American Association of School Administrators

The American Association of School Administrators (AASA) is a national association comprised largely though not exclusively of central office administrators, and it is considered the national school superintendents' organization. The precursor to the AASA was the National Association of School Superintendents, organized in 1865 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, several months after Abraham Lincoln's assassination. In 1870, the organization merged with the National Teachers Association and the American Normal School Association to become the National Education Association (NEA). Within the NEA, it was known as the Department of Superintendence until 1937, when it was changed to its current designation. AASA is no longer affiliated with the NEA, having separated from the larger body in 1972.

In its heyday, the Department of Superintendence was hugely influential in public education. Many of the most important discussions and debates regarding [Page 44]contemporary educational issues occurred at its annual meetings. Some of the most important factors in the adoption of scientific management and business ideology perspectives occurred as a result of the Department of Superintendence's activities, documented extensively in Raymond Callahan's (1962) classic book Education and the Cult of Efficiency. The AASA would also later push for the spread of W. Edwards Deming's total quality management ideas in education.

The AASA holds a national conference each year. In the past, the national conference drew between 25,000 and 30,000 individuals. In recent times, both membership and conference attendance have substantially dwindled to much smaller numbers. The association still supports a study of the American superintendency every 10 years. This document has become an important data source for scholarship regarding the changing nature of the school superintendency. In addition to the annual national conference, the AASA sponsors a summer institute for rural and suburban superintendents, a women administrators' conference, a national school facilities conference, and an annual indoor air quality (IAQ) tools for schools symposium.

The current mission of the AASA, as stated on its Web site (http://www.asa.org), is “to support and develop effective school system leaders who are dedicated to the highest-quality public education for all children.” The AASA has also been a staunch supporter of the creation and implementation of the Interstate Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) standards for school leaders.