Much of the earlier research on women in leadership has told the stories of White women. Since there are very low numbers of superintendents of color both male and female nationwide, there have been very few stories reported of women leaders of color (Brunner & Grogan, 2007). This article describes the leadership issues involved when one Black woman crossed a border (geographically and culturally) to lead a school district. Delia (pseudonym) became the first woman and the first person of color to lead a small suburban school district whose population was very different from what she was and what she knew. Delia was a participant in a study designed to investigate how women school superintendents promote and support social justice and democratic community building in their school districts. Six women participated in that study: three were African American, one was American Indian, and two were White. This article briefly describes that study and then focuses on Delia, one participant in it who took a risk to apply for her first superintendency in a district not far from her old district in miles but miles apart in population, ideology, and community values.
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