Principal Collaborative

NASBE’s Principal Collaborative is a network of state board members with practitioner and policymaker experience in school leadership and who have shown keen interest in advancing principal work in their state.

State boards of education have considerable authority over many policy levers that shape the principalship, including setting teacher and leader standards. State board members are also integral to fostering partnerships among key community stakeholders that can enhance the likelihood of principal initiatives succeeding. Thus, state boards are often seen as a critical, influential link in strengthening and sustaining principal preparation and recruitment pipelines.

With support from the Wallace Foundation, NASBE seeks opportunities to share research and evidence-based strategies with state board members to support their efforts to prepare, recruit, and retain high-quality education leaders and catalyze state policy action on school leadership. NASBE’s Principal Collaborative, formed in 2024, is a key component of this work.

In its first year, the Principal Collaborative examined state leadership academies in Missouri and Delaware; heard from experts on principal preparation and pathways; and had the opportunity to visit one of the Wallace Foundation’s Equity-Centered Principal Initiative (ECPI) districts, Jefferson County Public Schools, to explore how they are building  equity-centered principal pipelines through collaboration with state education agencies, local organizations, and university programs. NASBE also hosted topic-specific sessions with Dr. Paul Manna and other researchers on state policy levers and experts from the Aspen Institute on how to rethink the principalship. These conversations will continue throughout 2025.

NASBE will also pilot a new Policy Review Tool for School Leadership with Principal Collaborative member states. Based on research of Dr. Manna, this tool will help state board members assess their states’ principal preparation pipeline policies, practices, and supports based on research and evidence of best practice.

States active in the Principal Collaborative include California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Maine, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, and North Carolina. We welcome additional states to participate in the Principal Collaborative, and encourage you to contact project leads Renée Lang and Joey Hedger to learn how to get involved.