Building Bridges from High Poverty Communities, to Schools, to Productive Citizenship ― A Holistic Approach to Addressing Poverty Through Exceptional Educational Leadership

Edited and mostly penned by Bass and Faircloth (both professors of education at North Carolina State U.) this volume explores the role of poverty in the educational system, urging a holistic approach to the issue through the practice of "exceptional educational leadership," which they define as "leadership that meets the needs of exceptional or challenging circumstances," whether one be instructional leader, professional developer, general building manager, human resources manager, public relations manager, or school-community-home liaison. Ten chapters cover an overview of the literature on high poverty schools; the knowledge, skills, dispositions, and responsibilities of educational leaders in high poverty contexts; moral and ethical imperatives for school leaders; the role of strong instructional leadership in high poverty schools; the importance of tailoring professional development to the needs of high poverty schools; collaborative relationships between schools and their communities; issues of student departure from and return to high poverty communities as seen in the context of American Indian education; the needs of high poverty Latino students in higher education; lessons learned from one superintendent working in a predominantly American Indian school system; and recommendations for policy, practice, and future research. Annotation c2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Lisa Bass is an assistant professor of education at North Carolina State University. Dr. Bass received her PhD at the Pennsylvania State University. Her work focuses on education reform and poverty, with an emphasis on alternative education, leadership, and ethics.
Susan C. Faircloth is an associate professor of education at North Carolina State University. Dr. Faircloth received her PhD at the Pennsylvania State University. She is an enrolled member of the Coharie Tribe of North Carolina. Her work focuses on the education of American Indian and Alaska Native students, with an emphasis on students receiving special education services. Dr. Faircloth is a former Fulbright Scholar to New Zealand and a Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Scholar.