Date
5-20-2026
Department
School of Music
Degree
Doctor of Music Education (DME)
Chair
Lori Danielson
Keywords
leadership, orchestra program, authority, autonomy, teacher burnout, student leadership, music education, constructivist theory, ZPD, Vygotsky
Disciplines
Education | Leadership Studies
Recommended Citation
Buonamici, Lori M., "Delegating Authority: How Student Leadership Influences the Workload and Well-Being of Secondary Orchestra Directors" (2026). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 8442.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/8442
Abstract
Although it is standard practice for secondary orchestra directors to engage students in leadership roles to assist with instruction and ensemble management, music education research provides teachers with little guidance on creating and maintaining student leadership organizations. The current literature provides abundant evidence of the benefits of offering leadership opportunities to support student development. Still, little research examines the additional work this creates for the orchestra director. Drawing on Vygotsky’s constructivist worldview and the theory of the zone of proximal development, this study examines how guided support facilitates the development of student leadership skills. Granting student leaders authority may either reduce secondary orchestra teachers’ workloads or overwhelm them. This qualitative research study used purposeful sampling and a hermeneutic-phenomenological research design to interview secondary orchestra directors in North Georgia about each program’s current student leadership models and their effects on the directors’ workloads. This study gathered data through semi-structured interviews, qualitative coding, an online survey, and archival document analysis. This study reveals themes describing how secondary orchestra directors navigate the time and energy demands of delegating authority to student leaders.
