Three organizations to receive nearly $1 million to improve support for educators
Cupertino, CA – September 25, 2014 – The Learning Accelerator (TLA), a nonprofit organization supporting the implementation of high-quality blended learning in school districts across America, today announced a second round of funding for a human capital cohort that will focus on principal training, teacher professional development platforms, and further implementation of a previously-funded teacher fellowship program.
The recipients include the Friday Institute, a North Carolina State University School of Education-affiliated organization working to advance education through innovation in teaching, learning, and leadership; CFY-Power My Learning, a national nonprofit organization that helps students, teachers, and parents use digital learning to improve educational outcomes; and The Highlander Institute, a nonprofit organization that designs and provides professional development and education services.
“Transforming in-classroom teaching and learning requires transforming approaches to training and developing educators,” said Beth Rabbitt, TLA partner in charge of human capital. “Our initial human capital strategy aims to provide districts and schools with essential, high-quality supports for building the effectiveness of blended learning teachers and leaders. These grants will help us further this goal.”
Brief summary of each grant:
- Friday Institute – to codify the curriculum of and pilot nationally a blended learning principal training program.
- CFY – to help the organization leverage its existing student-facing PowerMyLearning platform to create a personalized professional development approach for educators.
- Highlander Institute – follow-up grant to fully fund the organization’s efforts to launch and sustain a statewide, Rhode Island teacher fellowship.
In making investments to build the capacity of these organizations, TLA will address additional gaps in the blended learning human capital ecosystem, including principal training. “The move toward blended learning shifts the role of principals and increases the vision, knowledge, and skills they need. Too often, leaders do not have the time, resources, or opportunities to participate in job-embedded and effective professional learning,“ said Mary Ann Wolf, the Friday Institute’s director of digital learning programs. “This program strives to ensure principals have access to the cohort-based, ongoing, online, and locally-facilitated blended learning development they need.”
The Learning Accelerator will work with the Friday Institute, CFY, and its other existing human capital investments over the coming months as part of its ongoing effort to create scalable solutions in this sector. “We are investing in these organizations as a cohort to enable them to achieve a bigger collective impact than they would in isolation,” explained Rabbitt. “We expect, when put together, they will act as a wave of support for schools across the country, helping to catalyze change and offer new, next generation models of training and professional development for next generation teachers and leaders.”
For more information about TLA’s human capital work, contact Beth Rabbitt at beth.rabbitt@learningaccelerator.org.
