Women Leading Education Across the Continents: Finding and Harnessing the Joy in Leadership

231 Pages·2018·2.717 MB·English

by  Rachel McNae, Elizabeth Reilly

Praise for Women Leading Education Across the Continents
“Too often women and leadership topics focus on the negatives—the toxicity, the issues, the sexism and misogyny.
These are all true and unfortunately accurate portrayals of one aspect of the dark side of leadership for women. But
there is another side to which this book draws our attention. It is a well overdue collection of chapters on the possibili-
ties and promises of leadership and of the joy within. I read it with great enjoyment and found the stories, drawing on
a wide range of women’s experiences, inspiring and full of hope. In an era of Trump, this is an important message to
be providing.”—Jane Wilkinson, associate dean graduate research; associate professor educational leadership
“This book is an excellent addition to the work on women in educational leadership, with its broad perspective, and
multi-cultural focus. Students of educational leadership will find it an excellent addition to the work in the field,
and learn something new both about themselves as leaders, and the richness of the contexts within which women
lead.”—Megan Crawford, PhD, director, Plymouth Institute of Education, Professor of Ed Leadership and
Professional Learning
“This book reflects a wealth of experience from women leaders and those supporting women leaders of education through-
out the world. It includes established internationally known voices and those fresh to the field who bring new insights.
In this ‘Me Too’ era, listening to the voices of women in so critical a field as education could not be more important.
This book provides a highway to listening and understanding their experience throughout the world.”—Jacky Lumby,
emeritus professor, University of Southampton, UK
“This comprehensive collection from seminal researchers in the field, alongside emerging researchers and practitioner-
scholars, from such diverse contexts, provides a powerful model of scholarship for equity. This book will be a valuable
text in academic studies and will also provide insight and guidance for women, and all leaders focused on equity for
women, at all levels of the system. Women Leading Education Across the Continents: Harnessing the Joy in Leadership
builds on, but not exclusively from, a strong community of voice and research from the Women Leading Education
group. It therefore provides critical perspectives, as well as offering practical strategies and hope, for equity for women’s
leadership in education.”—Jan Robertson, PhD, Academic Leadership Consultant New Zealand, Adjunct Profes-
sor Griffiths University Australia
“International Women Leading Education, by Rachel McNae and Elizabeth C. Reilly is groundbreaking and sets the
agenda for Women Leadership in Education while creating a cultural shift and empowering mechanism. The rich voices
presented in the different chapters set the stage for cross-sectional understanding of women leadership and equitable
education praxis in different nation states which makes the book of a global value.”—Khalid Arar, associate editor,
International Journal of Leadership in Education; author, Arab Women in Management & Leadership, Palgrave
“This collection presents a rich tapestry of women’s experiences and women’s theorizing of educational leadership. Wo-
ven through are voices of indigenous, minority, and majority women hailing from small Pacific island nations to large,
heavily populated continents. The diversity of their storying captures the rich colors, textures, and patterns of women’s
leadership across the globe and reflects the strength of scholarship and knowledge building made possible by Women
Leading Education.”—Margie Kahukura Hohepa, PhD, professor of education, associate dean Maori, University
of Waikato, New Zealand

Women Leading Education
Across the Continents
Finding and Harnessing the Joy in Leadership
Edited by
Rachel McNae
Elizabeth C. Reilly
Foreword by
Jane Strachan
Published in partnership with AASA,
The School Superintendents Association
ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD
Lanham • Boulder • New York • London
Published by Rowman & Littlefield
An imprint of The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.
4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706
www.rowman.com
Unit A, Whitacre Mews, 26-34 Stannary Street, London SE11 4AB
Copyright © 2018 by Rachel McNae and Elizabeth C. Reilly
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by
any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval
systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who
may quote passages in a review.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: International Women Leading Education Across the Continents Conference
(5th : 2017 : Hamilton, New Zealand) | McNae, Rachel, editor. | Reilly,
Elizabeth C., editor.
Title: Women leading education across the continents. Finding and harnessing
the joy in leadership / edited by Rachel McNae, Elizabeth C. Reilly ;
Foreword by Jane Strachan.
Other titles: Finding and harnessing the joy in leadership
Description: Lanham : Rowman & Littlefield, [2018] | Papers originally
presented at a conference held in 2017 in Hamilton, New Zealand. |
“Published in partnership with AASA, The School Superintendents
Association”. | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018013021 (print) | LCCN 2018028012 (ebook) | ISBN
9781475840728 (electronic) | ISBN 9781475840704 (cloth : alk. paper) |
ISBN 9781475840711 (pbk. : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Women school administrators—Cross-cultural
studies—Congresses. | Educational leadership—Cross-cultural
studies—Congresses. | Women in education—Cross-cultural
studies—Congresses.
Classification: LCC LB2831.8 (ebook) | LCC LB2831.8 .I67 2017 (print) | DDC
370.82—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018013021
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of
American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper
for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.
Printed in the United States of America
To the cherished memory of Susanne Maezama
A woman of strength and humility and leader of many
A shining example of what it means to bring joy to others

Contents
Foreword: Women Creating a Cultural Shift in Educational Leadership xi
Jane Strachan
Acknowledgments xiii
Rachel McNae and Elizabeth C. Reilly
Prologue: Kupu whakataki. Titiro whakamuri, kia pai ai te titiro whakamua: Look to the Past to Understand
the Present and Prepare the Pathway Forward xv
Sharon Campbell
SECTION 1: THE STATUS OF WOMEN IN EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP: GLOBAL INSIGHTS
Editor: Pontso Moorosi
1 Overview: The Status of Women in Educational Leadership: Global Insights 3
Pontso Moorosi
2 Your Eyes Are Beautiful: Profiles of 21st Century Afghan Women Leaders 7
Elizabeth C. Reilly
3 Women’s Leadership in Santa Isabel, Solomon Islands Secondary Schools: A Case Study 14
Susanne Maezama
4 The Impact of Culture on Women’s Leadership in Vanuatu Secondary Schools 22
Daisy Warsal
5 Factors Affecting Women’s Access to Higher Education in India 27
Chitra Mku
SECTION 2: FACTORS IMPACTING WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP
Editor: Chrispina Lekule
6 Overview: Factors Impacting Women’s Leadership 35
Chrispina Lekule
7 The Relationship of Stress and Health in Women Superintendents in the United States 38
Kerry Robinson and Charol Shakeshaft
8 Women’s Perceptions of Risk When Leading and Engaging in Educational Change 46
Tamara Jones and Deidre Le Fevre
9 Barriers and Strategies: Stories of Women’s Rise to Leadership in Higher Education in the Philippines 52
Arceli H. Rosario
10 Scaling the Mountain to Principalship In New Zealand: The Enablers and Barriers
in a Female Principal’s Journey 60
Samantha Mortimer and Frances Edwards
vii
viii Contents
SECTION 3: WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP EXPERIENCES
Editor: Alice Merab Kagoda
11 Overview: Experiences of Women in Educational Leadership 69
Alice Merab Kagoda
12 Dancing Into the Unknown: Learning Leadership 72
Karen Barbour
13 Know Thyself: The Influence of Career Orientations on Women Education Leaders’ Career Decisions 80
Linda L. McGinley and Diane E. Reed
14 Women Leading for Social Justice in Higher Education: Surfacing Hope in Challenging Times 88
Rachel McNae
15 Minority Women Leaders in Higher Education 96
Wafa Hozien
SECTION 4: WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP AND HUMAN RIGHTS
Editor: Michelle D. Young
16 Overview: Women’s Rights Are Human Rights 103
Michelle D. Young
17 Malaysian Muslim Women Academics and Gender Equality: Situated Constructions 106
Saeeda Shah
18 Adopting a Paradigm Shift of Equality for Leadership: Equality Through Human Rights 115
Rogena Sterling
19 Affirmative Action: An Effective Policy for Gender Parity in Leadership in Ontario’s Public
Education System? 121
Katie Higginbottom
20 Interrupting Whiteness: An Auto-Ethnography of a Black Female Leader in Higher Education 128
Victoria Showunmi
SECTION 5: WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP STORIES
Editor: Jacqueline Oram-Shortt
21 Overview: Women’s Leadership Stories 137
Jacqueline Oram-Shortt
22 Making Inroads and Making a Difference: Women Leading Indonesian Junior and Senior Secondary
Private Madrasahs 141
Jill Sperandio
23 Celebrating Leadership Learning in Education Across Continents: Experiences of Women Leading
in Rwanda 149
Shirley Randell
24 A Female Leader in a Man’s World: Stories of Women Leaders of Catholic Schools 156
Yvonne Masters
25 Leadingmamas: A Visual Ethnography 163
Sarah Jean Baker
26 The Path of Leadership for Women in Pakistan: Critical Reflections 171
Abaida Mahmood
27 Balancing the Yang and the Yin Through Source-fully Intelligent Education 178
Coomi S. Vevaina
Contents ix
Afterword: Upoko whakakapi 187
Rachel McNae and Elizabeth C. Reilly
Index 191
About the Editors 199
About the Section Editors 201
About the Contributors 203