IEL Doubles Down on a Place-Based Strategy to Promote Racial, Disability Inclusion, and Education and Economic Equity

Welcome IEL’s four new Regional Deputy Directors

Four Regional Deputy Directors join the IEL team to support our organization’s place-based strategy work, which strengthens our Coalition for Community Schools’ efforts to scale Community Schools in the Midwest, South, Northeast, and Western regions of the country. Building on IEL’s trusting relationships and core practices of leadership and partnership development, our goal is to co-create and promote cross-sector ecosystems of support that measurably improve local community-wide outcomes, foster collaboration, and create more equitable access and opportunity for all. The Regional Deputy Directors will work to align IEL’s various bodies of work (Community Schools, Workforce Development, Disability Inclusion, Policy and Advocacy, and Family and Community Engagement) in local communities by: providing and brokering technical assistance, supporting leaders through network engagement, aligning advocacy efforts in states and regions, leveraging community wisdom and voice to maximize impact, and developing the capacity of leaders through professional development and coaching.

We welcome our new Regional Deputy Directors:

Get to know our new Regional Directors here!

We are also excited to announce the following key new and updated roles that will support IEL’s place-based strategy:

Since 1964, IEL has championed the need for leaders at all levels to disrupt and reimagine inequitable systems and work together to address the needs of children, youth, and families. IEL’s programs have helped define national and state policies in education and workforce development, enabled leaders to build collaborative strategies that get results, and assisted practitioners to implement quality practices, leading to better outcomes for our young people.

IEL is the intermediary lead partner of the Coalition. Formed in 1997, the Coalition for Community Schools is a nation-wide alliance of local, state, and national partners who envision public schools as centers for creating flourishing communities where everyone belongs, works together, and thrives. IEL is excited about fully realizing the vision of its place-based strategy and the growth of the Community School movement to promote harmony, practice democracy, and progress equity. At this defining moment for our country, IEL is poised to boldly advocate for, and with, the most historically marginalized communities and nurture leadership and growth at all levels in the pursuit of equity and justice.