Lauren Blair, Amber Henry, Bruce Lay, and Kelly Williams of Oak Ridge Schools participated in a statewide network to develop Teacher Leader Model Standard. This month, the Tennessee Department of Education released the Tennessee Teacher Leader Guidebook, which highlights 15 unique and innovative teacher leader models developed by districts across the state that provide clear pathways to leverage the power and potential of teacher leader development.

In 2011, the Tennessee State Board of Education adopted the Teacher Leader Model Standards, which provide a cohesive, transparent set of skills and competencies to guide and encourage the development of teacher leaders. The Teacher Leader Guidebook contains different models that are grounded in these standards, yet illustrate distinct pathways for schools and districts to consider when creating their own models for teacher leader development.

Creating a strong group of teacher leaders in Tennessee has multiple benefits including increased student achievement and growth, increased teacher collaboration, and stronger and more positive school and district
culture.

ā€œThe development of teacher leaders can be a powerful tool to continue our positive, upward trajectory of increased educator effectiveness and student growth,ā€œ Commissioner Candice McQueen said. ā€œThese 28 districts represent the geographic and demographic diversity in our state and provide a powerful roadmap for all schools and districts to support their teachers as they serve our most important customer in Kā€“12 education: students.ā€

In the fall of 2015, 14 more districts joined the network as a new cohort, in addition to Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools participating in the program for a second time. All of the district models vary in design, number of roles, and costs, but they share a belief in developing teacher leader capacities, skills, and actions.

Kelly Williams will continue to serve in this network as a stage 2 coach in the Teacher Leadership Network program for the 2016-17 school year.

Coaches will meet four times with districts who have already started the Teacher Leadership process.

The 2015-16 participating districts highlighted in the report are:

  • Bartlett City Schools
  • Blount County Schools
  • Clarksville-Montgomery County Schools
  • Chester County Schools
  • Decatur County Schools
  • Hamblen County Schools
  • Haywood County Schools
  • Jackson-Madison County Schools
  • Knox County Schools
  • Oak Ridge City Schools
  • Obion County Schools
  • Robertson County Schools
  • Stewart County Schools
  • Union County Schools
  • Washington County Schools

The department created the Teacher Leader Network in the fall of 2013 to develop adaptable teacher leadership models by pulling together highly effective district leadership teams representing the geographic, socioeconomic, and demographic diversity of all three grand divisions of the state. Since this network was established, 28 districts have created unique, innovative teacher leader models aligned to the local goals and professional learning needs that are most closely tied to increasing student achievement and growth in their district.