Walking the Walk - The Presence of Core Educational Leadership Standards in the Development and Implementation of Partnership Academies

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by ahduag

Guest editorial commentary on a themed issue of Educational Considerations, emphasizing how leadership academy contributors enact the educational leadership standards they teach. The guest editor links national leadership frameworks and research to observed leadership actions across university and district/tribal partners. Key observations include student- and partner-needs-driven decision making that improves access, self-efficacy, retention, and graduation, alongside the capacity to act as change agents and collaborators who build a healthy ecosystem through sustained communication and collaboration.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages3

Reading Time8 min

AccessFree to download

Commentary

Student and District Partner Needs Drive Decision Making

Being a Change Agent and an Optimizer

Stakeholder Communication and Collaboration

Creating a Healthy Ecosystem

Commentary The guest editor of this issue of Educational Considerations shares observations about the leadership qualities of the contributors to this themed issue. Walking the Walk: The Presence of Core Educational Leadership Standards in the Development and Implementation of Partnership Academies Alex RedCorn Alex RedCorn is currently an Educational Leadership doctoral student at Kansas State University, where he also serves as the Special Coordinator for Indigenous Partnerships in the College of Education. He earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Middle/Secondary Social Studies Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Kansas, and has 9 years of teaching experience at both highschool and undergraduate levels. Recently, he developed a partnership academy with the Osage Nation that is set to begin in the Fall of 2016. As repeatedly mentioned throughout this themed issue of Educational Considerations, the Kansas State University partnership academy model was built on the foundational principle of improving educational leadership training by creating a learning environment that better merges theory and practice (Miller, Devin, and Shoop, 2007). After reading through the insights and commentaries of the various stakeholder perspectives contained in this special issue, I have chosen to use this guest editorial platform to highlight something that became highly apparent as I read through each article – these leaders not only are talking the talk, they also are walking the walk. Specifically, in the development and implementation of leadership academies, the authors are heavily employing the very educational leadership qualities and standards that they are teaching in the academies. Many of the authors mentioned that the curricula of these academies rest on national leadership standards and research such as the six leadership standards created by the Interstate School Leaders Licensure Consortium (CCSSO, 2008, as adopted by the National Policy Board for Educational Administration)1, McREL’s 21 leadership responsibilities (Waters, Marzano, and Mcnulty, 2003), and in the case of the North Dakota State University versions, the Teacher Leader Model Standards (Teacher Leadership Exploratory Consortium, 2011). My observations, which I describe below, are that there are clear correlations between the leadership values found in these resources, and the actions and dispositions of the educational leaders who are engaging in this partnership academy model. To be clear, my commentary here is not intended to be an exhaustive review of every leadership quality in the above standards and research; I simply chose to highlight a few that are strongly represented throughout this issue: Student and District Partner Needs Drive Decision Making: First and foremost, student needs should always be a priority when making decisions across the field of education, and the educational leadership standards and 70 Vol. 43, No. 4, Fall 2016 research mentioned above are no exception. Clearly, leaders contributing to this special issue have set aside their personal and institutional conveniences for the sake of students and their needs, and the results have been positive. In the case of leadership academies, university professors commit to inconvenient travel and scheduling that caters first to the needs of students and partnering institutions. This simple shift has opened up not only access to practicing educators in isolated areas, but throughout this special issue of Educational Considerations it has also been observed that positive results in student achievement are accruing. Specifically, faculty have seen improvements in leadership self-efficacy (Augustine-Shaw and Devin, 2014), along with high retention and graduation rates. The ease of access of the leadership academy program combined with the personal encouragement of supervisors has prompted many qualified students to choose an educational leadership degree, many of

FAQs

What is the central message of the guest editor’s commentary?

The commentary argues that leadership academy contributors do not only discuss leadership standards; they demonstrate them through their development and implementation choices.

How do the academies use student and partner needs in decision making?

Leaders prioritize student needs by adjusting travel and scheduling, and partners commit additional mentorship and work hours so the program can better serve their institutions and students.

What leadership qualities are highlighted beyond student-centered decision making?

The guest editor emphasizes being a change agent and an optimizer, including challenging the status quo, inspiring innovations, and navigating social, political, and cultural structures.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by ahduag