From the Editor
Every year doctoral students attending Oklahoma’s major research universities produce original research for their dissertations. This scholarly work often examines educational phenomena in Oklahoma’s K-12 schools and, in some cases, has relevance for practitioners and policymakers in our state. Yet, much of this research gains little public exposure.
To increase the exposure of quality dissertation research being produced in Oklahoma, the Oklahoma Education Journal is recognizing one “Dissertation of the Year”. This year the OEJ Editorial Board is pleased to share that Seth A Meier’s dissertation has received this recognition. Meier’s dissertation explores factors associated with principal turnover in Oklahoma’s elementary schools. Meier ultimately hopes that his work will contribute to a broader understanding of how districts might improve principal retention rates.
Meier’s dissertation was selected for this award because it received the highest overall rating from a three-person committee consisting of two members from Oklahoma State University and one member from the University of Oklahoma. The committee scored dissertations based on the following criteria: relevance to education in Oklahoma; credibility of research design and methods; quality of writing; contribution to the field; and appeal to practitioners. What follows below is a summary of Meier’s dissertation work.
Dissertation Summary
Principal turnover has become a national issue with potential ramifications for school climate, teacher retention, and student performance. Oklahoma has one of the nation’s highest principal turnover rates, especially in the state’s two large urban districts – Tulsa Public Schools and Oklahoma City Public Schools.
Research Methods
This dissertation sought to examine the relationship between principal turnover, district/school site fiscal expenditures and district/school characteristics. The analyses drew on data from the Oklahoma State Department of Education, using information on school personnel, fiscal expenditures, and school demographics during the 2021-2022 school year. The study sample consisted of 987 elementary schools in 524 public school districts in Oklahoma.
Key Results
Principal Turnover and Fiscal Expenditures: The study did not find a relationship between principal turnover and fiscal expenditures among districts. Instructional per-pupil expenditures, administrative per-pupil expenditures, and principal compensation were not connected to principal turnover.
Principal Turnover and School Context: Principal turnover was higher for multi-site and multi-role principals, especially in rural schools. Charter schools also exhibited greater turnover but results for charter schools were based on a very small sample of charter elementary school principals in the state.
Principal Turnover and Low-income Students: At the district level, principal turnover was greater in districts with more low-income students and higher overall enrollments. Perhaps counterintuitively, schools with greater administrative per-pupil expenditures showed even higher levels of turnover. One potential reason for this result may be that districts in low-income areas tend to receive more funding but still have substantial educational needs. Pressures to raise achievement in such schools might eventually contribute to turnover among principals.
Principals’ New Jobs: The data indicated that the majority of departing elementary school principals do so to exit the field of education – 57% of all principal turnover was attributed to leaving the field of education altogether. By contrast, 19% of principals were promoted or transitioned to other roles in education.
Conclusion
One potential solution to the problem of principal turnover is for districts to focus on providing targeted support and professional learning to principals, particularly those working in challenging environments, such as high-poverty rural schools. Such efforts could end up giving principals indispensable support that improves their effectiveness and helps them to remain in leadership roles in K-12 education.
Author Bio
Seith Meier is Principal at Southgate Elementary in Moore Public Schools. He earned his doctoral degree from the University of Oklahoma’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies.
