Providing employees of all classifications with the opportunity to develop as leaders is a critical component in the successful attainment of organizational goals and competitive organizational advantage. Effective leadership development programs offer the tools, experiences, and resources needed to cultivate the important skills and abilities…

School leadership is a critical factor in school improvement. The Delaware Department of Education (DDOE) and Region 4 Comprehensive Center (R4CC) have strengthened school leadership through implementation of the Delaware Leadership Network and the Delaware Principal Supervisor Leadership Program. These two major efforts, collaboratively designed…

The purpose of this longitudinal quantitative study was to determine the academic impact of the Leader in Me process on a public elementary school in Delaware as it relates to growth in reading and mathematics using the Measures of Academic Progress. This longitudinal case study focused on determining if a significant statistical difference…

Teacher professional development (PD) programs ideally evaluate how professional learning experiences empower teachers to be effective change agents in their disciplines and communities. The Khbrat ["experiences" in Arabic] program is a year-long, global teacher PD initiative launched by the Saudi Ministry of Education. The goal is to…

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, State Education Agencies (SEAs) had to quickly move professional learning (PL) opportunities for educators to a virtual environment. This state spotlight presents how the Delaware Department of Education (DDOE) implemented virtual collaborative book studies to develop the expertise and build the capacity of state,…

New Castle County Vocational Technical School District (NCCVT) is a vocational school district in Delaware consisting of four high schools. NCCVT's vision "is to deliver world-class Career and Technical programs combined with rigorous academic curricula to equip students with the 21st century skills that will best serve the State of Delaware…

Wesley College secured a five-year National Science Foundation (NSF) S-STEM (scholarships in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) grant (1355554) to provide affordability and access to its robust STEM programs. With these funds, the college initiated a freshman to senior level, mixed-cohort, Cannon Scholar (CS) learning community…

This executive position paper proposes recommendations for a statewide comprehensive career and technical education Leadership Development Program. These recommendations are based on the comprehensive Leadership Development Program designed and executed at Sussex Technical High School. The Sussex Tech comprehensive Leadership Development Program…

Reforms of the scope and scale of those being undertaken by States today require the development of strong leaders at all levels of organizations to manage the change required by these and other initiatives. State education agencies (SEAs) can use this competency framework and accompanying exercise guide to build the skills, knowledge and…

In 2014 Wesley College adopted a unified undergraduate program of evidence-based high-impact teaching practices. Through foundation and federal and state grant support, the college completely revised its academic core curriculum and strengthened its academic support structures by including a comprehensive early alert system for at-risk students.…

The following profiles address how the state departments of education are helping educators prepare for and implement the Common Core and aligned assessments through professional learning. The major professional development efforts around the Common Core were examined in order to understand the overall efforts of each state. An exhaustive list of…

The move toward teacher leadership is one answer to the dilemma of school leadership. The task of school leadership has become too complex and demanding for one person. Nurturing teacher leaders helps districts strengthen school leadership, aids in teacher retention, and sustains school reform. This need for more teacher involvement in leadership…

Teachers have the greatest school-based effect on the achievement of any child in their classrooms, but highly effective principals can positively affect the achievement of every student in their schools. The difference between a highly effective principal and an average one is equal to two-to-seven months of extra learning per year for each child…

Locally controlled public schools are one of the cornerstones of our nation's democracy, yet many schools are not preparing students for success. Far too many students are not graduating, and many of those who do graduate are woefully unprepared for college or a meaningful career. Successfully initiating and sustaining meaningful improvements in…

Since 2000, The Wallace Foundation, nationally recognized for its involvement in educational programs, has supported efforts to improve the training and conditions of school leaders to better enable them to improve student achievement. One of these efforts in Delaware was the development of district level aspiring leadership development programs.…