How do you capture the time and attention of busy education leaders? Through relevant, hands-on experiences that prepare them for what’s next.
“It’s not about us telling them how to think or what to do,” said Brian Eyer, a former teacher, principal, and principal supervisor who now co-leads professional learning for the Region 4 Comprehensive Center (R4CC). “We bring in people who do the work, day to day. Their stories drive the learning. That is what’s unique.”
The R4CC is supporting state departments of education and school districts to build K-12 leadership pipelines. Across four leadership development programs, a thoughtful focus on practicing essential skills is equipping education leaders for success.
For assistant principals (APs) in Calvert County (MD) Schools, many of whom aspire to be principals, their day-to-day roles are often siloed into one topic, like discipline or instruction. Through the Next Level Leadership Academy, the R4CC supports Calvert County Schools to engage APs in the big-picture work of principals. Participants meet monthly over nine months to cover topics ranging from equity to evidence-based instructional practices, data, and leadership. They also hear directly from sitting principals.
One Calvert assistant principal stated, “I’ve learned more about my own leadership qualities and benefited from the transparency of my colleagues and their willingness to share”. “Networking with other APs in person was refreshing and beneficial.”
At the same time the R4CC is building the capacity of APs, it is also building the professional learning capacity of the Calvert County Schools administrative offices.
“We always build capacity with the team we’re working with,” said Eyer. “We share our ideas but infuse them into the process and remind them that, ultimately, this is their program, not ours.” For the 2023-24 school year, R4CC will work district leaders in Calvert to expand the program to include central office staff and teacher leaders. Calvert County staff will play an increased role in designing and delivering the learning opportunities as part of this project expansion.
In similar fashion The Delaware Department of Education (DDOE) brought on the R4CC beginning in 2019 to support principals and other senior leaders in low-performing schools to develop their skills as instructional leaders. In addition to individualized coaching, the Delaware Leadership Network includes on-the-job training. Through lab days, principals and their supervisors observe each other as they complete classroom observations and then prepare for and hold debrief conversations with teachers. In spring 2023, R4CC will begin to work with school leaders on implementing the new teacher evaluation system, the Delaware Teacher Growth and Support System (DTGSS), with a focus on improving principal feedback and support to teachers.
“There has been a gradual expansion in the system of support. It started as R4CC support to principals in the Network, and then expanded to the coaching of principal supervisors, and now that coaching cascades down to principals who then coach their teachers. The focus of all this is on instructional leadership and reconceptualizing the leadership roles from overseer to support provider…The feedback we get is that this is impacting instructional programming.”
R4CC recently completed The Maryland New Superintendent’s Academy which oriented new district leaders over three targeted sessions and connected them with a network of peers to support their transitions. A Voices from the Field panel of sitting superintendents helps the participants to understand the real challenges of taking leadership. A popular budgeting workshop confronts them with the actual work of budgeting–real numbers and real constraints–paired with expert support.
“As a Superintendent, you always inherit a budget,” said Eyer. “We want to help them see the throughlines in a predecessor’s vision and understand how they can shift discretionary funds to show their own priorities.”
Two focus areas form the foundation for all of R4CC’s leadership pipeline programs: building on personal strengths and equity. The Center uses Gallup’s StrengthsFinder to help leaders identify their individual assets and grow their leadership from that base of strength.
“I will apply everything that I learned,” said a participant. “But if I had to choose one thing, I am walking away as a courageous leader operating out of my leadership strengths with my core value at the center.”
To make equity more tangible, the R4CC regularly pulls data from participants’ schools to use in learning community sessions.
“When we look at their data more deeply, together, they see hidden inequalities and things they never considered,” said Eyer.
The R4CC launched The Maryland Superintendent Academy in August 2022. This year-long professional learning experience is designed to build
Working with the full range of education leaders from schools to districts and state agencies gives R4CC a unique perspective and connection to the work happening on the ground.
“As Comprehensive Centers, our work can sometimes be far removed from the classroom,” said Eyer. “It’s been incredibly valuable to keep those ground-level connections strong while still building capacity in leaders at the highest levels.”
R4CC continues to expand its leadership development work including a partnership with Maryland Association of Elementary School Principals (MAESP) and the Maryland Association of Secondary School Principals (MASSP) to launch a statewide learning opportunity for future assistant principals and principals. And the Eastern Shore of Maryland Education Consortium (ESMEC) to provide professional learning opportunities for first- and second-year principals in nine participating counties.