Abstract
The superintendent of schools for any school district is a vital and key position within a community. Superintendents are looked at as the educational leader and have the ability to have great influence over the district in which they lead. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine the leadership styles of one long-standing urban superintendent who has remained in office more than eight times the national average; he is currently completing his twenty-sixth year. The research question that drove this project was: What have been the leadership styles implemented by the superintendent during his long tenure. Data were collected through interviews with the superintendent of schools and eight current and former school employees and school committee members that were selected randomly. Other data was obtained through observations of the superintendent at school events and document analysis of newspaper articles, school board minutes, and other media reports regarding the superintendent. This data was then compared to various existing leadership styles while also looking at the historical role of public education as well as the role of the superintendent throughout history.|Through the collection and analysis of the data it was determined that this superintendent’s strong personality, work-ethic, love of his community, and years of experience have contributed to his lengthy tenure. Because there are not many studies regarding the leadership of urban superintendents, this case study will provide aspiring school administrators as well as urban communities a first-hand example of a long standing urban superintendent; a man who has served for over twenty-six years in the same school district.