About the Leadership
Initiative
Goal:
 The goal of the Leadership Initiative is to provide professional
development opportunities that assist leaders across educational
disciplines in improving student achievement, including students
with disabilities. Through a variety of interactive sessions with
job-embedded, reflective opportunities, educational leaders engage
with their peers to collaboratively examine relevant issues.
History:
The Leadership Initiative was created in 1998 to
assist administrators from all educational disciplines with resources
and supports to enhance instruction and effectively meet the needs
of all students, including students with disabilities. This initiative
was designed to provide administrators with a more relevant and
cohesive program of professional development offerings.
The Leadership Initiative is the merger of several previously
distinct professional development activities which are now combined
into one comprehensive initiative:
• Enhancing Instructional Programs
Within Schools: Training in Special Education Administration for
Principals and Other Administrators: comprehensive seven-day training
program focused on special education administration. It involves
specific competencies in systems change and the unification of special
and general education as per Connecticut's
Standards for School Leaders. The program combines interactive
seminars with job-embedded reflection to assist participants with
application and utilization of information in educational practice.
The Connecticut State Department of Education has agreed to accept
full participation in all sessions and documentation of post-activity
application as fulfillment of the 36 clock-hour special education
certification requirement.
• Series on Supervision and Evaluation:
workshops focusing on issues directly related to the supervision
and evaluation of instructional staff. The Connecticut State Department
of Education has agreed to accept participation in each session
as partial requirements for P.A. 95-58 which mandates 15 hours of
training (or 1.5 CEUs) in supervision and evaluation during a five
year CEU cycle.
• ConnCASE Leadership Forums: designed
to facilitate dialogue between special education administrators
and representatives of the Connecticut State Department of Education,
Bureau of Special Education and Pupil Services, on current issues
in special education. Other similar programs also address relevant
topics in special education for all administrators.
• Advanced Topics in Leadership: professional
development opportunities focused on specific administrative skills.
SERC receives ongoing assistance in the
design and delivery of this program through collaboration with the
Connecticut State Department of Education, Connecticut Council of
Administrators of Special Education (ConnCASE), and SERC's Principals'
Advisory Group.
The Principals' Advisory Group, created
in 1986, was an unanticipated outcome of the Training for Principals
in Special Education Administration Program. Upon completion of
this training on special education administration, participants
are welcome to become members of the advisory group. This cadre
of administrators meet informally with the Director of SERC and
other SERC and Connecticut State Department of Education staff with
respect to the Leadership Initiative to provide input
regarding professional development of interest to educational leaders.
Districts that are currently represented within the Principals'
Advisory Group include: Baltic, Bloomfield, Chaplin, Danbury, Essex,
Guilford, Madison, Middletown, New Britain, New Canaan, New Fairfield,
North Branford, New Haven, North Haven, Orange, Preston, Putnam,
Stafford, Thomaston, Tolland, Southington, Vernon, Wallingford,
Waterbury, and West Haven.
For the past four years, the Connecticut State
Department of Education has recognized the Training in Special Education
Administration for Principals and Other Administrators Program as
fulfilling the 36-clock hour necessary for administrators to receive
special education certification. The series on Supervision and Evaluation
has been designed to meet partial requirement for P.A. 95-98, which
mandates 15 hours of training (or 1.5 CEUs) in supervision and evaluation
skills during a five year CEU cycle.
Should you have any questions regarding the Leadership
Initiative, please contact David R. Grice, Consultant at SERC,
(860) 632-1485 (ext. 343).
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Initiatives
