Principals Excellence Program | University of Kentucky and Pike County Public Schools
Leadership Issues and Challenges
School systems located in remote rural areas of eastern Kentucky face daunting challenges caused by widespread unemployment, poverty, and high-risk factors (e.g., drug and alcohol abuse, smoking, obesity). Many schools in the region are located in remote communities isolated by the peaks and valleys of the Appalachian Mountains. Challenges faced by these schools mirror in many ways those found in inner-city schools, but with important contextual differences. Unlike large cities, rural eastern Kentucky communities do not have public transportation systems or local public assistance providers. A somewhat startling reality in the 21st century is that some children in remote Pike County schools have never been to a museum, played in a city park, or ridden an elevator. A few have never even visited Pikeville, the county seat. Pike County principals are accountable for not only assuring high levels of student learning, but also overseeing delivery of critically needed social services.
Another issue is the district’s remote location: Pike County comprises the easternmost tip of Kentucky that borders Virginia and West Virginia, many miles distant from any metropolitan centers. Census reports indicate a continuing trend of decreasing population, which means that the district must "grow its own" principals. PEP focused on the unique leadership issues and challenges faced by educational leaders in the economically distressed rural district by acknowledging that the issues existed and then guiding educators toward finding strategies to mitigate them. The program also prepared principal candidates ready to move their schools forward immediately upon placement as new administrators.
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Obstacles | Activities | Strategies for Student Success
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e-Lead provides information on professional-development programs for school leaders that have submitted detailed information and that also meet certain standards-based criteria. Programs listed at the e-Lead website are not endorsed by either the Institute for Educational Leadership or Temple University's Laboratory for Student Success.