School Administrator Succession Planning

Identifying High-Impact Practices, Programs, and Frameworks in P-12 Schools

Edited by:
Lou L. Sabina, Stetson University

Call for Chapters

Across the United States and globally, school districts are regularly facing a shortage of both willing and highly-qualified candidates to assume positions as school leaders. A number of factors have contributed to this shortage including but not limited to: (1) retiring baby boomers leaving P-12 schools (ex. Aaronson & Meckel, 2009; Carlson, 2004; Parylo & Zepeda, 2015; Wiedmer, 2015), (2) shifting demographics and population changes across the United States workforce and schools (ex. Betts, Urias, & Betts, 2009; Brimley, Garfield, & Verstegen, 2005; Brown, 2016; Miller & Martin, 2015; Mordechay & Orfield, 2017), (3) increasing demands for school administrators making the position less desirable (ex. Grissom, Loeb, & Mitani, 2015; Lortie, 2009; Norton, 2002; Yan, 2019), and (4) the shift of schools to 21st Century Learning centers, which have changed the role of school administrators (ex. Crow, Hausman, & Scribner, 2002; Huber, 2014). According to the National Bureau of Labor Statistics, the current demand for school principals continues to increase (Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2019) and will accelerate in the coming 10-20 years. Because of the high need for school administrators, many schools and school districts are creating unique, targeted, and innovative programs to find principals who can meet the changing needs in our school system.

For this edited volume, I invite chapter proposals from authors who are engaged in practices involved with succession planning for school administrators, either at the school level, district-level, or university level. Authors may submit proposals to discuss promising projects that have already been completed or that are currently in the proposal or early implementation phase. All proposals should clearly have a connection to some dimension of succession planning, whether it be implementation, design, partnerships, or specific practices to identify high-quality leadership candidates.

Chapter proposals of no more than 500 words are welcome. Please cite at least 10 sources and include a reference page. The proposal cover page must contain the author’s full contact information. For multiple authored proposals, please list all authors’ contact information and indicate the corresponding author. Decisions will be made and communicated by October 31st, 2019 and a Manual for Authors will be provided to accepted corresponding authors.

At all stages, manuscripts must conform to 6th edition APA conventions. Following the submission of full chapter drafts on February 29th, 2019, a blind review process among the corresponding authors will be conducted and feedback communicated by March 31st, 2020.

Full chapters will range from 7,000 to 8,000 words in Time New Roman 12, double spaced text, inclusive of title, abstract, manuscript, and references and are to be submitted to Lou L. Sabina as a Microsoft Word email attachment by May 31st, 2020. Graphics and images may be included.

Tentative Schedule for Publication:

Chapter Proposals:
August 15, 2019 through October 31, 2019

Notification of Invite to Submit Chapters:
November 18, 2019

Submission of Draft Chapters for Review:
February 29, 2020

Return of Reviewed Chapters to Authors:
March 31, 2020

Submission of Revised Chapters:
May 31, 2020

Submission of Final Chapters to Publisher:
July 31, 2020

Anticipated Publication:
Winter 2020

Please email chapter proposals as attachments in Microsoft Word format to Lou L. Sabina (lsabina@stetson.edu). Enquiries are welcome.