Presentation given to New Teacher Center for administrators and teachers making a compelling case for teacher leader initiatives as a means of recruiting and retaining great teachers.

1. INVESTING IN TEACHER
LEADERSHIP AS AN
EQUITY IMPERATIVE
Jan Fitzsimmons and Glenn “Max” McGee
New Teacher Center Symposium 2020
February 10, 2020

2. The single most critical EQUITY
issue nationwide is the teacher
shortage; specifically, recruitment
and retention of a high quality,
diverse teacher workforce.
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3. Teacher Shortage: Recruitment
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4. Teacher Shortage: Diversity
The shortages are especially severe in California. In
2017, LPI found that two-thirds of principals in high-
poverty schools left positions vacant or hired less-
qualified teachers. Less than half of their
counterparts in schools with fewer lower-income
students did so.
According to Advance Illinois, in 2017, 90 percent of
teacher vacancies in the state – 1,006 positions in all
– were in underfunded school districts. Seventy-four
percent were in majority-minority school districts,
and 81 percent were in low-income districts.
http://neatoday.org/2019/04/03/how-bad-is-the-teacher-shortage/
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5. https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/und
erstanding-teacher-shortages-interactive
National average <20%
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6. Not only are we letting
top teaching talent slip
away, we are literally
paying the price for losing
them … Estimates for the
annual national cost of
teacher turnover run as
high as $7.3 billion ...
But more importantly,
failure to retain effective
teachers is costing
students.
http://www.teachplus.org/sites/default/files/publication/pdf/decade-plus_final.pdf
Let’s talk Teacher
Retention
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7. RECRUITING
TEACHERS OF COLOR
ONLY GETS THEM
INTO THE BUILDING.
WE MUST PAY EQUAL,
IF NOT MORE,
ATTENTION TO THEIR
RETENTION TO MAKE
LONG-LASTING
CHANGE IN THE
DIVERSITY OF THE
WORKFORCE.
https://teachplus.org/sites/default/files/downloads/teachers_of_color_retention_.pdf
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8. https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/understanding-teacher-shortages-interactive

9. 8

10. What is the source of “dissatisfaction”?
Working conditions
• Work load
• Work/life balance
Leadership issues
• Autonomy
• Respect
• Appreciation
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11. Observations from 200 school visits
“We find PEAK (purpose,
essentials, agency,
knowledge) cultures in our
innovative businesses and
non-profits where
employees have the
agency to discover and
invent. But we don’t find
PEAK in most schools.”
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12. How can we recruit and retain the best?
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13. Invest in a culture of trust
“A change in trust in management of just one-third of a standard
deviation [~10%] has the same life satisfaction effect as a 31%
change in income,” or as Covey, Link, and Merrill summarize in
The Speed of Trust: “A 10% increase in trust has the same effect
as a 30% increase in pay. ”
With the financial challenges facing school districts in every state
across the country, investing in trust makes sound financial sense
and is likely to increase teacher retention rate and be a
competitive advantage for recruitment.
Helliwell, John F. and Huang, Haifant (2008) “Well-being
and trust in the workplace” NATIONAL BUREAU OF
ECONOMIC RESEARCH 1050 Massachusetts
Avenue Cambridge, MA. NBER WORKING PAPER 14589
http://www.nber.org/papers/w14589
We first have to
TRUST teachers to
be leaders 12

14. The Education Commission of the States reports:
On the path to strengthen teacher pipelines,
support excellent teaching and improve retention,
many states have developed opportunities for
teacher leadership and advancement.
https://www.ecs.org/50-state-comparison-teacher-
leadership-and-licensure-advancement/

15. Studies on teacher retention and attrition have suggested
that more than 40 percent of of all teachers leave the
profession within their first five years, and that high-
poverty, high-minority public schools have even higher
rates of turnover.
Teachers with 10 or fewer years of experience now make
up 45 percent of the overall teaching force. Research on
the attitudes of these teachers indicates they want to grow
as teachers and leaders and serve in different capacities as
educators over their career, but by and large, these needs
aren’t met by the education system.
Ingersoll, R., Merrill, L., & Stuckey, D. (2014). Seven trends: the transformation of the teaching force, updated April 2014. CPRE Report (#RR-80). Philadelphia:
Consortium for Policy Research in Education, University of Pennsylvania.
Coggshall, J.G., Behrstock-Sherratt, E., & Drill, K. (April 2011). Workplaces that Support High-Performing Teaching and Learning: Insights from Generation Y
Teachers. American Institutes for Research and the American Federation of Teachers. Retrieved from http://www.air.org/files/AFT_AIR_GenY_Workplaces_
April2011. pdf. See also Coggins, C. & Peske, H. (2011). New Teachers Are the New Majority. Education Week, 30 (17), pp. 21-23. Retrieved from
http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2011/01/19/17coggins.h30. html?tkn=XMRFpzAqnYrEqoP3VoaV9Y%2FAD1QNRZ%2FSD2Q4&intc=es.
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16. One reason for this high attrition rate is the dearth
of opportunities for teachers to grow and lead
Research into how to motivate and retain early
career teachers indicates that they want leadership
roles and dedicated time for teacher leadership.
While some teachers are inherently committed to
lifetime careers in teaching, for those on the fence,
opportunities for leadership can make the
difference.
Coggshall, J., Lasagna, M., & Laine, S. (August 2009). Toward the Structural Transformation of Schools:
Innovations in Staffing. Learning Point Associates. Retrieved from
http://www.learningpt.org/expertise/educatorquality/resources/publications/InnovationsInStaffing.pdf.12
Coggins, C. and McGovern, K. (2014). Five Goals for Teacher Leadership. Phi Delta Kappan, 95 (7), 15-21 15

17. A great idea – “stay” interviews
Skye Duckett, Chief HR Officer for Atlanta
Public Schools, says about 70% of the system’s
leaders conduct these optional interviews …
stay interviews revealed that top teachers
believed the district lacked leadership or
career growth opportunities so … [they]
established career pathways and an aspiring
leadership program.
Patton, C. “Why do employees stay?” District Administration,February 2020, p. 14 16

18. An Array of Leadership Roles
• Mentor / Coach
• Advisor – grade, department, school, and district
• Team leader / department chair
• Ambassador
• Special Assignment – internal and external
• Coordinator
• Summer school administrators
• Professional Learning Providers
• Initiative / strategic goals leader
• Association / union roles
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19. Growing Self and Others as
Teacher Leaders
• Identifying potential
leadership roles
• Setting and sharing
your leadership goals
• Creating a leadership
role where one does
not exist
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20. Our three case studies
• Mentor – LILY
• Shared Decision
Maker - ALESE
• Special Outside
Assignment - FLORENCE
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21. There are signs of progress!
• Thirty states have a licensing system in place that allows
teachers to advance beyond a standard professional license.
In 17 of these states, teachers are required to demonstrate
evidence of effectiveness, either in addition to or in place of
other tasks, in order to obtain an advanced license.
• Twenty-two states offer a teacher leader license or
endorsement.
• Seventeen states have adopted teacher leader standards; 13
states prescribe the role of the teacher leader in statute or
regulation.
• Twenty-four states provide formal supports and/or
incentives to teacher leaders.
• https://www.ecs.org/50-state-comparison-teacher-
leadership-and-licensure-advancement/
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22. Our final thought …
Highly effective
teachers are school
systems’ best tools for
helping students
succeed. School
systems should provide
leadership
opportunities that
allow them to expand
their reach and serve
the students who need
them most.
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23. Thank you for engaging with us
at Symposium 2020
jcfitzsimmons@noctrl.edu
maxmcgeephd@gmail.com