Friends Council on Education welcomes the 9th cohort of the Institute for Engaging Leadership in Friends Schools this year. This new cohort – the class of 2019-2021 -- includes 20 educators from 16 Friends schools in 7 states.  Participants are embarking on an exciting two-year journey together of strengthening their capacity and skills for the unique role of Friends school leadership. Institute participants collaborate as learning partners with heads of Friends schools and conduct action research projects that benefit the network of Friends schools.

In this year’s opening session, Friends Council's Associate Director Deborra Sines Pancoe led a panel on cultural competence and racial literacy with five graduates of the Leadership Institute, including Dorothy Lopez, Moorestown Friends School, Nic James, Delaware Valley Friends School, Ryan Kimmet, Greene Street Friends School. Celeste Payne, Westtown School, and Toni Graves Williamson, Friends Select School.

Members of the new 9th cohort spent time learning about action research projects. IELFS graduates from the 8th cohort  (2017-2019), including  Frederick Pratt, Friends Central School, Marcy Sosa, William Penn Charter School, Karen Payton, Westtown School, Megan Culp, Germantown Friends School, and John Zimmerman, Princeton Friends School, took the day to share their experiences, learnings and words of wisdom about IELFS action research.  

Each year, IELFS participants hear from a panel of veteran Heads of Schools. This year the panel spoke about how they sustain themselves in the demanding role of head of school. Moderated by Friends Council’s Executive Director Drew Smith, panelists this year were Kathryn Park Cook, Frankford Friends School, Matt Micciche, Friends School of Baltimore, Ken Aldridge, Wilmington Friends School (DE), and Brenda Esch, Friends School of Wilmington (NC). This was the first Heads' Panel composed entirely of graduates of the Leadership Institute! 

Friends Council's Leadership Institute is facilitated by Drew Smith, Irene McHenry and Joe Marchese.