school context, how would you address the issues affecting The
Graham School community and why?
What actions would you implement to help the administration and teachers of
The Graham School to transform from dysfunctional to a functional team?
Support your proposed solutions with literature.
Do you think Superintendent Yearn handled the situation appropriately and
ethically? Explain.
Evaluating Mrs. Host’s response to the situation and her role as a principal, can
her actions be considered responsible and ethical as a parent? Why?
What factors empowered Mrs. Host’s response?
What approach should Mr. Bentley have taken in regard to airing out his frustrations and concerns and why?
How should Mr. Johnson have handled this situation prior to seeing
Superintendent Yearn? Explain.
Considering how the entire situation was handled, what are some alternative
actions that you would take in addressing the issue with each person involved?
Williams et al.
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Class Activity 1
Given the complexity, content, key characters, and nature of the case study, your task
is to assign roles (Superintendent Yearn, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Bentley, Mrs. Host) within
your group and dissect the case from start to finish. In conclusion, provide your outcomes for the situation involving Emory and her punishment. Also, explain how the
situation involving the new student violating the Student Code of Conduct would create a compromised situation for Mr. Johnson and how should he effectively and ethically approach it to avoid further complications for himself and his campus.
Class Activity 2
As a practitioner, find your state’s ethical rules as a licensed administrator and assess
whether Superintendent Yearn, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Bentley, or Mrs. Host has violated
rules against ethical practices in your state. How should they seek support in terms of
how to work in a close-knit community like The Graham School? What should they do
professionally and within their roles?
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship,
and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of
this article.
References
Aydogan, İ. (2008). Favoritism in the classroom: A study on Turkish schools. Journal of
Instructional Psychology, 35, 159-168.
Blase, J. (1988). The politics of favoritism: A qualitative analysis of the teachers’ perspective.
Educational Administration Quarterly, 24, 152-177.
Bolman, L., & Deal, T. (2013). Reframing organizations (5th ed.). San Francisco, CA: JosseyBass.
Findlay, N. (2015). Discretion in student discipline: Insight into elementary principals’ decision
making. Educational Administration Quarterly, 51, 472-507.
Gross, S. J., & Shapiro, J. P. (2004). Using multiple ethical paradigms and turbulence theory in
response to administrative dilemmas. International Studies in Educational Administration,
32, 47-62.
Hinchey, P. H. (1998). Finding freedom in the classroom: A practical introduction to critical
theory. New York, NY: Peter Lang.
Jones, R. G. (2012). Defining a psychology of nepotism. In R.G. Jones (Ed.), Nepotism in organizations (pp. 253-267). New York, NY: Taylor & Francis.
Jones, R. G., & Stout, T. (2015). Policing nepotism and cronyism without losing the value of
social connection. Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Perspectives on Science and
Practice, 8(1), 2-12. doi:10.1017/iop.2014.3
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Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership 21(2)
Shapiro, J. P., & Stefkovich, J. A. (2001). Ethical leadership and decision making in education:
Applying theoretical perspectives to complex dilemmas. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Starratt, R. J. (2005). Responsible leadership: Essays. The Educational Forum, 69, 124-133.
Stefkovich, J. A., & O’Brien, M. (2004). Best interests of the student: An ethical model. Journal
of Educational Administration, 42, 197-214. Retrieved from http://libproxy.txstate.edu/
login?url=http://search.proquest.com.libproxy.txstate.edu/docview/220433385?accoun
tid=5683
Turhan, M. (2014). Organizational cronyism: A scale development and validation from the
perspective of teachers. Journal of Business Ethics, 123, 295-308.
Author Biographies
Ashley Hayden Williams is a first-grade teacher in Central Texas. This is her fifth year in the
field of education. She is also currently a student in the School Improvement Doctoral Program
at Texas State University.
Stella Egbert is a district administrator focusing on professional development and American
Sign Language Services at the Texas School for the Deaf. Eight years after being a principal
before she became a district administrator, she also began her doctoral studies at Texas State
University in the School Improvement Program.
Richard Coronado serves as assistant principal in a large Texas school district. He is in his
11th year as an educator, 3 of which have been in administration after serving as a teacher and
coach. He holds principal and superintendent certifications, and is currently pursuing a PhD in
School Improvement from Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas.