Klocko, B. A. (2012). 3 (1)
The impact of the superintendent in the design decision-making process of sustainable school buildings was examined in this case study analysis of the attitudes and influences of superintendents in six Midwestern school districts that engaged in construction projects during the previous five years. The major findings of this study are: (a) Leadership is the key to greening America’s schoolhouses; (b) Superintendents are inadequately prepared for dealing with issues regarding sustainability; (c) Superintendents who utilized sensemaking as a decision-making strategy yielded high-quality decisions; and (d) Superintendents who could articulate a vision of triple bottom line sustainability which incorporated the environmental, educational, and economic principles of sustainability were viewed by constituents as effective stewards. This purposeful sampling provided rich data to support three distinct motivations for building green—social or educational, environmental, and economic. Today, superintendents mindful of the triple bottom line regarding sustainability are leading the way toward a sustainable future.
