The Arizona Aspiring Superintendents Academy for Latino and Latina Leaders is a highly interactive year-long program that provides participants with the real-world skills a next generation Latino and Latina superintendent will need to thrive.
About the Academy
The Arizona Aspiring Superintendents Academy for Latino and Latina Leaders is a highly interactive year-long program that provides participants with the real-world skills a next generation Latino and Latina superintendent will need to thrive. The Academy will cover topics essential to developing a deep understanding of the leadership role of a successful Latino and Latina superintendent with attention to some of the specific challenges and opportunities of leading in Arizona. It is a highly engaging, year-long professional learning experience. Graduates of the academy should be well equipped to lead 21st century schools with creativity, vision and a commitment to equity and excellence.
This standards-based professional learning opportunity will provide Latino/a leaders with an insightful blend of theory and practice through a combination of in-person sessions, on-line webinars and a virtual platform. The Academy is led by highly skilled, nationally recognized Latino and Latina educational leaders and mentors. Cohort members will participate in experiential learning tasks designed to expand their understanding of self as a Latino and Latina and the critical skills necessary for success as a superintendent. Members of the academy cohort will explore problems of practice, simulations, and engage in a series of learning experiences culminating in a Capstone Project. The goal of the academy is to produce transformational superintendents rather than traditional administrators and prepare Arizona Latino and Latina leaders to be successful in the role of superintendent. Graduates of the academy will be equipped to lead diverse future ready school systems with creativity, vision, and a commitment to equity and excellence.
The Arizona Aspiring Superintendents Academy for Latino and Latina Leaders will address critical issues of leadership at the national and Arizona state levels designed to support Latino and Latina candidates aspiring to the superintendent role. The Arizona Aspiring Superintendents Academy for Latino and Latina Leaders program will include the following modules and focus areas:
- Framing the Superintendent Role: Knowing Yourself and Your Leadership Strengths and Areas for Growth as a Future Latino and Latina Superintendent
- Leading for Equity with Urgency: Unique Challenges Facing Latino and Latina Superintendents in Confronting Bias, Limited Access and Opportunity, and Inherent Structural Inequities
- Understanding Governance: Building Effective Relationships While Confronting the Unique Challenges Faced by Arizona Latino and Latina Superintendents
- Building a Community of Support: Cultural Responsiveness and Leadership Strategies for Addressing the Unique Strengths and Challenges of Arizona Latino and Latina Students, Families, and Stakeholder Groups
- Balancing leadership: Addressing Operations and Fiscal Management in Arizona
- Leading Learning: The Role of the Latino and Latina Superintendent in Reinforcing Evidence-Based Practices in Curriculum and Assessment, Including Cultural and Linguistic Proficiency
Currently, less than 2 percent of superintendents across the country are Latino/Latina. In Arizona, with almost 200 school districts, there are 26 Latino/Latina superintendents, 13.3%, yet the number of Latino/Latina or Hispanic students represents 44% of the total K-12 student population.
