Molly Fuller

Professional appointment:  Associate Professor

Professional profile: 

I am an Associate Professor in the School of Professional Studies at North-West University, South Africa. I am an experienced lecturer in school leadership and an active researcher whose work focuses on professional leadership development, teacher leadership, and the strengthening of school management teams. I am involved in several international research studies and have developed a strong scholarly profile through peer-reviewed publications, international conference presentations, and leadership contributions within North-West University. I have successfully supervised numerous MEd and PhD candidates and have examined postgraduate dissertations for several universities. My academic service includes reviewing for reputable journals and contributing to funded research projects on mentorship programmes, teacher leadership, and cross-cultural studies. With several accredited journal articles to my credit, I remain committed to advancing school leadership for sustainable improvement and to fostering both national and international collaboration in educational leadership and management.

Areas of scholarship: 

• Teacher leadership

• Impact of educational systems on leadership

• School improvement

• Ubuntu leadership

• Mentorship

• School principalship

Teaching foci:  

• Educational leadership

• Teacher professional development

• School management

Selected publications: 

Van der Vyver, C.P., Fuller, M.P, Khumalo, J.B. 2023. Teacher Leadership in South Africa: The Power of Influence in Restoring Social Justice. In: Teacher Leadership in International Contexts. DOI : 10.1007/978-3-031-25763-6

Steyn, CMvA & Fuller, M.P. 2023. AN analysis of the support role and responsibilities of Circuit Managers to principals during education change in the South African basic education system. Leadership and Policy in Schools. DOI: 10.1080/15700763.2023.2249086   https://doi.org/10.1080/15700763.2023.2249086 

Steyn, CMvA & Fuller, M.P. 2023. Lack of support within the education system augments challenges principals experience. International Journal of Research in Business and Social Science. Volume 12(6): 296-306. https://doi.org/10.20525/ijrbs.v12i6.2702 

Webber, C.F., Andrews, D., van der Vyver, C.P., Pineda-Báez, C., Okoko, J.M., Eisneros-Cohernour, E.J., Dominguez-Castillo, J.G., Elmeski, M., Fuller, M.P., Conway, J.M., Moral-Santaella, C., Gratacós, G., & Idelcadi, S. 2024. School leadership roles and standards: Observations from the international study of teacher leadership. Background paper prepared for the 2024-5 Global Education Monitoring Report. UNESCO. https://doi.org/10.54676/KIIJ3990.

Fuller, M. 2025. Not Everything That Counts Can Be Counted: Rethinking the Influence of Leadership Programmes. In Education at a Crossroads. 23rd BCES Conference Program & Abstract Book (p. 38). Bulgarian Comparative Education Society.

Your degrees:  PhD, University of Pretoria

Email address: MollyFuller@nwu.ac.za

Orcid ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2927-6388