Semester

Summer

Date of Graduation

2013

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

EdD

College

College of Education and Human Services

Department

Curriculum & Instruction/Literacy Studies

Committee Chair

Paul Chapman

Committee Co-Chair

Nancy Adams

Committee Member

Ernest Goeres

Committee Member

D. J. Hendricks

Committee Member

Richard T. Wells

Abstract

A great deal of research has been done to understand leadership styles in different organizational settings. In this study, the researcher focused on the leadership practices of university presidents of land-grant universities (LGUs) in the United States. The study examined the leadership practices of presidents of land-grant universities as described by Kouzes and Posner (2002). Moreover, this study aimed to find whether a difference existed among university presidents in terms of leadership practices. Using a mixed research method, the researcher conducted an individual LPI self-survey and five interviews to answer the research questions. The findings indicate that university presidents engaged highly in all five leadership practices that were discussed by Kouzes and Posner (2002). University presidents understand the importance of each practice that impacts the quality of leadership as well as the organizational performance. Furthermore, the study indicated there is a difference in terms of leadership practices among university presidents. In sum, there was a unique pattern established among the presidents at land-grant universities related to leadership practices. First, the leadership practice of "Enabling Others to Act" is the main practice, although presidents could somehow not detach it from the concept of "Modeling the Way." Presidents discussed the importance of enabling others while they related to modeling the way or vice versa. The second part of the leadership model is that the leadership practices model a "process" in which all five practices work together to achieve the ultimate goal. This is how the presidents of land-grant universities described their leadership practices.

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