Aligning Mind and Heart

This book is a go-to guide for school leadership. Content includes organization structure, transformative leadership, effective communication, decision-making models, strategic planning, and leadership through change (just to name a few). If an administrator can master the knowledge and skills encompassed in this book, and do it with heart, they will be poised for leadership success. Chapter case studies provide adult leaders an opportunity to explore their new knowledge in real-life based scenarios with guided diagnostic questions for further contemplation.

If you are looking for a timely book that combines educational leadership theory and practice for transformational leaders you have found it in Robert Palestini and Christopher Heasley’s collaborative book Aligning Mind and Heart: Leadership and Organization Dynamics for Advancing K-12 Education. In addition to expertly presenting several leadership styles these two professors from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia clearly examine comprehensive theories from, among others, Bolman/Deal and Hershey/Blanchard. Drs. Palestini and Heasley use theorists as anchors and bring them to life through practical case studies. Their own backgrounds and perspectives – Palestini as a former superintendent of Philadelphia’s Archdiocese schools and Heasley as a bright emerging leader in higher education – make this a rich resource for anyone desiring to navigate educational leadership during these challenging times. , Drs. Chris Heasley and Robert Palestini continue to inform our profession, practice, and person with clearly defined diagnostic tools supported by theoretical constructs for organizational health, coherence, and effectiveness. Decades of experience represented and reflected on in Aligning Mind and Heart: Leadership and Organization Dynamics for Advancing K-12 Education assist educational leaders with awareness, understanding, maintenance, and improvement of their organizations’ culture and attention to mission., In Aligning Mind and Heart: Leadership and Organization Dynamics for Advancing K-12 Education, Chris Heasley and Bob Palestini share some of the insights that they have gleaned from their more than seventy collective years of experience at all levels of educational administration. They offer us a step-by-step process for improving the organizational health of our educational institutions. By following their Diagnostic Debrief and using the Heart Smart surveys, teachers, administrators, and aspiring educational leaders will be able to develop an improvement plan for their teaching departments, educational institutions, and school districts that can lead them to new heights. , Leaders seeking improvement regarding how their educational institutions function are encouraged to explore Chris Heasley and Bob Palestini’s newest book, Aligning Mind and Heart: Leadership and Organization Dynamics for Advancing K-12 Education. This leadership handbook is intended to provide educational administrators with a valuable guide for addressing the organizational weaknesses in their institutions and turning them into strengths. Their scholar-practitioner approach to learning follows a diagnostic application to school improvement and can make a real difference in the smooth operation of a teaching unit, school system, or district.

Chris Heasley is a higher education professor in the Educational Leadership Department at Saint Joseph’s University. He teaches courses on advanced quantitative research in education; educational leaders as researcher and reflective practitioner; and educational environments and community relations. Robert Palestini has been an educator for almost fifty years, serving as a high school science teacher, principal, superintendent of schools, and university dean. He is currently dean emeritus and professor of educational leadership, as well as the founding executive director of the Education Leadership Institute and Center for Catholic Urban Education at Saint Joseph’s University.