The Characteristics of High School Department Chairs: A National Perspective

Department chairs occupy a potentially important leadership position in high schools, yet little is known about them, particularly with regard to who they are and how they compare to other high school teachers. This is surprising given growing expectations for distributed leadership practice in schools. In this study, I utilize a national dataset to provide a large-scale look at the characteristics of department chairs. Additionally, I provide insight into the characteristics of chairs that appear to be important to their serving in the position.