The importance of parental involvement for students of all ages has been documented by researchers and acknowledged by practitioners. Several earlier studies have contended that there is a positive association between parental involvement and school performance, even at the middle and high school levels. However, parental involvement levels typically decline as a child progresses through school.

The challenges associated with implementing parental involvement strategies at the secondary level are also well documented. The purpose of this study was to identify and analyze the attitudes of South Dakota high school principals regarding parental involvement. A survey utilized by Peiffer (2003) was modified by the researcher to use specifically with secondary-level principals. The instrument was mailed to all secondary-level principals and assistant principals in South Dakota, generating a response of 156 completed surveys which represented a 63.7% response rate. A four-point Likert scale was used to measure the principals' attitudes toward statements grouped into the four categories of communication concerns, competency issues, collaboration issues, and external factors.

Analysis of the data revealed that while principals may agree that parental involvement is critical at the secondary level, implementation of appropriate and meaningful roles for parents is challenging. The more significant differences in principal attitudes were found within the category of communication. Male principals responded more positively toward statements related to communication than did female principals, as did respondents identifying themselves as Principals versus Assistant or Vice Principals. Additionally, principals who noted educational attainment beyond a master's degree responded more positively to statements within the communication category. Principals in schools with more than 301 students tended to show less support for statements related to communication than did their counterparts in smaller schools. The only other attitudinal difference identified in the study involved external factors in which principals employed in private schools were less likely to agree that external factors pose a barrier to parental involvement.