Strategic Leadership for School Success: A Phenomenological Exploration of Women Principals’ Experiences in Timor-Leste

Abstract

Educational leadership in a post-independence country must be adaptive and collaborative to address institutional and socio-cultural challenges. Although women principals have become increasingly visible in school leadership in Timor-Leste, limited research has explored how their strategic leadership contributes to school success. This study examined how women principals in primary schools in Timor-Leste practise strategic leadership to support school success. A qualitative phenomenological design was employed, using purposive sampling to recruit six experienced women principals from the municipalities of Baucau, Viqueque, and Manatuto. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analysed thematically. The findings identified six interconnected leadership practices: commitment and institutional trust; collaborative decision-making; resilience and adaptation; gender-inclusive practice; relational leadership through support and communication; and community engagement for school improvement. These practices enabled the principals to strengthen teacher collaboration, build stakeholder trust, foster inclusive school cultures, and address contextual challenges despite limited resources. The study extends the educational leadership literature by showing how transformational, distributed, and culturally responsive leadership intersect within women’s leadership in a post-independence education system. The findings have implications for leadership development, gender-inclusive education policy, and sustainable school improvement programmes in Timor-Leste and comparable contexts. The results also underscore the importance of mentoring, professional networking, and institutional support for sustaining women’s participation in educational leadership.