Volume 4 - Issue 1 - DBU Journal of K-12 Educational Research - Page 22

20 most difficult and demanding chief executive positions, highly qualified and skilled leaders are needed to tackle the many issues that American public schools face each day (Hodgkinson & Montenegro, 1999, p. 9). Student Achievement All students should have the opportunity to achieve academically regardless of their circumstances (National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983, p. 9). The State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR) is the fifth generation of the state testing program (Texas Education Agency [TEA], 2019a, para. 9). All Texas public schools are evaluated on three domains created by House Bill 22: Student Achievement, School Progress, and Closing the Gaps (TEA, 2018a, para. 1, 2019b, para. 1). STAAR Domain 1: Student Achievement evaluates all students’ performance in all subjects on standard and alternate assessments; College, Career, and Military Readiness (CCMR); and graduation rates (TEA, 2018b, p. 4). STAAR Domain 2: School Progress measures the number of students who have demonstrated growth equivalent to at least one academic year (TEA, 2018b, p.21). STAAR Domain 3: Closing the Gaps measures the campus and district level differences between the racial/ethnic groups, SES, as well as other factors (TEA, 2018c, para. 6). Traditional Superintendent and Nontraditional Leader Preparation The traditional superintendent would be one who came through the ranks of the education field, taking the top position in the district as a natural progression of her or his career (Baxter, 2007, p. 86). Currently, there are serious concerns if the traditional superintendent preparation programs can produce the talented and effective leaders needed to lead schools to academic excellence (Lasley, 2012, p. 120). Morawski (2017) defined a nontraditional superintendent as a professional who has no experience in schools or who has only non-campus administrative experience (p. 1). The idea behind hiring nontraditional superintendents was that nontraditional superintendents can bring fresh ideas and new perspectives to solve the systemic issues with education (Quinn, 2007, p. 3). Socioeconomic Status Socioeconomic Status (SES) is the social standing or social class of an individual or group (American Psychological Association [APA], 2017, para. 1). Low SES is correlated with lower educational achievement, lower income levels, and poor health (APA, 2017, para. 2). Reduced reading time and missed vocabulary for students from low SES families affects their ability to be successful academically and must be address by schools (Evans, 2004, p. 88). Research Design The researcher used a mixed-method research design for the current study that was non-experimental in nature. The current study involved the systematic collection and analysis of factual data, which provided the rationale for including quantitative questions (Singh, 2006, p. 214). Individual responses submitted by current Texas public charter school superintendents to the questions related to the preparation path in the research questionnaire and the 2017-2018 Texas STAAR accountability scores for their public charter schools were studied to determine if correlations existed. For the study, 2017-2018 STAAR data were collected regarding the overall STAAR: Performance component scores, the Academic Growth component scores, and the Closing the Gap component scores of each participant’s public charter school district. The multiple regression model with force entry method and the independent sample t -test were used as the methods of statistical analysis in the current study (Field, 2018, pp. 397- 399). The unit of analysis was at the level of superintendent and the public charter school district served. Setting, Target Population and Sample The setting for the current study was the state of Texas. Currently, there are 180 public charter school superintendents in Texas who oversee 675 public charter school campuses, which currently serve 275,685 students (Texas Charter Schools Association [TCSA], 2018, p. 1). The sample for the current study was a convenience non-random sample since every current public charter school superintendent had the opportunity to be included in the current study. The current study sample included superintendents who held the superintendent position at Brenton Paul deRenn White, EdD