Within Georgia schools, leadership certification requirements have significantly changed to address increasing demands for more experienced and competent leaders. It is unclear how these changes affect principalships. A quantitative survey was disseminated to Georgia principals to determine possible influences in their leadership certification choices. The survey was created from the Principal Job Survey. This study investigated the extent law reforms affected their leadership decisions. This involved information on several independent variables about job choice (i.e., objective, subjective, work itself, school context, and critical contact) and one dependent variable based on the job desirability index. Hierarchical regression modeling and correlational statistics were used to analyze data collected from the job surveys. Relationships between job choice factors, demographics, certification requirements, and job desirability all indicated several significant influences.
Results showed subjective choice, work-itself, Georgia Professional Standards Commission certification probability, and Tier II certification probability all predicted willingness for principalship. Cost and time did have an influence on what educators would do to obtain professional leadership certification. The findings help stakeholders and policymakers in education know how changes in Georgia certification laws actually impact aspirations for leadership. More awareness and incentivization are recommended for those who face challenges due to these changes.
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Keywords: leadership, principals, certification, choice, job desirability
Citation: Reed, J. J., Bochenko, M. J., Mammadov, S., Pate, J. L., Lairsey, J. D., Nobles, K., & Dreger, K. C. (2023). The principal rules: Applying job choice and certification reform to educational leaders in North Georgia. Journal of Liberal Arts and Humanities, 4(4), 1-13. https:/doi.org/10.48150/jlah.v4no4.2023.a1