Leadership Case Studies

This volume is a collection of case studies by University of Northern Iowa's Master of Public Policy (MPP) graduate students, as well as undergraduate students studying leadership and management in public service. It is our hope that these case studies can be used as teaching and learning tools, as a deep-dive into leadership theory and practice.

Some details within the case studies, which are a combination of fiction and non-fiction, have been changed to protect privacy. Some student authors have chosen to remain anonymous or publish under a pseudonym.

Originally published in summer 2025, this volume will include more cases over time as students contribute to this open pedagogy project. PDF versions will be updated once per semester.

Editor: Dr. Jayme Renfro, Associate Professor of Political Science, with support from Anne Marie Gruber, Associate Professor of Library Services, University of Northern Iowa.

book cover with blue background, title "Leadership Case Studies" and "Edited by Jayme Renfro and Anne Marie Gruber"

Background photo copyright University of Northern Iowa. Used with permission. All Rights Reserved. Cover design by Jayme Renfro is licensed CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.

Table of Contents

Front Matter

Chapter 1: Trait Theory of Leadership

Chapter 2: Skills Theory of Leadership

Chapter 3: Behavioral Leadership Theory

Chapter 4: Path-Goal Leadership Theory

Chapter 5: Situational Leadership Theory

Chapter 6: Transformational Leadership Theory

Chapter 7: Servant Leader Theory

Chapter 8: Writing Teaching Cases as a Learning Tool

Back Matter

Metadata

  • publisher
    Rod Library, University of Northern Iowa
  • publisher place
    Cedar Falls, IA
  • rights
    Cases are individually licensed with each author's selected Creative Commons license. Front and back matter as well as the Chapter 8 Introduction are licensed CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.