Purpose of Study
The purpose of this study is to explore the principalship in urban American
schools in which the racial and cultural make-up of the student body differs markedly
from the racial and cultural make-up of the teaching workforce. Two research questions
guide this investigation: First, how do school principals understand urban schools where
the majority of the teachers are White and the majority of the students are Black? Second,
how do these understandings influence their leadership behaviors?