Dissertation Proposal Announcement E.d.D. Program: Joanna Joaquin “Resilient Leadership: Leveraging Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) to Support School Administrators: A Qualitative Exploratory Study”

This qualitative exploratory study will examine how 10-12, K-12 principals and vice-principals in New Jersey experience and perceive the use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools, such as ChatGPT, in their administrative roles. Each year, the demands on school leaders grow, and it often feels like they are expected to do more with fewer resources. Principals must always be available to staff, parents, and the community, leading to significant stress and burnout. Research shows that nearly half of principals are considering leaving their jobs due to these pressures (NASSP, 2020). In New Jersey, principals stay in their positions for an average of only 3.8 years, disrupting school stability and contributing to high teacher turnover (NJDOE, 2022).

Research on GenAI in school administration is still limited, particularly at the K-12 level. While much of the research emphasizes student and teacher perspectives, very few studies focus on administrators and their use of these tools. Drawing on educational leadership literature, artificial intelligence in schools, and resilience theory, this research explores how protective factors, like GenAI, can help reduce administrative tasks and stress, enabling leaders to focus more on instructional leadership.

Participants will be school-based administrators who have served in their roles since before November 2022 and regularly use GenAI tools for professional tasks. By examining how administrators experience and perceive their use of GenAI, this study will provide insights into the impact of GenAI on administrators’ workload, stress, instructional leadership, and resilience. The findings will contribute to the growing knowledge base about principals’ use of GenAI tools in administrative practice and enhance understanding of how these tools can improve administrators’ effectiveness. Additionally, the results could inform AI training programs and identify strategies to support administrators’ resilience and longevity in leadership roles.