His primary research focuses on PK-12 organizational issues in education including staffing, human resources development, succession planning for school administrators, and school finance issues. His recent work includes “Planning for Principal Succession: A Conceptual Framework for Research and Practice” (Journal of School Leadership, 2014) and “Assessing the Performance of a Cohort-Based Doctoral Program Overseas Using Both International and Domestic Practices” (submitted, 2015). Lou earned his Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh. Lou's 1889 publications