The Minnesota Principals' Academy is at the half-way mark. Participants just finished a two-day institute on facilitation where they practiced presenting a portion of the National Institute for School Leadership (NISL) curriculum to one another. This activity is part of the NISL instructor certification process. Each presenter received written feedback from their peers as well as a DVD copy of their presentation. The institute was a valuable and fun experience and will help in preparing for training the next cohort of principals.

Since the last issue of The Leader, NISL curriculum has included principles of learning, teaching and curriculum, leadership for excellence in literacy and math, promoting professional learning, and coaching. Future topics focus on the principal as instructional leader, team builder, and driver of change.

The Minnesota Principals' Academy provides professional development that enhances principals' abilities to lead schools to high performance. The curriculum combines face-to-face instruction in workshops with interactive web-based learning. It gives skills and strategies to deal with the challenges principals face in getting all students to high standards. Those challenges include low expectations, faculty capacity, and lack of time to be an instructional leader.

Starting in June, present participants in the Minnesota Principals' Academy will begin to deliver the NISL curriculum to cohorts of principals across the state. The next cohort of principals will be held at the Department of Education offices in Roseville, beginning on June 14, 2007.