Preparing Leaders

External accountability, high-stakes testing, and a focus on international rankings dominate much of the global education reform conversations. What will it take to flip the system and empower those closest to the children and youth—our teachers—to redesign an equity-driven approach to education? IEL recently penned a piece on strategies and practices that schools use to […]

In November, district leaders from across the country gathered in Nashville, Tenn. a learning lab focused on family and community engagement practices and strategies. Leaders also had the opportunity to participate in a district-wide family engagement summit to learn more about Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools’ efforts in this area and to hear from community-based organizations

Dr. June Atkinson holds many roles: state superintendent of North Carolina, president of the Council of Chief State School Officers, and IEL board member. She spoke with the Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP)—she’s a 1985 alum of the North Carolina cohort—and shared her thoughts on the value of career and technical education, being a female

Working in partnership with the East Carolina University (ECU) College of Education and the UCEA Center for Educational Leadership and Social Justice at Duquesne University, IEL successfully launched our first summer institute on July 20-24, 2015 at ECU in Greenville, NC. Unlike a major conference, the four-day summer learning exchange “Breathing Joy and Justice into

California State Board of Education President Michael Kirst spoke with IEL before his July AERA/IEL Educational Policy Forum. He shared experiences from his career, leadership lessons, and thoughts on the changing California policy landscape. Kirst emphasized the importance of building coalitions to lead across boundaries. “I hope to get education leaders and policymakers in a

Since 2013, Education Week has highlighted outstanding school district leaders. Its Leaders To Learn From report profiles leaders in 16 focus areas, including family and community engagement. For the third year, a member of IEL’s District Leaders Network on Family and Community Engagement was recognized as an exceptional district-level leader. This year, Education Week honored Patricia Spradley,

June 10 was a momentous day for IEL’s Education Policy Fellowship Program—our Michigan site celebrated its 40th anniversary! In honor of this milestone, both the Michigan House of Representatives and State Senate recognized the program’s history and the positive impact it has had on the state through special tributes. At a celebratory event at Michigan

IEL and East Carolina University are launching an annual summer Leadership Learning Exchange. The first Learning Exchange, Breathe Joy and Justice into School and Community Leadership, will be in Greenville, N. Car. from July 19-23. Using diverse learning platforms and rich leadership support approaches, the event will provide an intense professional learning experience for teams

Maurice Sykes (DC EPFP ’78-79), director of the Early Childhood Leadership institute at the University of the District of Columbia, is an IEL Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP) alumnus. Sykes recently shared his EPFP experience, saying, “EPFP was the most powerful professional development I had in my career… We had a broad range of opportunities

This year, IEL’s signature program, the Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP), celebrated 50 years of developing leaders. IEL published a retrospective, Fifty Years of Growing Policy-Savvy Leaders-and More to Come, highlighting EPFP’s five decades as catalyst, guide, and premier cross-boundary leadership development opportunity. With 8,000+ alumni and 260 fellows annually, EPFP impacts individuals by increasing