Resources for End-of-Semester Planning – Principal Prep and More

As the fall academic semester ends and we turn to planning and early implementation for the next term, now is a prime time to assess what our programs have accomplished and the scope of work that lies ahead. One way to “self-check” is to consider peers’ approaches as well as expert advice to help inform our work – and a convenient opportunity to do so is presented in the archived webinars in the AACTE Resource Library.

New standards are emerging, states are reassessing their foci and processes in light of the new Elementary and Secondary Education Act, major transitions are pending in the Department of Education and elsewhere, and the call for evaluation of outcomes rather than inputs only increases. These topics and others are among the lessons of recent AACTE webinars.

In particular, I invite you to visit (or revisit) the presentations led by participants in the Wallace Foundation’s Principal Pipeline Initiative (PPI) and looking ahead to the brand-new University Preparation Program Initiative for insights on supporting high-quality principal preparation. (AACTE is a communications partner for these initiatives.)

Beginning in fall 2015, four webinars were conducted with key players in participant districts and universities engaged in the PPI. Then this fall, four additional events examined the initiative’s relationship to the partnerships, cross-university and district partnerships, legislative engagement and responses, and the impact of new standards on universities engaged in principal preparation. Presenters also examined accreditation issues and the perspectives of state standards boards and discussed various tools and assessments that have been developed to gather data and improve both preparation programs and the actual work of school leaders.

The holiday period is a propitious time for a cup of coffee and calmer environment in which to reinforce our learning or to garner new ideas and perspectives to help us in our work. I encourage you to visit the AACTE archives and enhance your awareness of options and ideas that may help frame your important work with PK-12 colleagues and across universities.

See below for each webinar’s topic and links to the archives.

Year 1

September 2015 – “Laying the Foundation” webinar / slides

October 2015 – “Building the Partnerships” webinar / slides

November 2015 – “Assessing and Enhancing Commitment” webinar / slides

January 2016 – “Expanding the Framework: A Discussion of the Impact of and New Directions for the Principal Pipeline Initiative” webinar / slides

Year 2

August 2016 – “Engaging With States to Inform Principal and Supervisor Preparation” webinar / slides

September 2016 – “Successful University-District Partnerships to Prepare School Principals” webinar / slides

October 2016 – “How Accrediting Organizations and Standards Can Improve Principal Quality” webinar / slides

November 2016 – “Effective Tools to Support School Leader Licensure and Professional Development: Mentoring, Modeling, and Support” webinar / slides


Tags: , ,

Angela Maynard Sewall

University of Arkansas at Little Rock