Michelle Collay is a professor in the Department of Educational Leadership at California State University—East Bay, located in Hayward, California. A former public school music teacher, Collay is a scholar-practitioner who integrates teaching and scholarship in higher education and K–12 settings. She coaches school leaders engaged in professional learning communities, constructivist teaching and leading, and equity-focused inquiry. Collay stays grounded through parent volunteerism in her children's schools.

• About the Author. Acknowledgments.Introduction.Teaching Is Leading.My Own Journey.The Purpose of This Book.How This Book Is Organized.How to Use This Book.Using Systematic Inquiry.Everyday Teacher Leadership.1. A Very Brief History of School Leadership.Leading Learning Past and Present.Different Leaders for Different Schools.Schools Refl ect Society.The Evolution of Leading and Managing in Schools.Who Becomes a Principal?Who Becomes a Teacher?Challenging the Dichotomy Between Site Leaders and Teachers.Teaching as Leading.Inhabiting the Role of Teacher.Choosing to Stay in Teaching.Professional Identity Development.Images of Leading in Schools.Leadership Roles in and Beyond the Classroom.Historical and Cultural Infl uences on Leadership.INQUIRY ONE: Leadership Activities.A Week (or a Month) in the Life of a Teacher.The Physical Characteristics of Schools Shape Teaching, Learning, and Leadership.2. The Personal Dimensions of Leadership.Teaching as a Vocation.Instilling Values While Remaining Neutral.The Cultural Roots of Our Practice.Teaching “in Loco Parentis” (in Place of Parents).Confl icts Between Parent Values and Teacher Values.How Parenting Informs Teaching.Teaching as a Profession.Leadership Identity Development.Seeing Ourselves as Others See Us.Assessing How Your Personal History Informs Your Leadership.INQUIRY TWO: Life Experiences Infl uence Your Practice.Stepping Stones (Vocation).Refl ections on Teaching as Parenting (in Loco Parentis).Identifying Gatekeepers (Profession).3. Teaching Is Leading.Reframing Teaching as Leadership.Choosing Classroom Leadership over School Site Management.Perceiving Oneself as a Leader.Creating Better Conditions for Learning.Leading Learning in the Classroom and Beyond.Leading with Professional Expertise.Leading Through Student Advocacy.Leading Through Mentoring.Leading Through Curriculum Design.Leading Professional Development.Reimagining Instructional Leadership.INQUIRY THREE: Student and Curriculum Case Studies.Student Case Study.Curriculum Case Study.4. Collaboration Is Leading.Assumptions About Collaboration.Collaborative Structures.Partners or Pairs.Role-Alike Teams.Task-Focused Teams.Sharing Professional Responsibility for Learning.Collaborating Across Roles.Collaborating with Families.INQUIRY FOUR: Collaborations Small and Large.Professional Development Mapping and Analysis.5. Inquiry Is Leading.Using Inquiry Where You Are.Inquiry About Classrooms as Part of a Larger System.Inquiry About Curriculum.Inquiry About Student Assessment.Inquiry About the Culture of the School.Using Inquiry to Cross Boundaries.Inquiry About Professional Development.Inquiry About Mandates and Policies.Inquiry About the Community.INQUIRY FIVE: Framework for Developing an Equity Plan.6. Partnership Is Leading.District Partnerships.Enacting Existing Policies.Aligning Professional Development with Mandates.Agency Partnerships.Developing Programs.Creating Collaboratives.Finding and Using Research.Community Partnerships.Bringing the Community into the Classroom.Facilitating Cross-Cultural Conversations.An Afterword About Partnerships and Schools.INQUIRY SIX: Transforming School Leadership Through Partnerships with Agencies.Index.