Quilted Narratives: Patchworking Rural Appalachian Cultural Influence and Identities through the Storied Experiences of Women Educational Leaders

Abstract

This qualitative study used narrative inquiry interviews of a purposeful sample of three rural Appalachian women educational leaders in the South Central Appalachian region to determine how their sociocultural backgrounds or Appalachian identity structures influenced their leadership practices in K-12 educational settings. Using the metaphor of quilting, my research study considered the storied narratives of rural Appalachian women educational leaders as patches for a quilt, taking each story and sewing them together to see what commonalities and complexities exist that guide leadership in educational settings. The research questions for this study were grounded in the participants' narratives and explored the following two concepts: 1. How might storied experiences or sociocultural influences impact the leadership and decision-making of rural Appalachian women educational leaders? 2. How does the intersection of Appalachian identities and gender influence rural Appalachian women educational leaders in their leadership practice and decision-making? Participants were asked a series of questions in a narrative interview session, followed by follow-up questions asked via email to further their narrative interview responses. Common themes included the importance of relationships and the community, their educational experiences, leadership aspirations, and the challenges these Appalachian women leaders encountered in pursuing their leadership roles. Evidence from the study supported that their sociocultural backgrounds and Appalachian identities influenced rural Appalachian women educational leaders in how they lead in their schools. Like threads running throughout the quilt, the findings suggest that the Appalachian women educational leaders interviewed for this study have common experiences from their sociocultural backgrounds that influence how they lead. The findings from this study provided a foundation to further this research into how sociocultural backgrounds and other identity structures are carried with educational leaders and created a need for reflection on these backgrounds to help shape leaders into effective practitioners in their settings.