1. Philosophy of Leadership 1
Defining Transformational Leadership
I firmly believe that the most effective way to lead a school is through transformational
leadership. Transformational leadership is a form of administrative power that is carried out
through school staff instead of over and above school staff. Transformational leadership requires
a keen perspective on the school’s overall mission and vision, a recurring commitment to
improvement, a community built on shared ownership, and an infrastructure built on teamwork.
Establishing a shared focus on teamwork and collaboration is a time-intensive task that often
requires schools to redefine individual staff responsibilities as well as to execute a shift in
accountability throughout the school. Under a transformational leadership structure, all staff
members play a key role in developing effective strategies to achieve school goals (Gorton &
Alston, 2009). “Positive transformational leadership combines morals and virtue with a desire to
contribute to a collective intent toward real, positive social change” (Larson, 2009, p. 55).
Transformational leadership involves three main elements. First, transformational
leadership requires a collaborative approach in order for school leaders to make decisions that
are in the best interests of the school. Such collaboration allows faculty and staff to be active
participants in critical decision-making processes.
Transformational leadership also requires effective communication on the part of the
administrator. Without effective two-way communication between administrators and faculty or
staff, collaborative efforts lose their value. Finally, transformational leadership requires an
appropriate understanding of change in schools. As administrators strive to generate school
improvements with innovative programs, they must understand how to enact these programs in
such a manner that will bring lasting, positive changes (Gorton & Alston, 2009).

2. Transformational Leadership Involves a Collaborative Approach Built on Teamwork
Transformational leadership requires teamwork as groups of faculty, staff, and
administrators seek to work together toward common goals. Certainly, there are a host of
problems that may arise as school leadership forms these groups. Gorton and Alston (2009) list
several potential problems, among them:
1. Certain individuals may not understand why they were placed in a particular
group, and thus their commitment to the group may waiver.
2. Group members may not fully understand the task at hand.
3. Conflicting loyalties, competing interests, or selfishness may make it difficult to
establish a constructive atmosphere.
4. There may be difficulty in keeping the attention of group members.
5. Group organization and communication may be lacking.
6. Group members fail to follow through on their responsibilities.
A transformational philosophy requires that school leaders find ways to combat these problems.
First, it is imperative that each group member feels as though he or she is a valued contributor to
the group. Second, members must have a keen understanding of the goals of the group in order
to establish the cohesiveness required to accomplish the task. Next, groups must maintain a
sense of cooperation as they work toward their goal. Cooperation is not merely accomplished by
forming a group; rather, cooperation must be modeled to the group by leadership. Finally, all
groups must establish a sense of trust and mutual respect among members. Without trust and
mutual respect, the desires of the group are superceded by the desires of the individuals, and true
collaborative efforts are lost (Gorton & Alston, 2009).

3. Transformational leaders promote shared decision-making among group members. These
leaders assume that all decisions involve a certain amount of constraints and that the decision-
making process requires group members to consider these constraints as well as their own
personal values and beliefs as they attempt to make choices that benefit the work of the school.
Further, a shared approach to decision-making gives weight to the context in which every
decision is made, and thus transformational leaders are able to consider context as well as
personality, reason, and values more than their own sense of intellect or expertise. Hence,
transformational leaders rely heavily on the expertise of their staff to make critical decisions,
understanding that a unilateral approach fails to bring the unity of purpose that a school staff so
desperately needs in order to be effective. As an added benefit, shared decision-making and
teamwork among teachers “can reduce teacher isolation, increase collegiality, facilitate the
sharing of resources and ideas, and capitalize on teacher's individual and shared strengths”
(Troen & Boles, 2010, p. 59).
Transformational Leadership Requires Effective Communication
In addition to a collaborative approach built on shared decision-making, transformational
leadership also requires that school administrators establish effective communication with
faculty, staff, and community stakeholders (Gorton & Alston, 2009). First, the transformational
leader must model effective communication. The responsibilities of school administrators
require them to communicate with a variety of individuals about a variety of issues. The
transformational leader must be fully aware of the following aspects of delivering a message:
1. The purpose of the message.
2. The intended audience of the message.
3. The person responsible for delivering the message.

4. 4. The substance of the message.
5. Alternative methods for sending the message.
6. Feedback from the recipient.
Being aware of a message’s purpose involves thinking critically about the objectives. What is
the message meant to accomplish? Is the message meant for informational purposes, to stimulate
a change in attitude, to comfort, or to garner support? While the sender of the message may be
certain of his or her intentions, the recipient may not be as certain. Transformational leaders
must also give sufficient consideration to the person intended to receive the message, or else the
message may go unheard due to lack of interest, insufficient knowledge, bias, or social barriers
(Gorton & Alston, 2009). As McCullough (2009) puts it, “Success in the area of communication
is as simple as abiding by the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”
(p. 37).
The sender of the message is also critical to its delivery, since a leader’s effectiveness in
delivering information is dependent upon whether or not he or she has established the trust of the
intended recipient. The substance of the message is important as well. Although much
communication between school leadership and students or parents may be casual in nature, many
other situations call for a message in which an administrator chooses words carefully (Gorton &
Alston, 2009). According to Newlin, (2010), “you cannot overcommunicate policies and
practices that affect families” (p. 120).
Transformational leaders also carefully consider alternative channels in which to deliver
a message (Gorton & Alston, 2009). Can the message be delivered via e-mail, or is a face-to-
face conversation warranted? Is nonverbal communication sufficient to get the point across?
Transformational leaders are able to determine the appropriate channel in order to fully

5. communicate the message at hand. Finally, transformational leaders rely heavily on feedback
from the recipient of a message. They understand that they may not always have the last word,
and the feedback they receive may cause them to change the course of a decision or consider
other alternatives.
Transformational leaders understand how to appropriately receive communication. Due
to their standing in a school, transformational leaders are constantly receiving messages from
parents, students, and teachers. It is the responsibility of the administrator to carefully consider
each of these forms of communication, and to determine if a message is relevant, significant, and
if it requires immediate action. Many studies indicate that since the administrator is the head of
the school, very few of these messages are critical. Even still, transformational leadership
requires that administrators listen intently to each message they receive in order to express care
and concern for every stakeholder (Gorton & Alston, 2009). Transformational leaders must know
that “the conversations that take place in a school reveal a great deal about its culture” (Reed,
2009, p. 56).
Transformational Leadership Requires an Understanding of Change
Transformational leaders are aware that our world today is constantly changing, and
nowhere is that change more prevalent than in our educational system. The dawning of the
information age presents a wealth of opportunities to make our education faster, easier, and more
convenient, while simultaneously eliminating the personal aspect of the learning environment.
New legislation creates clear standards and objectives that serve as barometers for the quality of
instruction at our schools, but with these new standards come a dangerous habit of “teaching to
the test” and replacing a focus on student learning with a focus on standardized tests. As with

6. any change, our natural inclination is to either counter it or avoid it altogether, rather than to
embrace change and use it for greater success (Hall & Hord, 2006).
Meaningful change in schools begins with strong transformational leadership (Hall &
Hord, 2006). While supporters of bottom-up change believe that teachers are the most likely
sources of positive change in education since they are closest to the students, research suggests
that this is not the case. Instead, in order to affect sustainable change in schools, teachers must
have ongoing support from their administration. Administrators are responsible for managing
teachers, approving budgets, and ensuring the proper use of school facilities. Also, the
administrator is the public face of a school, and thus is called upon to lead by example.
Furthermore, administrators must maintain positive relationships with policymakers and secure
the required financial support for innovative changes to take place. All of the above suggests
that administrators carry the primary burden of affecting change in schools (Hall & Hord, 2006).
Meaningful change results not from individual administrative power, but instead through
effective collaboration efforts (Hall & Hord, 2006). While change begins at the administrator
level, it can only be implemented if the administrator has the support of faculty and staff
(Bowers, 1990). Teachers, specifically, play a critical role in affecting change, as they serve on
the front line of the movement and often carry out the specific techniques for implementing
school change. Hence, it is imperative that the school principal or other administrative leaders
communicate to teachers the expectations for change in their classrooms (White, 1990).
Transformational leadership ensures that community stakeholders also participate in
collaborative efforts. Parents and policymakers will reap the benefits of effective change in
schools just as their children will, and thus they too are crucial to successful change. Again,
while the school administrator leads the charge, he or she must have the support and the

7. coordinated efforts of all of these groups in order to produce the desired impact on the school
(Hall & Hord, 2006).
No matter the situation, there will always be some who object to change in schools (Hall
& Hord, 2006). A veteran teacher may refuse to accept his need for innovative teaching
methods, or a group of parents may join together to oppose a change to their children’s
educational environment. Transformational leaders have appropriate measures in place to
counter such resistance. First, they are able to effectively communicate with resistors and
understand their point of view, and thus determine if their resistance is legitimate. Second,
transformational leaders impress upon these concerned parties that established changes will truly
result in school improvement. Finally, transformational leaders are able to convince these
resistors that the goal is not to eliminate current policies or procedures, but rather to build upon
them in order to enhance the overall operation of the school (Hall & Hord, 2006).
To affect change is not to make a single announcement of new directives (Hall & Hord,
2006). Neither is change accomplished by a weekend staff retreat or the implementation of a
new curriculum at a school. Instead, significant change in schools requires a substantial time
commitment as administrators, teachers, and staff develop the competency needed in order to
implement innovative techniques. Hall & Hord (2006) suggest a time period of three to five
years for the implementation of sustainable change, but too often, stakeholders and policymakers
demand that change take place in far less time. What many school personnel fail to realize is
that meaningful change is not an event that takes place, but rather a systematic process that
requires the concerted efforts of many individuals over the course of several years. This
systematic process requires long-term focus and consistent evaluation techniques that account for
the length of time necessary for the change to occur (Hall & Hord, 2006).

8. Transformational leadership comes with the understanding that meaningful change in
schools comes neither easily nor quickly. As an administrator it will be my responsibility to
implement effective change strategies through the diligent collaboration of the administration,
faculty, staff, and members of the community. I must accept the fact that “when initiating major
structural change in schools, collaboration among educators, community members, and business
persons is vital” (Mullen, et. al., 1994, p. 5). I must be prepared to deal with the inevitable
resistance to change and be able to communicate effectively with all types of resistors. Finally, I
must maintain a clear vision of the long-term goals for the school and help others understand that
meaningful change is a long-term process. Hopefully, as we implement effective changes in our
educational system, we will also be able to better prepare our students for the ever-changing
world that awaits them (Hall & Hord, 2006).
Conclusion
Transformational leadership is not for the faint of heart. Transformational leadership
requires a commitment to shared decision-making and teambuilding as administrators, faculty,
and staff work together to promote student success. Transformational leadership also requires
effective two-way communication so that all staff members are united in an effort to achieve
common goals. Finally, transformational leadership requires an appropriate understanding of
change; specifically, how to enact lasting changes that will ultimately promote the values of the
school. Ultimately, transformational leadership requires leaders to invest a wealth of time and
energy as they make critical decisions aimed at achieving the overall mission and vision of the
school (Gorton & Alston, 2009).

9. References
Bowers, B. C. (1990). Initiating change in schools. Research Roundup, 6(3); 5.
Gorton, R., & Alston, J. A. (2009). School Leadership and Administration. Boston: McGraw-Hill.
Hall, G.E. & Hord, S. M. (2006). Implementing Change: Patterns, Principles, and Potholes.
Boston: Pearson Education.
Larson, J. (2009). Transformational leadership: Leading schools in a time of global cultural shifts.
Independent School, 68(3), 50-2, 54-6, 58.
McCullough, B. S. (2009). do unto others: A roadmap for communicating well. The School
Administrator, 66(5), 37-8.
Mullen, B., et. al. (1994). Collaborative leadership for promoting effective school change. NASSP
Practitioner, 21(1), 5.
Newlin, J. (2010). Enhancing school and parent connections. Independent School, 69(3), 120.
Reed, P. (2009). Getting in on the conversation. Principal Leadership, 10(1), 56-8.
Troen, V., & Boles, K. C. (2010) Team spirit: Teachers work together to establish and achieve key
goals. Journal of Staff Development, 31(1), 59-62.
White, G. P. (1990). Implementing change in schools: From research to practice. Planning and
Changing, 21(4), 207-24.