Campus Location
Dallas Campus (Online)
Date of Award
8-2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Department
Organizational Leadership
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Committee Chair or Primary Advisor
Kipi Fleming
Second Committee Member or Secondary Advisor
Donna Smith
Third Committee Member or Committee Reader
Jon Schwiethale
Abstract
The increasing diversity throughout the United States, especially reflected in the school system, has increased the need for school leaders who can effectively lead culturally diverse communities, and, specifically, for culturally diverse teachers. Cultural intelligence has gradually become a leadership competency alongside other intelligences, such as emotional and social, but little is known about how a school leader’s cultural intelligence affects culturally diverse teachers sense of belonging, their experiences with conflict, and overall teacher retention. In this study the researcher examined how a school leader’s cultural intelligence affects teachers’ sense of belonging in two culturally diverse secondary school settings. Using the cultural intelligence framework, the overall purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to examine not only how a school leader’s cultural intelligence affected teacher belonging, but also how it affected interpersonal conflict management and teachers’ willingness to remain at their current school. Using the qualitative design, this study included six school principals and 17 culturally diverse teachers from one high school and one middle school in South Texas. School leaders completed the Cultural Intelligence Pro Assessment to measure their cultural intelligence, while teachers participated in semistructured interviews or surveys describing their experiences with school leadership at their schools. The findings suggested that cultural intelligence influenced teacher belonging largely through relationships and leadership behaviors rather than cultural knowledge alone. School principals with high cultural intelligence action and strategy demonstrated more relationship-building behaviors, including having a stronger foundation in trust, communication, and active listening. In contrast, passive, inconsistent, or ambiguous leadership behaviors negatively affected teachers’ sense of belonging. Using cycle coding and thematic analysis, two main school leadership themes and five teacher themes emerged. Teacher participants valued leadership behaviors that encompassed active multicultural engagement, open and effective communication, direct addressing of cultural conflicts, and genuine, active relationship-building with teachers. Inconsistent interest in cultural diversity, unclear communication or expectations, and dismissive and avoidant leadership behaviors created emotional angst that hindered teachers’ sense of belonging, regardless of the leader’s reason for the behavior. The findings highlight that developing a leader’s cultural intelligence action and strategy is more important than developing cultural awareness alone. This study suggests that school districts and school leadership preparation programs should incorporate cultural intelligence programming into ongoing school leader professional development, with a special focus on relationship-building, intentional and genuine cross-cultural communication, and culturally responsive leadership practices. By doing this, schools can better foster inclusive school cultures, which improves teacher belonging and increases teacher retention.
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Recommended Citation
Commerford, Quincy C., "Cultural Intelligence and Leadership: Examining School Principals’ Impact on Teacher Belonging, Retention, and Conflict Resolution" (2026). Digital Commons @ ACU, Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 1048.
https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/etd/1048