K-8 PRINCIPAL’S ROLE IN HIGH SCHOOL SELECTION FOR EIGHTH GRADE STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

Abstract

Students with disabilities are entitled to attend a school of their choice. In order for the rights of students with disabilities to be honored during the high school choice process, principals must create school structures and systems that are alignment to federal policies to lead in the best interest of students. This mixed methods, qualitative dominant study used a survey and semi-structured interviews with current K-8 school principals to better understand the experiences of principals as they support students with disabilities through high school selection. This research study was designed to answers the questions of (1) how do K-8 principals understand and implement their role in the School Selection Process for students with disabilities? (2) how do K-8 principals create conditions and school culture so that students with disabilities have choices in the school selection process?, (3) in what ways are the rights of students with disabilities honored in this large urban district’s School Selection Process? There were several themes that emerged from this research (1) the principal as an advocate for students with disabilities, (2) the principal as an ethical leader in their decision-making, (3) the principal creates organizational structures in their schools based on the knowledge that they have, (4) the principal creates a school culture built on a shared collective efficacy and (5) the principal creates a school culture where families are authentic collaborators.