Welcome to the first edition of the GSE Leadership Programs Year in Review! After publishing the PLI Annual Update for seven years, we are pleased to share the first edition of Year in Review which reports on activities of all Leadership Programs in the Graduate School of Education. Read more to find out about all of the exciting expansions and news!
To begin, consider what PLI development and support of educational leaders would look like if it were scaled up to have impacts state-wide. We feel it would look very much like the 21 Century California School Leadership State and Regional Academy program that PLI is currently implementing in conjunction with UCLA School of Education along with the California Subject Matter Projects at the UC Office of the President. This major three-year project initiated on July 1st of 2020 and funded by the California Department of Education, the State Board of Education, and CCEE is one of the ways that PLI is expanding the reach of its signature programs to serve a wider range of leadership needs to increase equity and achievement outcomes for students across the state. Additionally, PLI is foundational to the development of the new educational doctorate program, Leaders for Equity and Democracy (LEAD), that is currently reviewing applicants for its first cohort of students. To address these developments, PLI has evolved its structure to become the Graduate School of Education’s “Leadership Programs” with Rebecca Cheung as Executive Director and Jabari Mahiri as Faculty Advisor. The Leadership Programs also coordinate more directly with the School’s other Professional Programs within the Committee on Academic Leadership (CAL) that Rebecca and Jabari co-chair. As brief biographies will show, a number of other amazing leaders have been hired with responsibilities for guiding and implementing key aspects of the development of this dynamic new structure. But within it all, the core vision and values of PLI remain the same as it expands to Leadership Programs.
Finally, as the COVID-19 pandemic spills into 2021, we uplift the dedication and commitment of our students and alumni to courageously lead in public schools, creating more equitable learning environments for our most vulnerable students. Together, and with our expanded work, we look forward to our continued work together to fulfill the promise of public education.