The role of school and school system leaders is complex, challenging, and vital to the realization of an equitable and just society. When leaders are culturally responsive, they lead schools and school systems in ways that disrupt systemic barriers and racist structures, and that create learning experiences intentionally built to meet the needs of every child. Being culturally responsive is the work at the heart of making school systems more equitable.
A strategic approach is essential for making authentic and sustainable growth and change. We help leaders and their teams conduct equity-informed assessments of systems, policies, and practices, and use those findings to prioritize needs and develop and implement longer-term strategies. We provide and can customize professional learning that develops culturally responsive leaders equipped with the knowledge, skills, and resources to advance equity, including reflecting on their personal equity journey, defining and observing culturally responsive instruction, and building school and family coalitions.
New principals face a unique set of challenges in their earliest years in the role. Assimilating to a new school environment while acting as instructional leader, strategist, problem-solver, visionary, and change-maker results in a steep learning curve for new school ...
Leadership coaches make us better versions of ourselves. They provide perspective, help us see aspects of ourselves we might not be aware of or want to see, and motivate and support us to do our work more effectively. A strong ...
Creating learning environments for students that reflect the diversity of their cultural and life experiences is central to their ability to be successful as learners. When education leaders are culturally responsive, they help foster classroom spaces where students experience academic ...
District-level education leaders face an ever-expanding set of challenges in their roles and require opportunities for pause and reflection. To enact meaningful change, leaders must step back from their normal routines and re-center themselves in building community and strengthening critical ...
High-quality instructional materials (HQIM) help students to meet their highest potential and learn how to collaborate, investigate, and solve complex problems. As more districts shift to HQIM, teachers need access to effective professional development that best prepares them to successfully ...
When students see educators who look like them, they do better in school – their attendance improves, disciplinary incidents drop, and they learn more and are more likely to graduate in four years. But too few young people of color ...
To move the needle on educational equity in schools, system leadership must develop clearly articulated and actionable equity-focused strategic plans with ambitious goals and innovative solutions to accomplish those goals. Using our Equity at Work strategic planning guide as a ...
The Leadership Academy’s equity audit process enables school systems to diagnose the current state of equity (including examining the impact of COVID-19) and identify focal points and recommended strategies for making improvements. Our equity audit process is unique and effective ...
To develop and maintain culturally responsive classrooms, school and district leaders must build their capacity to evaluate classroom instruction through a culturally responsive lens and provide actionable feedback based on classroom observation. Observing Culturally Responsive Instruction enables school and district ...
Leadership coaching helps education leaders take on adaptive challenges that require shifts in mindset and behavior and keeps leaders in their jobs longer and making progress. The most impactful coaches help school and system leaders identify and address inequities in pursuit ...
A workshop series with four days of flexible content delivered in your district or system that builds the capacity of district/network and school leaders to identify, confront and address the inequities in our schools. The foundation for this program is ...
Our free self-assessment tool provides a framework for school and district leaders to evaluate the state of equity in their school system and to identify and prioritize areas for improvement. The assessment focuses both on school and system leadership (collectively) ...