ELITE Program Overview

Mission

The Florida Atlantic University-School District Partnership includes multiple school districts in Florida, each individually partnered with FAU’s School Leaders Program, who together develop, implement, and improve the professional learning of school leaders in their districts to provide the best public education for students, families, and the community.

Vision

The Florida Atlantic University-School District Partnership will be the premier provider of school leadership professional learning programs in Florida and the nation, developing the strongest school leaders and leadership teams to lead and transform schools into model learning organizations.

Leadership Profile: The FAU Five

We believe that the following descriptions, values, and beliefs will enable school leaders and those they influence to be fulfilled in their own personal ambitions, to be productive contributors to the economy, and to be democratic citizens for a vibrant national community. Our commitment to the public good is what makes school leadership different conceptually and in practice from other organizations and governmental agencies.

We believe that our purpose is to prepare leaders to create a healthy, sustainable, and regenerative society for present and future generations.

• Leader of Leaders and Learning – school leaders who are committed to a vision of leadership that is instructional, collaborative, distributed, data-informed, research-based, ethical, entrepreneurial, developmental, complementary, innovative, and courageous. They understand that leadership is most effective when it is shared and focused on developing leadership capacity within schools and school systems. They are lead learners whose leadership requires the ability to use pedagogy and andragogy in facilitating the learning of everyone in the school and its community.
• Reflective Practitioners – school leaders who are reflective practitioners with a world view to create dynamic learning environments as well as organizational and operational systems where everyone engages in ongoing reflective and critical inquiry to inform action. They accept critical feedback to develop the personal insight necessary to increase their leadership attributes and skills. They are strategic and systems thinkers with a growth mindset.
• Transformative Decision-Makers – school leaders who recognize that their leadership is a transformative and political process to bring about positive change in the pursuit of a better society and world. They understand and demonstrate the capability to evaluate the moral and legal consequences of decisions and make their choices based on the goal of maximizing student learning through the values of social justice and democratic community.
• Relationship Builders – school leaders who are adept at building positive relationships. They are culturally competent leaders who treat each individual with civility, empathy, respect, and forthrightness while holding high expectations for everyone who contributes to the learning organization they strive to consistently improve. They build external relationships with families, community members, and community organizations to strengthen the school programs they lead.
• Visionaries with High Expectations - school leaders who communicate and create a shared vision that inspires high expectations for their own performance, as well as for the performance of all others in the school. They embrace accountability and give feedback as tools for continuous improvement while remaining focused on student learning as a priority. They are passionate leaders who persevere and challenge the status quo.