School Superintendents, Crisis Management and Institutional Organisations Theory

Fifty school superintendents were interviewed about incidents of serious misconduct by school personnel. The superintendents indicated that they case managed the incidents, acting quickly but mindful of due process. The incidents dealt mainly with violations of broad community norms. Comparisons were made with a previous study of school principals. It was suggested that institutional organisations theory′s blanket emphasis on ritualistic legitimation, the logic of confidence, and normative as opposed to technical assessment of schools is too strong.