For any new program to be truly groundbreaking and change current practice, program designers, facilitators, and managers should welcome and channel the perspectives of expert thought leaders. NYC Leadership Academy (NYCLA) has embraced this approach with our federally-funded Investing in Innovation (i3) Teaming Model. To increase the likelihood of success for this program, we formed a 13-person Advisory Committee that has played an integral role in ensuring the implementation, continued refinement, and evaluation of this program.
Now wrapping up its pilot year, the Teaming Model pairs aspiring principals and assistant principals during their leadership development program period with the intention of placing – from the moment they assume leadership in a NYC school – an effective, supported two-person leadership team. The Teaming Model provides expanded coaching support for these administrative teams over the course of the first three years of their tenure. The ultimate goal of the Teaming Model is to create a successful model of school leadership team preparation and support, which is designed to prepare leaders to turn around failing schools and to be replicated in other districts.
Chaired by Elizabeth (Liz) City, Lecturer on Education and Faculty Director – Doctor of Education Leadership Program, Harvard Graduate School of Education, this accomplished group of educational professionals, who are dedicated to school turnaround and leadership development, have met and will continue to meet frequently. Each meeting has been anchored by a presentation of current problems of practices that lead to insightful suggestions. These advisory committee member suggestions have contributed significantly to the program’s goals of building NCYLA organizational capacity and improving student outcomes in the schools in which these leader teams are placed.
Teaming Model Advisory Committee members include:
- Elizabeth City (chair), Lecturer on Education and Faculty Director – Doctor of Education Leadership Program, Harvard Graduate School of Education
- Ann Blakeney Clark, Superintendent, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
- Marina Cofield, Deputy Chief Academic Officer, NYC Department of Education
- Rachel Curtis, Independent Education Consultant, Human Capital Strategies for Urban Schools
- Deborah Doordan, Executive Director, Innovative Schools Delaware
- Dolores Esposito, Executive Superintendent of Leadership, NYC Department of Education
- Michelle Jarney, Associate Vice President of Leadership Support Programs, NYC Leadership Academy
- Doug Knecht, Director, Bank Street Education Center
- Michelle Pierre-Farid, Chief Academic Officer, Cleveland Metropolitan School District
- Liliana Polo-McKenna, National Leadership Development Strategist, NYC Leadership Academy
- Jody Spiro, Director of Education Leadership, The Wallace Foundation
- Steve Tozer, Director and Founding Coordinator of the Center for Urban Education Leadership, University of Illinois at Chicago
- Irma Zardoya, President & CEO, NYC Leadership Academy
The benefits of working with the Advisory Committee have expanded beyond the scope of the Teaming Model. For example, NYCLA staff members recently visited Steve Tozer, Professor, and his team at the University of Chicago, Illinois to learn about the doctorate in Education (Ed.D) program, which he founded. The Ed.D. Urban Education Leadership program is the University’s first professional Ed.D. program and has received national exemplary practice awards from leading academic and policy organizations such as the University Council of Education Administration, the Council of the Great City Schools, and the Bush Institute’s Alliance to Reform Education Leadership. Steve and his colleagues engaged with our staff members in a dialogue that will allow us to further strengthen our nationally recognized programs for current and future leaders and to capture the impact of our work in new ways. This meeting provided a unique opportunity for both organizations to share best practices in training and supporting effective school leaders.
For more information on our Teaming Model or Advisory Committee, contact us.