Leading at the Margins: Lived Experiences of School Heads in Resource-Constrained Last Mile Schools in Sorsogon

This study explored the lived experiences of school heads leading in resource-constrained and geographically isolated Last Mile Schools (LMS) in Sorsogon. It examined how school heads navigate persistent shortages, multifaceted isolation, community partnership, and everyday innovation in sustaining education at the margins. Anchored on qualitative-phenomenological inquiry and guided by Braun and Clarke’s six-phase thematic analysis, the study sought to humanize leadership by portraying how principals transform adversity into resilience and scarcity into adaptive practice. It addressed six areas: persistent shortages, isolation-related leadership challenges, community co-leadership, adaptive strategies and innovations, effects on identity and well-being, and recommendations for context-responsive interventions. Ten school heads from diverse LMS contexts—mountain, coastal, inland, island, flood-prone, cliff-side, and conflict-affected—participated in in-depth interviews. Their narratives revealed six overarching themes. Persistent shortages highlighted chronic deficits in infrastructure, utilities, and resources that transformed leadership into daily crisis management. Isolation, both geographic and emotional, intensified deprivation and demanded physical endurance and psychological resilience. Community as co-leaders emerged as communities filled institutional gaps through bayanihan and collective responsibility. Adaptive strategies reflected everyday innovation, where leaders and teachers reimagined learning using local materials and improvised spaces. Professional identity and well-being were reshaped by layered roles and emotional strain, yet grounded in moral purpose. Recommendations pointed to recalibrated funding formulas, hazard-resilient infrastructure, offline digital solutions, institutionalized community partnerships, and psychosocial support. The study concludes that leadership in LMS is resilience-driven, communal, and context-responsive. It calls for policies that recognize the human, relational, and moral dimensions of leading at the margins and support sustainable, equity-driven improvements for disadvantaged schools.