The purpose this study was to determine the status of educational leadership practices and to identify the factors that to identify the strategies which were used to strengthen the educational leadership practices in secondary schools of south Gondar zone. To achieve the objectives of the study, the assessments of 8 educational leadership functions:- planning, goal clarification, supervision, follow up/ controlling, research work, professional development, provision of instructional materials and evaluation were carried out. A descriptive survey method of research was used in the study. To do these 9 secondary schools were selected as a sample by using simple random sampling from the 30 Secondary schools in the zone. Of these sample schools, 9 principals, comprehensively and 157 teachers were also selected by stratified random sampling. In the process of data collection, 9 school leaders, 14 7 teachers responded and returned the questionnaire and all supervisors an'd Woreda education officers were interviewed. Based on their responses, percentage and one sample t-test were employed for personal information, practices and challenges and strategies respectively. The open ended question and responses of the interviewees were interpreted qualitatively. It was found that from the aforementioned 8 job functions of EL, 6 of them were exercised above average by educational leaders whereas, function-5 and 6 (staff development and research work) were exercised below the average by educational leaders. Regarding the factors this study revealed that lack of professional related training and unwillingness to take risk were the main personal factors that influenced ELP moderately. Of the organizational factors all of them are found to be affecting ELP highly. Concerning on environmental factors, the study revealed that only interference of political leaders in school decisions influenced ELP moderately. However, all the rest organizational factors affected highly. In general, based on the commutative mean value of personal, organizational and environmental factors, it can be concluded that all factors affected ELP above aueraqe. Besides to this the strategies are found to be exercised below average. To solve the above problem of ELP, the woreda in collaboration with zone, region and MOE should provide continuous training for personal factors of EL. Regarding organizational factors EL in collaboration with community, woreda education office as well as AREB should fulfill the human, finance, material resources timely and get ready to minimize their over work ..... load and provide different means of incentives for EL. Similarly, higher authorities should support and guide professionally, minimize their additional works, (i.e. political and other societal affairs), recruit, select, assign and transfer teachers timely before the beginning of the school year. In addition, EL in collaboration with woreda as well as AREB and MOE shouldJrY to mobilize KETB, PTA and the community as a whole to have active participation in the teaching learning process. Finally, AREB, MOE the zone and woreda education office should give due emphasis in encouraging ELs by making practical motivating strategies.