PALESTINI, Robert H. 1941-

PERSONAL: Born October 19, 1941, in Philadelphia, PA; son of Enrico (a shoemaker) and Maryanna (a seamstress; maiden name, Valerio) Palestini; married June 20, 1964; wife's name, Judith (a special events employee); children: Karen. Ethnicity: "Italian." Education: Saint Joseph's University, B.S., 1963, M.S., 1967; Temple University, Ed.D. (with distinction), 1980; Harvard University, executive certificate, 1996. Politics: Republican. Religion: Roman Catholic.

ADDRESSES: Home—5 Wooded Lane, Media, PA 19063. Office—Saint Joseph's University, 5600 City Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19131. E-mail—rpalesti@sju.edu.

CAREER: Teacher of biology, physics, history, psychology and basketball at a Roman Catholic high school in Springfield, PA, 1963–70, assistant principal, 1970–75; Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia Office of Catholic Education, Philadelphia, PA, director of planning, 1976–78, director of secondary-school personnel, 1977–82, assistant superintendent of secondary-school services, 1982–87, superintendent of schools, 1987–90; Saint Joseph's University, Philadelphia, director of program development in education and associate professor of education, 1990–92, dean of graduate and continuing studies, 1992–. Pennsylvania State University, director of evening division, 1969–76; workshop presenter. National Diffusion Network, member of board of directors; Philadelphia School District/College Collaborative, member; member of board of directors of Center School, Youth Services Council of Philadelphia, Drug Resistance Council of Philadelphia, and World Affairs Council; Philadelphia Futures, member of advisory board; member of Mayor's Commission on Literacy. Stages of Imagination Theater Group, member of board of directors.

MEMBER: Catholic Philopatrian Literary Society (past director), La Salle University Alumni Association (honorary member), Cross Keys Society (honorary member).

AWARDS, HONORS: Meritorious Service Award, Philadelphia Catholic League Board of Governors; Distinguished Service Award, Roman Catholic Diocese of Philadelphia; Bartholomew Sheehan Law Alumni Service Award.

WRITINGS:

The Ten-Minute Guide to Educational Leadership: A Handbook of Insights, Technomic Publishing (Lancaster, PA), 1998.

Educational Administration: Leading with Heart and Mind, Technomic Publishing (Lancaster, PA), 1998.

(With Karen Palestini) Law and American Education, Copely Publishing (Boston, MA), 1999.

Ten Steps to Educational Reform: Making Change Happen, Rowman & Littlefield (Lanham, MD), 2001.

Law and American Education: An Instructor's Guide, Scarecrow Press (Lanham, MD), 2001.

The Human Touch in Educational Administration, Rowman & Littlefield (Lanham, MD), 2003.

Contributor of articles and reviews to periodicals, including Journal of the Pennsylvania Association of Continuing Education, Journal of the Association of Continuing Higher Education, National Association of Graduate Professionals' Journal, Momentum, and Catholic Education: Journal of Inquiry and Practice.

WORK IN PROGRESS: Educational Administration in Catholic Schools, for Rowman & Littlefield; and Catholic School Administration, Pro-Active Publishing.

SIDELIGHTS: Robert H. Palestini told CA: "I write primarily to share my experience and knowledge with others who are educational administrators or seek to become educational leaders. My hope is that my readers learn the 'trade' by acquiring knowledge and skills from my books, rather than by trial and error, which is the way I learned to be an effective leader."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

School Administrator, June, 1999, Ann S. Keim review of The Ten-Minute Guide to Educational Leadership: A Handbook of Insights, p. 40; September, 2000, Ernie Jean, review of Educational Administration: Leading with Heart and Mind, p. 65.