50 FAST-GROWTH DISTRICTS: DISTRICT LEADERS USE OF STAKEHOLDER PERCEPTIONS AND EXPECTATIONS IN DECISION-MAKING Mariah Lynn Bailey, EdD Introduction Fast-growth school district leaders make major decisions at a faster rate than school districts not experiencing fast growth to meet the needs of their community. One of the problems that current fast growth school districts face is being unaware of the perceptions developed by their stakeholders, and how those perceptions influence the support behind the decisions being made when change is needed. Perceptions are developed by stakeholders through different means. As fast growth school districts navigate the decisionmaking process, perceptions of stakeholders develop. The purpose of the current study was to determine how stakeholder perceptions within fast growth districts are developed, how they impact the effectiveness and efficiency of district-wide change initiatives, and how district leaders use stakeholder perceptions in their decision-making processes. Summary of the Study Research related to what perceptions are, the impacts of social media, and the expectations and qualities of leadership were discovered in research literature separately, however, the researcher did not find research that intertwined all three topics together. Additionally, minimal research related to fast growth school districts is found in literature. A review of the literature revealed a gap in literature that needed further research. Therefore, the researcher developed a study through the grounded theory approach in order to add to the literature through the creation of new theory. The current study took place in two North Texas school districts located in Region 10. Both school districts are defined as fast growth school districts using the criteria from the Fast Growth School Coalition (2020). The participants were stakeholders within the two school districts and district leaders from one of the two school districts. The researcher collected multiple forms of data. A questionnaire, designed by the researcher, was used to reach school district stakeholders from two fast growth school districts in order to gain valuable insight into the perceptions of stakeholders across these fast growth school districts. The one-on-one interviews used purposive sampling by applying specific characteristics and then identifying individuals who fit within the characteristics to participate (Johnson & Christensen, 2017). The criteria were: 1. School district leadership employees must be employed by the North Texas school district at the time of the interview. 2. Participants are deemed the school district Superintendent, cabinet members, department directors, or elected school board officials. 3. Participants must have worked for or represented the current district for at least 6 months prior to the time of interview. Upon completion of the interviews, member-checking occurred. Journal of K-12 Educational Research 2024, VOL. 7, ISSUE 1 www.dbu.edu/doctoral/edd
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