Today’s principal supervisors are essential to student success. As dynamic instructional leaders, skilled coaches, strategic thinkers, and facilitators of professional growth, they play a vital role in building principals’ capacity to lead for instructional excellence. On May 13th, The Leadership Academy hosted Principal Supervision that Transforms Learning and Leadership, a free webinar exploring how some of the best are making it all happen.
The Leadership Academy’s Nicole Cathey—a facilitator of our own Transformative Principal Supervision program—convened a panel of six outstanding principal supervisors who are working to make positive change in their districts. The panel featured:
- Dr. Heather Benfield, Assistant Superintendent – Middle Schools
Jefferson County Public Schools - LaShell Diggs, Director of Instruction – Elementary & TK-8 Schools
Long Beach Unified School District - Dr. Joseph Ellison, Assistant Superintendent for High Schools
Jefferson County Public Schools - Damon Jespersen, Director of Instruction, Elementary and TK-8 Schools
Long Beach Unified School District - Aprille Shafto, Instructional Assistant Superintendent
Sacramento City Unified School District - Dr. Gianfranco Tornatore, Director – Continuous Improvement & LCAP Supervisor
San Juan Unified School District
Throughout the hour-long discussion, the team of leaders, who are also alumni of TPS, unpacked what success as a principal supervisor looks like within their particular districts. They highlighted how they coach principals to lead with vision and purpose, build relationships and navigate complex systems, and align school leadership with district strategies.
“In order to help principals uplift board and district goals— reading, math, student outcomes, and college and career readiness—our priority as principal supervisors is to develop the leaders, and through them, teacher practices,” said Diggs.
To hear more from these impactful leaders and how they’re making a difference, access the webinar recording here.