Date of Award

Fall 2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Committee Chair

Bonnie Bolado

Abstract

The purpose of this explanatory sequential mixed methods study was to examine the implementation of a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) through the lens of secondary school administrators following professional development. The professional development was chunked and spread over time following the principles of Cognitive Load Theory (Sweller, 2010) to expand understanding of MTSS implementation. Following the professional development, 25 administrators completed a 42-question survey. Ten secondary administrators completed an 11-question interview to expand on the results of the survey. The culmination of results from the quantitative survey, qualitative interviews, and literature provided insight into the practices that increase administrator efficacy in implementing MTSS. When professional development was chunked and provided over time, administrators gained confidence in knowledge and implementation. District relational support that was consistent also grew school administrator confidence in implementation. There were pitfalls that were presented as well. Inconsistency in messaging, shifting expectations, and a lack of engaged district support undermined sustainability and led to reduced buy-in. These findings have implications for the delivery of complex concept professional development and implementation. The implications of this research may lead to more efficient and effective professional development that has the potential to align district and school efforts for more effective practices. Implications of the study may be applied to administrator and teacher training. The final impact on student achievement would be an additional viewpoint to review in future research.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License

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