| The Role of the Independent School Head of School The head of school is the chief executive officer of an independent school. This basic qualitative research study explored the role of the independent school head of school through a systems thinking perspective. This study was conducted with heads of school that work in independent schools throughout the United States. Through the use of snowball sampling, 13 heads of school agreed to be participants in semistructured interviews. The interviews were coded for themes, data were organized, and narratives were created. The findings from this study determined that the roles of the head of school are challenging and complex. The participants revealed that the essential components to their roles in the independent school system are leadership, communication, and relationships. Furthermore, they noted that their responsibilities as heads of school had changed significantly.;The findings from this study reveal that heads exhibited characteristics of systems thinking when addressing and solving issues in their position. Additionally, with regard to leadership, experience, balance, and networks, the heads perceived an interconnectedness of the various components of their position, noting that the school functioned through its interrelationships within the parts of the system. |
