The Effective Educator Development (EED) Division of the U.S. Department of Education hosted the largest Teach to Lead Summit in recent years in Buffalo, New York, September 27-29, 2024. The Fall 2024 Teach to Lead Summit convened twenty-nine (29) educator teams from across the country to engage in focused planning and thought partnership around innovative ideas to improve the educator experience and elevate the education profession. Project ideas focused on a variety of topics reflecting the Secretary’s priorities and conditions in the field. These topics included:
- Recruiting and retaining a talented and diverse educator workforce,
- Developing strong partnerships to build and sustain high quality educator preparation pathways, including Grow Your Own programs and Registered Teacher Apprenticeships,
- Enhancing efforts to improve working conditions and promote a positive school culture,
- Providing high-quality induction and mentoring supports,
- Promoting career advancement and leadership opportunities through high-quality professional learning, or
- Elevating educator voice to transform educational policy and increase impact.
With support from “critical friends” who are experts in their field, teams engaged in a variety of problem-solving activities to fully define their problems of practice through a root cause analysis and the development of a theory of change grounded in a logic model. Critical friend facilitators represented eight Regional Comprehensive Centers, nine organizations committed to improving educational outcomes (Deans for Impact, Discovery Education, Grovider Learning & Evaluation, Insight Education Group, Leadership for Educational Equity fellowship program, National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification, Prepared to Teach, Rhonda Weiss Center for Accessible IDEA Data, and Spirit of Excellence Learning Systems), and one institute of higher education (Voorhees University).
Teams benefitted from two peer consultancy opportunities, facilitated by critical friends. Peer teams were paired with other teams addressing similar project focus areas. During the peer consultancy, teams presented their problems of practice, identified strategies, and desired outcomes. Consulting teams provided valuable insights and perspectives through a series of questioning protocols designed to challenge team members to critically evaluate their theory of change. The peer consultancy is consistently ranked the most valuable aspect of the Teach to Lead experience. An additional consultancy focused on the project pitch. Teams were again paired to share their team pitches and receive feedback in preparation for the Gallery Walk on day 3.
The Fall Summit also provided teams with several learning session opportunities. On the first day teams engaged in a whole-group session focused on understanding the role of the logic model in successful project design and implementation. On day 2, team members were able to select a topical learning session focused on a particular aspect of project implementation and their role in supporting the work: the role of leadership in empowering teacher leaders, strategic communications – the pitch and beyond, and implementation planning. Each of these sessions was designed to provide teams with a wide range of information necessary for the successful implementation of a project. Another component introduced this year was the Team Charter. Throughout the event, teams were encouraged to define the scope of work and commit to their roles in ensuring project success.
The highlight of all Teach to Lead events is the Gallery Walk on day 3. Teams are excited to share their work, make connections with others, and gain additional insights that they can integrate upon their return home. “Trust the Process” is not just something that is said throughout the summit, it is what all participants and critical friends do! The process is challenging, it is hard work, and it is evident in the displays created and presentations shared.
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