| This qualitative study explored the influence of race on the appointment and daily leadership of African American independent School Heads. Currently, there are only 30 such School Heads out of more than 1,500 member schools in the National Association of Independent Schools. In-depth interviews revealed a considerable impact of race on the appointment and daily leadership of the eight African American independent School Heads who participated in this study. The lack of African American School Heads in the independent school pipeline is a result of the low representation of African American students, faculty, and administrators in independent schools. Through the application of tokenism, Critical Race Theory, and Kouzes and Posner's leadership model, it was determined that these educational leaders thrive in predominately white, elite academic institutions because they grew up in the middle class and attended predominately white schools. Furthermore, these leaders exhibited transformational leadership that was both authentic and child-centered. |
