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278 K-12 LEADERSHIP PRACTICES

for others. The third theme related to the importance of establishing trust and meaningful
relationships with people both inside and outside the organization.
While all 12 of the superintendents focused on student success and achievement, US
superintendents were much more focused on student achievement and measured academic
performance than were their Swedish counterparts. This seemed to be due to the strong
influence of standards-based accountability systems in the United States, which are currently
much less prevalent in Sweden. All of our superintendents described helping to establish an
educational vision and agenda for action, while 11 described supporting the development and
growth of principals, team leaders, and other staff to build organizational capacity. Eleven
superintendents described dealing with various internal and external political forces, while ten
described developing relationships among internal staff, external stakeholders, and school
board members.
Though differences in general administrative tasks were not initially apparent, they
became manifest in leader intent and interactions within various situations of practice. In
each case, our leaders utilized these tasks as opportunities to express their leadership values
and purpose to engage others to work toward a collective vision.
When pressed, superintendents identified five areas in which there were differences
between their work and that of their neighboring counterparts. These included school district
size, superintendent tenure in the district, geographic location of the district, the relationship
established between the superintendent and school board, and local/organizational culture
(Bredeson et al., 2007).
In the area of fiscal management, major differences between Swedish and US
superintendents were found. Only one Swedish superintendent indicated this was a major
challenge, while all six American superintendents did so. Revenue caps in the state of
Wisconsin and declining enrollments in numerous districts have resulted in many
superintendents having to focus on the management of decline. In Sweden, however, a
vibrant economy and a more favorable funding structure have, to date, spared these
superintendents significant deliberations over the budgetary management in their districts.

A Framework for Understanding Context-Responsive Leadership (CRL) in Action

These 12 superintendents have learned to understand and integrate effectively 5
intersecting and interactive dimensions of CRL—personalized role, professional knowledge,
purpose, people, and place (see Fig. 1).

Figure 1. The CRL Framework.

Professional

Knowledge

Personalized Role

Place Purpose

People

Context

Responsive

Leadership