An Examination of Turnaround Leadership: A Case Study of Superintendent and Principal Leadership.

This article focuses on turnaround leadership strategies in two urban, low-performing public school settings in the United States—Asbury Park Schools in New Jersey and Battle Creek Central High School in Michigan—examining how leadership actions contributed to their improvement outside of the federally funded School Improvement Grants (SIG) program. Through qualitative case studies involving interviews with educators and stakeholders, the research identifies key strategies such as changing school culture and narratives, implementing data-driven strategic plans, building instructional capacity via leadership teams and professional learning communities, addressing student behavior through positive supports, and fostering community partnerships. Both sites demonstrated significant gains in graduation rates, standardized test scores, and reductions in dropout and disciplinary rates despite not participating in the SIG program, suggesting that visionary leadership and systemic reforms can drive turnaround success even without additional federal funding. The study also highlights policy implications emphasizing the need to address broader socio-economic factors affecting urban schools alongside educational reforms.