Helping Build New Leaders
St. Louis New Leaders Project begins its second year
In its second year, the New Leaders Project (NLP) in St. Louis aims to prepare aspiring principals for the St. Louis School District. The University of Missouri-Columbia College of Education and its Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis deliver the extensive yearlong principal preparation program and master’s curriculum in collaboration with leadership professionals from the St. Louis public schools.
The New Leaders Project is part of the St. Louis Public Schools’ Wallace LEAD Grant, which encourages successful teachers to become school leaders. “This program is about bettering our community — we are your client and I am speaking on behalf of St. Louis — we need to develop honorable, workable students that can go off to college and then contribute to St. Louis’ economy. This type of change is not possible without real leadership,” said Randy Maier, who works in Community and External Relations for Boeing. “Thank you for saying you want to be a leader, and to make a difference in the St. Louis School District.”
The students will participate in the intensive program, which is designed to enable them to become effective instructional leaders in urban settings. After the summer preparation program, which takes place on MU’s campus, participants continue sessions in St. Louis while serving their yearlong residency under the guidance of an experienced mentor principal from St. Louis’ school district. Betty Porter Walls and Juanita Simmons, who are faculty members in the College of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis, teach the principal preparation courses.
The New Leaders Program is based upon six working assumptions:
- Equity and excellence
- Leadership
- Organizational change
- Collaboration
- Inquiry and reflective practice
- Teaching and learning
Each participant receives a $3,000 stipend, and is designated as an MU Leadership Fellow. Each receives 30 hours of tuition-free, graduate level credit from the University of Missouri leading to a master’s degree and principal certification.
Those selected as new principals after graduation receive continued mentoring and individualized assistance from Mizzou mentors during their induction year. It is critical that a new principal be supported during their first-year. This ongoing professional development, which is included in the New Leader’s Project, is designed to further enhance their leadership skills while in the field.