Summer Principals Academy

Overview:

 

Aspiring school leaders pursue coursework and skill development at Teachers College, Columbia University over two consecutive summers and undertake site-based research projects and internships at their schools of employment during the intervening year.  The cohort program allows them to balance full-time employment with graduate study drawing on a diverse group of talented educators whose obligations preclude them from attending courses during the traditional 15-week semester or for whom distance is a barrier to attendance.  The program is 36 credits, is completed in two consecutive summers, and leads to a M.A.or Ed.M degree and School Building Leader Certification in New York State (New York has reciprocity with many states). 

Our Cohort Model:

 

SPA is a cohort program enrolling over 160 graduate students each year in a rigorous 14 month, 36 credit program.  The schedule supports the reality of aspiring principals who are currently working teachers, team leaders, department chairs or supervisors who cannot afford to leave their schools or programs to attend full-time.

 

The cohort model offers two intensive summer courses of study for six weeks each (12 credits per each 6 weeks), a three credit Program Development course that uses a mixed delivery (online  and  including a winter call back workshop), as well as continuous support for students throughout their academic year (including the 6 credit public school leadership internship). The summer academic schedule is Monday-Friday, 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM.  In addition to a rigorous curriculum, cohort members also enjoy the benefits of meditation-based reflection, emotional intelligence training and development activities such as mock interview workshops, panel discussions and performances reflecting the arts in leadership.

 

Innovative leadership training programs point to the cohort as one of the most significant attributes of professional development. Both professional and personal bonds develop, creating networks of friendship and support that last throughout careers. By working in teams, our students develop experience in pooling their knowledge, talents, and perspectives with others. They see not only that teamwork can lead to better solutions, but that it leads to increased commitment as well. When stakeholders are involved in decision-making early on, they are far more likely to be invested in the outcome.

 

The New School Design Project is the culmination of academic preparation for the Summer Principals Academy. These presentations showcase the efforts that our aspiring principals have made over the14 months to integrate the knowledge and skills they have developed while preparing for leadership service in schools across the nation. They provide our graduating academy fellows with an opportunity to highlight their plans for what an ideal new school should look like in order to meet the unique challenges facing urban schools today. The event offers other educational community leaders the opportunity to share their insights and expertise regarding how to close achievement gaps effectively through the design of innovative and high-performing schools.  Cohort members organize themselves into small groups based on similar interests and ideas and work throughout their second summer to design and present on the new school concept in their ideal world scenario. 

Partnership with the Lincoln Center Institute:

 

Lincoln Center Institute for the Arts in Education (LCI) is the educational cornerstone of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Inc. LCI believes that the arts enrich our schools, enliven our classrooms, and engage our students in exploring possibilities. LCI is driven by its conviction that the imagination is an essential cognitive skill that can and should be taught. The Institute has applied imaginative learning in classrooms for 35 years.

 

At the core of the Institute’s practice are direct encounters with live works of art. These encounters are provided through a partnership between our partnering educators and our Teaching Artists, professionally developed by LCI staff. LCI’s unique approach engages each student in an academically rigorous, content-rich environment in which the arts unlock imaginative thinking in all subjects.

 

LCI offers professional development for educators throughout the year and works closely with teachers to co-plan and implement instructional units focused on a work of art selected from our repertory presented by world class artists.

 

Over the past three years LCI and SPA have collaborated to bring the arts and LCI’s approach to imaginative teaching and learning into the hands of future principals in the SPA program, by offering workshops to our cohort members both during the program and for the SPA alumni community after the program.  For more information regarding the Lincoln Center Institute, please visit their website:  www.lcinstitute.org

After the Program:

 

Graduates of the Summer Principals Academy earn a master’s degree and can become certified principals in NY State after successfully passing the certification examination.  Graduates of the program receive a Master of Arts (M.A.) or Master of Education (Ed.M.).  The intensive 14-month program of study includes developmental workshops, self-awareness training and a site-based internship which together provide our members with the necessary skills to join the leadership ranks of education.  Upon graduation, students select from a variety of options including founding new schools, taking principal and other administrative positions like Assistant Principal roles at various public and charter schools around the country, Directors of Curriculum, Deans of Students, Program Coordinators, while some elect to continue in the classroom as teacher leaders at all levels of the K-12 system.  The majority (over 90%) of our graduating students remains committed to employment in urban school systems and the vast majority of New York City graduates remain within New York City’s five boroughs.