Expectations+for+Coaches

The overarching role of the NELA Executive Coach is to provide additional support and instruction to Fellows that complements and expands the Fellow’s work with faculty and mentor principals by doing the following:


 * Helping NELA Fellows have an enhanced understanding of the role of effective leaders and further provide them with the skills, knowledge and understanding of how to be transformational school leaders.
 * Improving the Fellow’s leadership ability by having individuals believe in themselves and develop the efficacy to find their own answers.
 * Serving in a non-supervisory role as an external source of confidential and expert support (being a “sounding board”). Through this highly supportive and reflective approach, aspiring school leaders will gain both authentic inter- and intrapersonal lessons of leadership. They will learn new strategies for problem solving and enriching leadership in their schools in ways that have an immediate impact on teaching practices and student learning.

To prepare for their role as NELA executive coach, NELA coaches will participate in a specialized training program that will prepare them to coach NELA interns. The coaches will collaborate to revise NELA internship forms and protocols. The NELA executive coach also agrees to:


 * 1) Participate in joint observations of teaching and watch pre-conference and/or post-conference videos of the NELA fellow with teachers as well as debrief with the Fellow on how they can improve.
 * 2) Conduct role-playing of crucial and critical conversations with Fellows to inform them of ways to ensure that students and teachers are meeting the highest of standards.
 * 3) Help aspiring and novice leaders diagnose and solve the “Problems of Practice” themselves and thus build leadership capacity. Advise Fellows through various states of their internship project.
 * 4) Review with the Fellow their Individual Leadership Plan (ILP). Direct the revision of the needs assessment at least once per semester (additional revisions as needed).
 * 5) Maintain weekly contact with their assigned Fellow (virtual, Skype, email, phone, or in-person).
 * 6) Provide written feedback on weekly or bi-weekly logs.
 * 7) Contact the Mentor Principal once a month (additional contact as needed).
 * 8) Conduct one extended site visit (face-to-face) per month to shadow the intern. This should include a joint observation of teaching and/or video viewing at least twice a semester.
 * 9) Complete a detailed evaluation of the Fellow's progress (quarterly report).
 * 10) Participate in Coaches' Feedback Meetings (2 per semester).
 * 11) Provide feedback and advice (as needed) to both the Fellow and the Mentor Principal as they experience the Distinguished Leaders in Practice activities.