The purpose of this qualitative ethnographic study was to explore how leadership characteristics are demonstrated by an instructional leader, as a building principal, in moving an at-risk school of immigrants from East African to successfully overcome significant learning and language barrier, to pass the Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) report for successive three years (2007 – 2010). The major demand of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) on public schools, in a state like Minnesota, is the accountability and requirement that all students should achieve mastery in reading and mathematics by 2014. The formation of the charter school, populated predominantly by Limited English Proficient (LEP) and economically disadvantaged students, was an offshoot of demands by parents and the East African community who felt that public school systems were not conducive learning atmosphere for their wards. A combination of research data collection methods and techniques, which included recorded interviews with the school principal, staff members, and parents were utilized to acquire data for the study. All evidence that contained text was coded, analyzed to identify themes and patterns, and subjected to triangulation before final analysis. The findings of the study showed that the school with a native as the principal, succeeded in impacting students‘ achievement, by creating a school atmosphere that was respectful of the students‘ background, culture, learning styles, and interest. The study also found that it was the principal‘s leadership philosophy and good understanding of American and the peculiar community culture that influenced the teachers, students, and school community in building an effective school culture that helped in integrating the at-risk students into the American educational system. Although the study was limited to one school in one state, the data collected from the interviews and observations provided valuable insights on how leaders in at-risk schools require distinct qualities to set them apart in their mission to accomplish goals they set in promoting student achievement.