ABSTRACT
Michelle Schmitz, principal of EPiC Elementary in Liberty, Missouri, is all about building professional capacity, and the stories highlighted in this chapter speak to the power of leaders building their educators’ capacity. The innovative leaders do this by focusing on individual teachers’ needs and having a robust set of processes to select for the right fit, onboard new teachers, and mentor teachers through desired changes. The chapter shows that these leaders trust their teachers to design powerful learning experiences for their students. The innovative leaders highlighted in this chapter understand deeply that educators’ professional growth requires continuous, ongoing administrative support. The leaders described the importance of developing their teaching staff. Some schools did this by tapping into the power of regional or national networks. Others built self-efficacy from within by engaging in research into their own practices and sharing that research with the world.
