This article examines special education's role in preparing knowledgeable and skillful leaders for inclusive schools that strive to serve a wide range of students. Special education and educational leadership intersect, and the professional literature of both fields has been used to describe the work of school administration at their interface. A conceptual framework for special education leadership is presented, with suggestions for its use in planning cooperative leadership development. This analysis proceeds from the perspective that special education can add value to educational leadership preparation by articulating and communicating not only its legal requirements but the core principles that guide the meaningful education of learners with exceptionalities.
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