ABSTRACT
This chapter includes the following: School Culture, Layers of Culture, Healthy and Toxic Cultures, and Culturally Relevant Leadership. It describes four continua that characterize leadership and school cultures and explores the implications of the idea that everyone interprets culture in their own way. Cultural leadership on the part of the principal requires the principal to stir human consciousness, interpret meanings, articulate key cultural strands and link organizational members to them. The principal's long-range vision is also a key factor in the building of culture. Each school has a unique culture and may be characterized as forward moving or stuck-in-a-rut. Forward-moving schools are characterized by an emphasis on values and beliefs that are used to guide decision-making processes. Culturally relevant pedagogy and leadership assumes that knowledge is co-constructed by people as they learn and lead in context. This has implications for instruction, leadership, curricula and many other aspects of education.
