2026 Summer Journal of Scholarship and Practice

This issue shows that leadership—not just new programs or policy—is the true driver of lasting change in schools, as seen across studies on deeper learning, restorative practices, the AP-to-principal pipeline, and what principals actually read to grow as leaders.

In his editorial, Ken Mitchell says, “At the heart of overcoming barriers is leadership, which is reflected in each piece and aligns with the mission of this journal.”

“Whether a principal is articulating a school's higher purpose to sustain deeper learning, or a district administrator is wrestling with the uneven rollout of restorative practices, or an aspiring leader is striving to master core competencies through a structured institute, the research points repeatedly to the leader as the linchpin of meaningful change,” Mitchell says. Further he adds, “Leadership is not merely positional, it is the active work of building belief, aligning effort, and holding a community to a shared vision even when resources are scarce and resistance is present.”

The first article, titled “Higher Purpose in Leading Deeper Learning,” is written by Ben Quest, David Boren and Joseph Jenson.

The second, written by Elise Pas, Shoshana Oppenheim, Thomas Graham and Mia Ukejiana, is titled “Overcoming Barriers to Restorative Practices Implementation: What District Leaders Can Do.”

In an evidence-based article, the third piece is authored by Monica Smith-Woofter, Eileen Oliver-Eggert and Jaclyn Nickel and titled “Principalship Supporting Assistant Principals as Inclusive Educators Focused on Their Leadership Growth, Development, and Pipeline to the Principalship.” It gets to the issue of a track for assistant principal to principal.

And finally, a research article by Benterah Morton and Matt Townsley is titled, “Practical and Timely: The Journals Public School Principals Read.” This piece offers insight into what research shows is of most interest to principals and perhaps guides other building and central office administrators to publications that could be most instructive overall on a leadership journey.

Says Mitchell succinctly: “Ultimately, the studies in this issue converge on a unified message: overcoming barriers in education requires more than adopting new programs or writing better policy. It demands aligned systems, sustained investment in people, and a deliberate effort to close the gap between what research knows and what schools do. The most durable reforms are those built on cultural coherence, purposeful leadership, and the institutional humility to recognize that change is not an event — it is an ongoing, deeply human process, a reality that we must not ignore as we stand at the precipice of a society—and its schools—that is being transformed by artificial intelligence.”