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The USLF Partnership
USLF was the brainchild of the FCCF, launched in response to identified needs to develop the next generation of urban principals in the Bridgeport, Danbury, Norwalk, and Stamford public schools in Connecticut. FCCF and the four districts partnered with the Connecticut Center for School Change, a not-for-profit educational support organization that consults to districts to improve student outcomes through systemic improvement efforts. The partners then collaborated with faculty at the University of Connecticut’s Institute for Urban School Improvement. Finally, faculty members at Bank Street College and Hofstra University joined the collaboration, with the role of conducting a formative and summative program evaluation.
The USLF program has three goals. The first is that fellows who complete the program have a better understanding of how schools and districts function, the principal’s role, and their own leadership potential and that they improve their ability as effective school leaders. The second is that fellows complete a leadership project that develops their leadership capacity, addresses a student achievement issue in their school, positively influences instruction, and reduces the school’s achievement gap. A final, long-term goal is that within three to five years of program completion, 60 percent to 70 percent of the fellows will become principals.
In its first year (2008–2009), the program served twenty-nine assistant principals and teacher leaders in cohorts of six to ten candidates from each of the four participating districts. To be eligible, participants had to already have state administrative certification. The program did not provide course credits or any additional state-sanctioned professional credential. Since the program costs were fully underwritten by FCCF, there were no direct costs to the districts, although they absorbed significant indirect costs for released time and coverage. Fellows received a $2,000 stipend upon successful completion of the program.
How the Program Works
The USLF program includes a five-day summer institute and monthly all-day seminars during the school year. The curriculum framework draws on the state’s common core of leading, with special attention to two domains: systems thinking, and teaching and learning. The sessions are structured around essential questions such as: What does research suggest about high-quality learning and teaching? What does high-quality teaching and learning look like? What are high-leverage strategies for reducing the achievement gap? What core beliefs inform my personal leadership? What is my leadership style?
USLF is organized as a community of practice and the teaching methods are grounded in adult learning theory, with problem-based learning and critical examinations of problems of practice. The curriculum is delivered through video observations, case studies, readings (e.g., Ron Ferguson, Richard Elmore, John Kotter, Ron Heifetz), and thought-provoking exercises and assignments (e.g., shadowing a student for a day, drafting a theory of action for school improvement). The focus is on putting learning into practice. The daily reflection sheet that fellows complete asks: What did I learn today? How will this impact my practice? How will this help my students? Fellows also undertake individual action-learning projects where they can exercise leadership and take risks. Finally, they produce a portfolio throughout the year-long program to document their leadership development.
How the Districts Support the Program
The four districts have invested substantial amounts of time, money, and intellectual capital in USLF, in several ways:
Districts also provide the authentic contexts for the work, ensuring that USLF is a job-embedded improvement initiative, as opposed to an add-on program. The district leaders – primarily assistant superintendents – serving as program faculty bring considerable experience within and knowledge about urban schools and the particular conditions of their districts to the enterprise. The district leaders supervise the fellows’ work on the leading learning projects, act as their advisors, and mentor them. As part of the USLF faculty, they help fellows connect theoretical notions of leadership (theory of action, accountability, instructional practice, assessment) to the actual practice of district improvement efforts.
