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School Leadership

“Great schools do not exist apart from great leaders” – Leadership Matters

The project will create the Education Leadership Center which will train the principals of preuniversity education institutions. AADF will support the center for at least 5 years so that trained school leaders will be skilled to manage the institution and school funds. School leadership has become a priority in education policy agendas internationally. School leadership plays an important role in improving overall school outcomes by influencing the motivations and capacities of teachers, as well as the school climate and environment.

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  • 05.18.2022

    The certification ceremony of the third generation of the school of principals of pre-university education institutions (CSL)

    The certification ceremony of the third generation of the school of principals of pre-university education institutions (CSL)

    The ceremony of the certification of the third generation of the school of principals of pre-university education institutions (CSL) was honored with the presence of the Minister of Education and Sports, Ms. Evis Kushi, Chairman of the Board of Directors of AADF, Mr. Michael D. Granoff, and CoCEOs, Mr. Alexandër Sarapuli and Mr. Martin Mata.

    Participants completed the compulsory training program for pre-university education leaders, with 81% of them leading office and 19% aspiring to lead office in the future.

    So far this program, through its previous generations, has certified 232 individuals involving principals, deputy directors in office, and practicing teachers who aim to become school leaders.

    For the first time, 3 merit scholarships were allocated to participants with the highest results thanks to a cooperation agreement signed with the school leadership center, at the Harvard University Education School in the US.

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  • 01.29.2022

    Graduation Ceremony of the 2nd Cohort of Center for School Leadership

    Graduation Ceremony of the 2nd Cohort of Center for School Leadership

    The Center for School Leadership of Pre-University Educational Institutions (CSL) is co-established by the Albanian-American Development Foundation and the Ministry of Education and Sports in October 2018, aiming to broaden and advance leadership skills for principals and aspiring principals.

    In accordance with the aim, a training program was established, based on successful models on school leadership skills improvement in -compliance with the professional development needs, standards and qualifications of school principals in Albania.

    On January 21st, 2022, the Center for School Leadership organized the Graduation Ceremony of the 2-nd Cohort for all the participants who successfully completed the Compulsory Preparatory Training Program (CTP) during the timeframe October 2020-July 2021.

    184 participants completed a journey full of challenges and were successfully certified, out of 209 participants who firstly enrolled in the CTP.

    Among the 184 certified school leaders, 84 of them are school principals in duty and the rest are deputy principals and teachers aspiring to run the pre-university educational institutions.

    In the Graduation Ceremony of the 2nd Cohort,  distinguished guests Mrs. Evis Kushi, Minister of Education and Sports, Mr. Martin Mata, and Mr. Aleksandër Sarapuli, Co-CEOs of the Albanian-American Development Foundation, and representatives of education institutions, partners, and collaborators of the Center for School Leadership joined to congratulate principals and aspiring principals on their achievements, while extending the same to the committed and hardworking faculty and non-teaching staff .

    In her welcoming remarks Mrs. Kushi, Minister of Education and Sports, stated that “The school principals play a crucial role in guaranteeing the quality and well-being of all school-related processes. I am very confident that you will make a valuable contribution to quality assurance in our educational institutions.”

    During the ceremony, the CSL had the pleasure to award prizes as a symbol of excellence to participants who achieved the highest scores. Moreover, mentors, the school principals who welcomed and supported the participants during the professional practice received a certificate of appreciation as a way of recognizing their contribution and dedication.

    The impact it had on the professional career for the participants of the 1-st Cohort, was accompanied with a substantial increase in the number of applications, resulting in quadrupling the number of participants in the 2-nd Cohort. The program expanded in Tirana, Elbasan and Durres by cooperating with four universities that offered the training programs, in accordance with the standards and the required quality from CSL.

    The Center for School Leadership aims that every certified principal and aspiring principal who will lead the pre-university education schools will continually strive to improve teaching and learning environment where students can be motivated and skillful to overcome the challenges of the future.

    Detailed description

  • 07.26.2020

    The first certified generation of leaders trained by the Center for School Leadership

    Center for School Leadership has successfully completed the first generation of the mandatory preparatory training program for certification of school principals. 48 participants began its journey in November 2019 in the auditoriums of the Faculty of Social Sciences and in the 5 selected schools for internship component.

    The first generation has successfully completed all 9 modules of the 9 month program based on the experience of “Avney Rosha” Institute in Israel, while also reflecting the needs of the Albanian context materialized in the document of professional development standards of school principals.

    Center for School Leadership was established in October 2018 thanks to the cooperation of Albanian – American Development Foundation and the Ministry of Education, Sports and Youth and since its inception the Center has had the continued support of the Albanian Government.

    During the Graduation Ceremony it appeared in a video-clip a short history of the training program and the greeting video-messages from Mr. Edi Rama, Prime Minister of the Republic of Albania, Mr. Martin Mata, AADF Co-CEO, Mrs. Yehudit Shalvi, member of the Board of the Center for School Leadership, Mrs. Lindita Nikolla, Member of the Albanian Parliament, Mrs. Nina Guga, Deputy Minister of Education and Mrs. Zamira Gjini, General Director of Education.

    Detailed Description

  • 04.11.2020

    A new approach in delivering the training program!

    A new approach in delivering the training program!

    Despite these challenging times, Center for School Leadership (CSL) is committed in keeping the pace of its activities through implementing a new approach to deliver the training program. From March 20th on, CSL has been running its training program using a combination of two online professional platforms, Zoom and Google Classroom. This week CSL started the 3rd trimester of the compulsory training program of school principals through utilizing such online tools, introducing new modules and new subjects, as well as the engagement of new trainers & coaches.

     

    The approach taken for delivering the program online was well accepted by the participants and deemed by them as the best option in the current situation, with a 92% support evidenced in the online survey conducted by CSL with program participants.  In addition, participation rate in the online classes has been encouraging with 86% of cohort attending all training sessions in real time and offers the possibility to other participants to review any missing session by using the recorded materials.

     

    The 3rd trimester of the program comprise delivery of three new modules, “Pedagogic diagnosis of the school’, “Leading transformational change within the context of legislation of Albanian Law” and “Effective teaching and learning”. Besides the teaching component the program foresees simultaneous delivery of experiential learning and inquiry learning which both cover the empirical components of all topics. CSL collaborates with a pool of well-experienced local and international trainers, who provide a highly qualitative program aiming to influence the leadership capacities of both acting principals and aspiring principals enrolled to the program. The “Pedagogic diagnosis of the school” module will be delivered online by two professors with expertise in the school leadership field, Mrs. BetsAnn Smith from Michigan State University, USA and Mrs. Gerda Sula from Faculty of Social Science, University of Tirana.

  • 12.18.2018

    Launching event of Needs assessment study of school principals

    Launching event of Needs assessment study of school principals

    The Albanian-American Development Foundation and the Ministry of Education, Sports and Youth presented the beginning of the activity of the Center for School Leadership in Albania as well as the launching of the nationwide needs assessment study. The needs assessment study that will evaluate the needs for professional development of school principals, which is expected to publish the final findings and recommendations in April 2019, aims to  review and revise the latest Standards of Evaluation for School Principals in Albania and other related documents to school principals’ role; Provide a situation analysis and recommendations for professional development needed to achieve agreed standards, considering the following stages of capacity development: Academic knowledge offered by university providers, Pre-service training, Continuous professional development; and Assess and provide recommendations on hiring, performance evaluation and firing process of school principals in Albania. Assessment and recommendations should also include the need for professional development of all stakeholders involved in the above processes. The event was attended by: Mr. Alexander Sarapuli and Mr. Martin Mata, Co-Executive Directors of AADF; Mrs. Besa Shahini, Deputy Minister of Education; Board members of the Center for School Leadership; representatives from Educational Directories/ Offices all over the country; school principals and representatives of public and private universities. The selected team to conduct this study is composed of international and local experts in the field of educational leadership. During 2019, the Center for School Leadership will develop the training curricula; will determine the duration of the training and the criteria for persons to be trained and certified; as well as training the academic staff of Higher Education Institutions that will provide training service in different cities of the country.

    Detailed description

  • 12.04.2018

    Presentation of School Leadership Project by Jonida Lamaj at Scan TV

  • 11.25.2017

    Signing of Memorandum of Understanding for establishment of the Center for Education Leadership, Albania

    Signing of Memorandum of Understanding for establishment of the Center for Education Leadership, Albania

    Mr. Aleksander Sarapuli and Mr. Martin Mata, Co-CEO’s of the Albanian-American Development Foundation (AADF) and Ms. Lindita Nikolla, Minister of Education, Sport and Youth (MESY), signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the establishment of the Center for Education Leadership in Albania. This center will be funded by AADF for the first five years and will be supported by MESY for the operations and achievement of its objectives.
    The Ministry’s policy and strategy for the development of pre-university education aims to improve the performance of school principals, ensure a high quality of school management, advance the skills of principals as educational leaders and continue to promote principals training and professional growth, all in the interest of improving the educational achievements of schools and students.
    The Ministry and AADF have a long and successful cooperation history in improving the education system in Albania, promoting the availability of quality education and improving educational achievements. In order to advance the aforementioned Ministry’s policy, AADF and MASY wish to cooperate on an initiative to establish a Center for Education Leadership, a vocational training center for school directors as well as an expertise center in the field of school management and leadership for school directors and teachers.

    Detailed Description