Abstract

Humanistic leadership emphasizes empathy, human-centered values, and transformational practices that enhance teacher well-being, professional growth, and school climate. Effective leadership is critical to fostering positive teacher–leader relationships in public schools. This study examined the extent to which school heads in the Schools Division of Palawan demonstrate humanistic leadership practices and provide professional and personal support to teachers. Specifically, it assessed Human-Centered, Empathetic, and Transformational Leadership Practices, evaluated professional and personal support, and identified challenges encountered in teacher–leader relationships. A sequential explanatory mixed-methods descriptive design was employed. Quantitative data were collected from 227 teachers in the Aborlan District using a validated self-administered survey, followed by qualitative insights from open-ended responses. Descriptive statistics determined central tendencies, and thematic analysis identified patterns across leadership dimensions and support systems. School heads exhibited a Highly Humanistic leadership profile. Human-Centered and Transformational Leadership Practices were rated Very High (Median = 5.00), reflecting strong focus on instructional leadership and organizational development. Empathetic Leadership Practices were rated Moderately Humanistic (Median = 3.00), indicating inconsistencies in emotional responsiveness and individualized attention. Teachers identified challenges including limited empathy, insufficient mentoring, lack of recognition, minimal attention to mental health and work–life balance, and gaps in professional support and feedback. Findings informed the design of the Humanistic Empowerment Leadership Program (HELP), a structured intervention to enhance empathetic communication, human-centered supervision, and transformational mentoring through five phases: Leadership Orientation and Advocacy, Capacity Building, Mentoring and Coaching, Monitoring and Evaluation, and Recognition and Sharing.