Up to twenty Saint Paul Public Schools principals along with twelve Minneapolis Public Schools principals will be selected to be part of the first Minnesota Principals' Academy, Twin Cities Cohort. The goals of the project are to increase current principals' capacity to provide instructional leadership that result in improved student achievement and teacher instruction in high-need schools and to improve retention of effective and experienced principals in high-need schools.  The Academy is being funded by a grant from Robins, Kaplan, Miller, & Ciresi. 

Leaders from Saint Paul Public Schools, Minneapolis Public Schools, Minnesota Department of Education, and the University of Minnesota have developed a coordinated inter-district partnership for professional development for sitting principals in both districts. This project will implement a comprehensive leadership program to educate and retain principals, based on the National Institute for School Leadership (NISL) curriculum model. The NISL program, a part of the National Center on Education and the Economy (NCEE), is based on six years of research and design related to the most effective executive leadership programs worldwide and on an exhaustive review of research on instructional leadership in education.  The Academy is a total of 26 days over a 15-month period.  The first four-day session begins next June (09) followed by a four-day session in August.  Throughout the following year, trainings will be held in two-day sessions.  The Academy will conclude in September of 2010 following a six day summer session.   The total number of days out-of-building will be 12.  

Additional information on The Minnesota Principals' Academy can be found at: Minnesota Principals Academy

Qualifying principals should email their interest in participation to james.eaton@spps.org by Friday, February 6, 2009.