Dr. Lawrence Scott: College of Education and Human Development- Texas A&M University- San Antonio

Dr. Lawrence Scott

Dr. Lawrence Scott currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership at Texas A&M University-San Antonio. Being Awarded San Antonio Business Journal's 40 Under 40 in 2018 (Man of the Year), was indicative to Dr. Scott's insatiable passion to make an indelible impact in the lives of others through education. He has dedicated his life to changing success trajectories for students at all age levels and demographic backgrounds.

Prior to teaching in higher education, Dr. Scott served over 16 years in the K-12 sector as a secondary teacher, coach, guidance counselor, district-level curriculum specialist, and administrator in San Antonio ISD, a district in which he is an alumnus.

He is also the Executive Director of the Community for Life Foundation, which has given over half a million dollars in scholarships to eligible college students nationally. Due to his passion to create and sustain equitable educational opportunities for all students, Dr. Scott began S.E.N.D. Consulting, which specializes in training educators, counselors, administrators, parents, community leaders and stakeholders on “best practices” to reach at-risk students. He has given trainings for many universities, school districts, churches and even organizations such as Teach for America, SA Youth, Catholic Charities, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). He has also served on the Affirmative Action Advisory Committee for the City of San Antonio.

He received his Bachelor’s Degree from St. Mary’s University in Political Science, History, and Education. He has a Master’s degree in Educational Psychology and Counseling from the University of Texas in San Antonio, and a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from the University of the Incarnate Word. His research interest includes non-cognitive factors influencing academic success of underrepresented populations, leadership development, and teacher efficacy and retention. He lives in San Antonio, Texas with his wife Chiara, and his young children, Gabriella and Christian.

Click here for Dr. Scott's Curriculum Vitae

Contact Information

Dr. Lawrence Scott
One Universtiy Way
San Antonio, TX 78224
210-784-2507
Office: Madla 322
Lawrence Scott email

Kearney, W.S., Smith, P.A. & Maika, S. (2014). Examining the impact of classroom relationships on student engagement: A multi-level analysis. Journal of School Public Relations, 35 (1), 80-102.

Kearney, W.S., Kelsey, C., & Sinkfield, C. (2014). Can emotionally intelligent leadership skills be taught to aspiring school leaders? Journal of Planning and Changing. 45 (1&2), 31-47.

Rodriguez, J., Avila, M., & Kearney, W.S. (2014) Who’s afraid of the big bad indeces? A case study of one high poverty high minority campus’ success in the new Texas Accountability System. Submitted to the Journal of the Effective Schools Project, 21, 59-64.

Smith, P.A., & Kearney, W.S. (2013). The Impact of achievement press on student success. International Journal of Educational Management 27(4), 387-401.

Kearney, W.S., Webb, M., Goldhorn, J., & Peters, M. (2013). Examining the impact of critical feedback on student engagement in secondary math classrooms: A multi-level analysis. American Association of School Administrators Journal of Scholarship & Practice 10(1), 23-38.

Kearney, W.S., & Herrington, D.E. (2013). The role of inquiry in closing the gap between university experience and assistant principal career transition through simulated realistic job preview. Educational Leadership Review, 14(1), 69-82.

Kearney, W.S., Kelsey, C., & Herrington, D.H., (2013). Mindful leaders in highly effective schools: A mixed-method application of Hoy’s M-scale, Educational Management, Administration & Leadership, 41 (3), 316-335.

Kearney, W.S., & Peters, S. (2013). A comparison of teacher and student perceptions of elementary classroom climate. National Forum of Educational Administration and Supervision, 31 (1), 20-37.

Goldhorn, J., Kearney, W.S., & Webb, M. (2013). Classroom walkthrough practices: Lessons learned from 10,000 observations. National Forum of Educational Administration and Supervision, 30 (3), 20-28.

Kearney, W. S., Herrington, D. E., & Aguilar, D. (2012). Beating the odds: Exploring the 90/90/90 phenomenon. Equity and Excellence in Education, 45 (2), 239-249.

Kearney, W.S., Valadez, A., and Garcia, L. (2012). Leadership for the long-haul: The impact of administrator longevity on student achievement. School Leadership Review 7 (2), 24-33.

Herrington, D.H., & Kearney, W. S. (2012). Assistant principal career transition (part 1). National Forum Journal of Journal of Educational Administration and Supervision, 29(2), 80-94.

Sance, D., Hall, S., Mkubwa, N., & Kearney, W.S. (2011). Turning a School Around, Texas Study, 21(1), 1-11.

Kearney, W. S., & Herrington, D. (2010). High Performing Principals in Historically Low-Performing Minority-Serving Schools: A Glimpse into the Success of 90/90/90 Schools in South Central Texas. National Forum Journal of Applied Educational Research, 24(1-2), 63-72.

Kearney, W.S. & Smith, P.A. (2010). Principal influence and school change orientation in elementary schools: The importance of campus leadership. John Ben Sheppard Journal of Leadership, 5(1), 1-25.

Kearney, W.S. & Smith, P.A. (2010). Taps for the high stakes test. Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership 12(3), 26-32.

Herrington, D., Kelsey, C., Barker., K., & Kearney, W.S. (2010). Establishing an Educational Leadership Program in a recently created urban university. John Ben Sheppard Journal of Leadership, 5(1), 72-81.

Kearney, W.S. & Smith, P.A. (2009). A Theoretical and empirical analysis of change orientations in schools. In Hoy, W.K. and DiPaola, M. Studies in School Improvement, (pp. 23-43). Charlotte, N.C.: Information Age Publishing

Kearney, W.S., & Smith, P.A. (2008). Dropped for a loss: Dilemma at Hansbrough High. In Hoy, W.K. and Tarter, C.J. Administrators solving the problems of practice: Decision-making concepts, cases, and consequences, (pp.118-120) (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Kearney, M. & Kearney, W.S. (1992). German influence on the development of Brownsville, TX. Schatzkammer, der Deutschen Sprache, Dichtung und Geschichte, 18(1), 31-42.

Kearney, M. & Kearney, W.S. (1991). A historical sketch of Brownsville’s Franco-Americans. In M. Kearney (Ed)., Still More Studies in Brownsville History, (pp. 85-102). Brownsville: University of Texas at Brownsville.

Kearney, M. & Kearney, W.S. (1991). A historical sketch of Brownsville’s German-Americans. In M. Kearney (Ed)., Still More Studies in Brownsville History, (pp. 103-128). Brownsville: University of Texas at Brownsville.

The following survey instruments created by Dr. Kearney and his colleagues are provided free of charge to assist educators in their studies of social processes in schools.

The Change Orientation Scale (COS) is a measure of the faculty's perceptions of change in schools. In particular, the scale focuses on teachers' perceptions of three important aspects of change in a school:

Faculty openness to change;
Principal openness to change; and
Community pressure for change

Reliability and Validity of the COS

The COS is a 19-item Likert instrument that measures the degree to which the faculty of a school perceives 1) teachers being open to change, 2) their principal being open to change, and 3) the community pressing for change. Responses are measured on a 6 point Likert scale ranging from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (6).

The reliabilities of the three scales are strong with the following alpha coefficients: faculty openness to change (.95), principal openness to change (.87), and community press for change (.87) (Kearney & Smith, 2008).

Validity of the COS has also been supported in a series of factor analytic studies (Kearney & Smith, 2008; Kearney & Smith, 2010) and predictive studies.

Scoring Key for the COS

Respondents complete the survey
Reverse score items 3, 6, 7, 10, 11, 13, 14, 18, 19 (items below with asterisks). Reverse score means 1=6, 2=5, 3=4, 4=3, 5=2, 6=1.
Compute the individual teacher score for each of the three subscales. That is, add the item scores (after the appropriate items have been reversed) in each subtest and divide by the number of items. You now have an individual teacher score for each of the three subscales.
- Faculty openness to change items 1, 2, 5, 6*, 8, 10*, 13*, 14*, 15
- Principal openness to change items 3*, 7*, 9, 11*, 12, 19*
- Community press for change items 4, 16, 17, 18*
Next compute the faculty score for each subscale by averaging the individual scores in each school. You now have the faculty score on each subscale for each school.

References

Kearney, S., & Smith P. A. (2009). A theoretical and empirical analysis of change orientations in schools. In Wayne K. Hoy & Michael DiPaola (eds.). Studies in School Improvement. Greenwich, CN: Information Age.

Kearney, W.S. & Smith, P.A. (2010). Principal influence and school change orientation in elementary schools: The importance of campus leadership. John Ben Sheppard Journal of Leadership, 5(1), 1-25.

Classroom Climate Index

The Classroom Climate Index (CCI) is a measure of student perceptions of classroom climate. In particular, the scale focuses on respondents' perceptions of three important aspects of classroom climate:

Student Collegial Support;
Academic Engagement; and
Supportive Teacher Behavior

Reliability and Validity of the CCI

The CCI is a 21-item Likert instrument that measures the degree to which the students in a classroom perceives 1) the students support one another academically and socially 2) the students participate in and enjoy academic activities in the classroom, and 3) the teacher provides social and academic support to students. Responses are measured on a 5 point Likert scale ranging from (1) strongly disagree to (5) strongly agree.

The reliabilities of the three scales are strong with the following alpha coefficients: student collegial support (α = .72), student engagement (α = .78), and supportive teacher behavior (α = .80) (Kearney, Smith, & Maika, 2014).

Scoring Key for the CCI

Respondents complete the survey
Reverse score items ____________(items below with asterisks). Reverse score means 1=6, 2=5, 3=4, 4=3, 5=2, 6=1.
Compute the individual teacher score for each of the three subscales. That is, add the item scores (after the appropriate items have been reversed) in each subtest and divide by the number of items. You now have an individual score for each of the three subscales.
- Student Collegial Support items _________________
- Academic Engagement items _________________
- Supportive Teacher Behavior items ______________
Next compute the respondents’ scores for each subscale by averaging the individual scores in each classroom. You now have the respondents’ scores on each subscale for each classroom.

References

Kearney, W.S., Smith, P.A. & Maika, S. (2014). Examining the impact of classroom relationships on student engagement: A multi-level analysis. Journal of School Public Relations, 35 (1), 80-102.

EDUCATION

2010	Post-Doctoral seminar on Heirarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) - Conducted at the University of Chicago - Led by Drs. Bryk and Raudenbush - authors of the HLM software
2007	Ed.D. Educational Leadership, University of Texas at San Antonio - GPA: 4.0 - Doctoral Fellow - Dissertation Title: Principal Influence: A Study of Its Effect on School Change
2002	M.Ed. Educational Administration, Texas State University - GPA: 4.0 - Mid-management/Principal Certification
1998	M.A. Theology, Dallas Theological Seminary - Teaching Assistant - Representative in Student Government
1994	B.A. History, University of Texas at Austin - Received two academic scholarships

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY

Texas A&M University-San Antonio	Associate Professor, Educational Leadership 2014-present Assistant Professor, Educational Leadership 2014-2014 Director, School Leadership Consortium 2012-present
Education Service Center, Region 20	Director, Cohort of Leadership Associates, Principal Certification Program 2007-2009 Director, Central Office Administrators Academy 2008-2009
University of Texas at San Antonio	Adjunct Professor, Education Leadership 2008-2009 Doctoral Fellow and Research Team Leader 2005-2007
Judson Independent School Districk	Assistant Principal 2002-2005

SCHOLARLY ACTIVITIES

Kearney, W.S., Smith, P.A. & Maika, S. (2014). Examining the impact of classroom relationships on student engagement: A multi-level analysis. Journal of School Public Relations, 35 (1), 80-102.

Kearney, W.S., Kelsey, C., & Sinkfield, C. (2014). Can emotionally intelligent leadership skills be taught to aspiring school leaders? Journal of Planning and Changing. 45 (1&2), 31-47.

Rodriguez, J., Avila, M., & Kearney, W.S. (2014) Who’s afraid of the big bad indeces? A case study of one high poverty high minority campus’ success in the new Texas Accountability System. Submitted to the Journal of the Effective Schools Project, 21, 59-64.

Smith, P.A., & Kearney, W.S. (2013). The Impact of achievement press on student success. International Journal of Educational Management 27(4), 387-401.

Kearney, W.S., Webb, M., Goldhorn, J., & Peters, M. (2013). Examining the impact of critical feedback on student engagement in secondary math classrooms: A multi-level analysis. American Association of School Administrators Journal of Scholarship & Practice 10(1), 23-38.

Kearney, W.S., & Herrington, D.E. (2013). The role of inquiry in closing the gap between university experience and assistant principal career transition through simulated realistic job preview. Educational Leadership Review, 14(1), 69-82.

Kearney, W.S., Kelsey, C., & Herrington, D.H., (2013). Mindful leaders in highly effective schools: A mixed-method application of Hoy’s M-scale, Educational Management, Administration & Leadership, 41 (3), 316-335.

Kearney, W.S., & Peters, S. (2013). A comparison of teacher and student perceptions of elementary classroom climate. National Forum of Educational Administration and Supervision, 31 (1), 20-37.

Goldhorn, J., Kearney, W.S., & Webb, M. (2013). Classroom walkthrough practices: Lessons learned from 10,000 observations. National Forum of Educational Administration and Supervision, 30 (3), 20-28.

Kearney, W. S., Herrington, D. E., & Aguilar, D. (2012). Beating the odds: Exploring the 90/90/90 phenomenon. Equity and Excellence in Education, 45 (2), 239-249.

Kearney, W.S., Valadez, A., and Garcia, L. (2012). Leadership for the long-haul: The impact of administrator longevity on student achievement. School Leadership Review 7 (2), 24-33.

Herrington, D.H., & Kearney, W. S. (2012). Assistant principal career transition (part 1). National Forum Journal of Journal of Educational Administration and Supervision, 29(2), 80-94.

Sance, D., Hall, S., Mkubwa, N., & Kearney, W.S. (2011). Turning a School Around, Texas Study, 21(1), 1-11.

Kearney, W. S., & Herrington, D. (2010). High Performing Principals in Historically Low-Performing Minority-Serving Schools: A Glimpse into the Success of 90/90/90 Schools in South Central Texas. National Forum Journal of Applied Educational Research, 24(1-2), 63-72.

Kearney, W.S. & Smith, P.A. (2010). Principal influence and school change orientation in elementary schools: The importance of campus leadership. John Ben Sheppard Journal of Leadership, 5(1), 1-25.

Kearney, W.S. & Smith, P.A. (2010). Taps for the high stakes test. Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership 12(3), 26-32.

Herrington, D., Kelsey, C., Barker., K., & Kearney, W.S. (2010). Establishing an Educational Leadership Program in a recently created urban university. John Ben Sheppard Journal of Leadership, 5(1), 72-81.

Kearney, M. & Kearney, W.S. (1992). German influence on the development of Brownsville, TX. Schatzkammer, der Deutschen Sprache, Dichtung und Geschichte, 18(1), 31-42.

Books, Chapters, Monographs

Kearney, W.S. & Smith, P.A. (2009). A Theoretical and empirical analysis of change orientations in schools. In Hoy, W.K. and DiPaola, M. Studies in School Improvement, (pp. 23-43). Charlotte, N.C.: Information Age Publishing

Kearney, W.S., & Smith, P.A. (2008). Dropped for a loss: Dilemma at Hansbrough High. In Hoy, W.K. and Tarter, C.J. Administrators solving the problems of practice: Decision-making concepts, cases, and consequences, (pp.118-120) (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Kearney, M. & Kearney, W.S. (1991). A historical sketch of Brownsville’s Franco-Americans. In M. Kearney (Ed)., Still More Studies in Brownsville History, (pp. 85-102). Brownsville: University of Texas at Brownsville.

Kearney, M. & Kearney, W.S. (1991). A historical sketch of Brownsville’s German-Americans. In M. Kearney (Ed)., Still More Studies in Brownsville History, (pp. 103-128). Brownsville: University of Texas at Brownsville.

Refereed Presentations

Kearney, W.S., & Scarbrough, C. (2014). Trust does matter: One urban middle school’s efforts to implement trust building strategies. A paper presented at the annual meeting of the University Council for Educational Administration.

Kearney, W.S., & Smith, P. (2014). Clearing the decks: The impacts of teacher protection and administrator role clarity on student bullying. A paper presented at the annual meeting of the University Council for Educational Administration.

Kearney, W.S., Smith, P.A., & Maika, S. (2013, November). Student engagement, school relationships, and supportive teacher behavior: A hat trick for campus success. A paper presented at the annual meeting of the University Council for Educational Administration.

Kearney, W.S., Gray, J., & Adams, C. (2013, November). Enhanced trust and reduced friction: Critical components of high performing elementary math classrooms. A paper presented at the annual meeting of the University Council for Educational Administration.

Kearney, W. S. & Herrington, D. E. (2013, August 8). From inquiry to practice: Realistic job preview in assistant principal preparation. A paper presented at the 67th annual conference of the National Council of Professors of Educational Administration. Meadowlands, NJ.

Maika, S., Kearney, W.S., & Smith, P.A. (2012, November). The classroom climate index: A conceptual and empirical analysis. A paper presented at the annual meeting of The University Council for Educational Administration.

Kelsey, C., Kearney, W.S., & Herrington, D.H. (2011) Mindful leadership: A principal panel, presented at the Southwest Teaching and Learning Conference.

Kearney, W.S., Kelsey, C., & Herrington, D.H. (2011). Principal mindfulness: Exploring the impact of school leadership on student success, presented at the Institute for Emotional Intelligence.

Kearney, W.S., Valadez, A., & Garcia, L. (2011), Principal tenure and student achievement: An examination of the impact of longevity on campus level student success, presented at the Southwest Teaching and Learning Conference.

Kearney, W. S., & Smith, P.A. (2010, October). School climate and student success: An examination of the effect of climate on standardized tests. A paper presented at the annual meeting of The University Council for Educational Administration.

Herrington, D., & Kearney, W. S. (2010, October). Building Bridges to Success in High Poverty Minority-Serving Schools: An Examination of 90/90/90 Schools in South Central Texas A paper presented at the annual meeting of The University Council for Educational Administration.

Kearney, W.S., & Smith, P.A. (2010, May). Change orientations in schools. A paper presented at the annual meeting of The American Education Research Association.

Goldhorn, J., Kearney, W.S., & Webb, M. (2010, June). 360 Walkthrough tool’s usefleness in designing meaningful professional development. A paper presented at the annual conference of the Texas Association of Secondary School Principals.

Kearney, W.S., Goldhorn, J., & Robinson, N. (2010, April) Utilizing Campus Walkthrough Data to Design Powerful Professional Development. A paper presented at the annual meeting of the Southwest Teaching and Learning Conference.

Kearney, W. S., & Smith, P.A. (2008, October). School change and principal influence: The impact of leadership. A paper presented at the annual meeting of The University Council for Educational Administration.

Kearney, W.S., & Smith, P.A. (2008, January). Principal influence: A study of its affects on three aspects of school change. A paper presented at the annual meeting of The American Education Research Association.

Kearney, W.S., Maika, S., Flores, A., Steele, M., & Smith, P.A. (2007, November) Conceptualizing doctoral research teaming: A collaborative model for students and supervising professors. A paper presented at the annual meeting of The University Council for Educational Administration.

Kearney, L. K., Kearney, W. S., & Gillian, D. (2004, May). Counteracting gendered discourses of technology in elementary schools. A paper presented at the annual meeting of The Texas Psychological Association.