NPBEA Approves Revised Standards for School Leaders
Last week, the National Policy Board for Educational Administration (NPBEA) voted unanimously to approve revised standards for education leaders. The 2015 Professional Standards for Educational Leaders, formerly known as the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (ISLLC) standards, are currently available in summary form and will be published officially next month.
The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), which owns the standards’ copyright, worked closely with other members of NPBEA to refresh the ISLLC standards, which were first published in 1996 and last updated in 2008. The revision was supported by a grant from the Wallace Foundation and informed by multiple public comment periods and focus groups, culminating in an NPBEA working group charged with finalizing the standards based on feedback from more than 1,000 principals, superintendents, and others in the field.
According to a press release issued by CCSSO, the 2015 Professional Standards for Educational Leaders “have been recast with a stronger, clearer emphasis on students and student learning. The 10 standards describe foundational principles of leadership than can help to make sure every child is well-educated and prepared for the 21st century, with a strong emphasis on educational equity. The updated standards also elevate areas of educational leader work that were once not well understood or deemed less relevant but have since been shown to contribute to student learning, such as managing change within schools and creating cultures of continuous improvement. In addition, one standard describes the ethical obligations of district and school leaders.”
The professional standards are voluntary but widely used or adapted to inform program accreditation, licensure, and evaluation of school leaders in various roles.
AACTE is represented on NPBEA by President/CEO Sharon P. Robinson and Vice President Rodrick Lucero. In addition to CCSSO, other members of the policy board include AASA: The School Superintendents Association, the Association of School Business Officials International, the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, the National Council of Professors of Educational Administration, and the University Council for Educational Administration.
Tags: AACTE partner organizations, principal preparation
