| The purpose of this phenomenological study was to identify and to describe the personal and the professional career path experiences of female superintendents serving in high profile complex school districts in Texas. The guiding question was: what leadership behaviors were universal and essential to acquire and to sustain the position of superintendent? The qualitative study provided necessary insights into the superintendency and added to the scholarly literature that currently exists with an expectation that leads to a better understanding of female executives in public education.;From the 152 female K-12 superintendents in North and Southeast Texas, six female superintendents participated in the study. The six superintendents were chosen based on the stratified purposeful sampling criteria. An interview protocol was used to conduct semi-structured open-ended interviews, which were digitally recorded and transcribed. Memoing was used to form the initial codes. The transcriptions were analyzed according to experiences and reported as themes.;The findings suggested the superintendents found earning a doctorate degree essential for the position. Mentoring relationships were vital for success at each stage of their career. Gender discrimination had affected most of the superintendents at some point in their careers. Strong backgrounds in curriculum had made them better leaders. Informal networks created connections for formal networks to exist. Building and maintaining relationships in the educational setting as well as the community was imperative to influence others. Vital leadership characteristics included communication, vision, problem-solving, critical thinking and a risk taking.;The five feminine attributes of collaboration, care, courage, intuition, and vision of leadership were a manifestation of the feminine experience and emerged as themes in the study. The experiences of the women in the study were examined through the feminine lens and were found to exhibit the leadership characteristics that fit the relational leadership paradigm. |
