The Fellowship
Preparing school leaders for success
What We Do
The GSS Fellowship is a highly competitive 12-month program that trains entrepreneurial school leaders to start and lead new high-performing, autonomous schools or, in some cases, to transition their existing school to innovation status. We are the only organization in Colorado to offer a comprehensive training program for autonomous school leaders and one of a select number to offer alternative principal licensure. We seek out the best and brightest from around the country, provide them with real-life training, and place our leaders in schools where conditions are ripe for success.A Distinguished Program
The GSS Fellowship provides comprehensive instruction and exposure to exceptional school leadership, leaving fellows with the confidence and knowledge necessary to lead and sustain high-performing, autonomous schools. Our fellows are equipped with skills that extend beyond those of traditional school leaders. GSS Fellows will receive in-depth, expert instruction on a wide-variety of topics including marketing, student recruitment, finance and budget, human resources, facilities management, board relations, and monitoring the regulatory environment. In addition, GSS Fellows will have access to top-performing schools around the country and receive personal coaching from education experts. Fellows who complete the program are also eligible for principal licensure.The Fellowship Coursework
GSS leaders receive rigorous training and support during their time in the Fellowship. The program includes a summer institute, weekly seminars, ongoing executive coaching, local and national site visits, university coursework (optional) and 12 weeks of residencies in high-performing schools. All components are designed to expose leaders to best practices in school design and leadership and to help leaders develop their own innovative ideas. Fellows work alongside GSS program staff and renowned experts in business and leadership to complete final plans for their school.The time commitment for the Fellowship is extensive. The general calendar is as follows:
| 1. Summer Institute 2. Weekly Seminars 3. University Coursework* 4. 3 in-school Residencies 5. Site Visits (Local, State & National) |
5 days in August 4pm - 8pm on Thursdays Up to 3 evenings per week Fall, Spring, and 1 long-term 2-3 Full Day Visits |
GSS Fellows are often able to coordinate their fellowship training alongside current jobs or study programs.
Fellowship Stipends and Targeted Placement
Get Smart Schools Fellows are responsible for paying their own living expenses and dedicating 40+ hours per week to planning to lead their schools. Get Smart Schools will pay all program costs, university fees, and travel expenses related to school visits. A limited number of stipends may be available.Need More Information?
For more information about the Fellowship, please send us a message at fellowship@getsmartschools.org.
Components of the Fellowship
Preparing leaders for success
The GSS Fellowship is a rigorous program that prepares leaders to assume leadership roles in autonomous schools. The Fellowship challenges participants to solidify their school visions and provides intense support to bring those visions to fruition.
Leadership Competencies and Deliverables
The GSS leadership competencies are derived from multiple research-based, nationally recognized frameworks as well as the experience of successful, high-performing schools and organizations in Colorado. The Fellowship is organized around competencies in seven domains: strategic and visionary leadership; instructional leadership; cultural leadership; organizational management; community engagement; emotional leadership; and governance. Competencies consist of dispositions, knowledge and performances, all of which are developed and reinforced throughout the program.- Dispositions: the overarching beliefs, values and commitments which are used as selection criteria for admission to the program and which are also developed throughout;
- Knowledge: the knowledge, skill, and understanding within each domain that are required of an autonomous school leader;
- Performances: the tasks, and behaviors within each domain in which autonomous school leaders routinely engage;
Deliverables are the work-products developed throughout the program, which complete the tasks of planning and launching a school and evidence mastery of competencies. They are aligned with charter proposal and Innovation School requirements to close the gap between training and real-world action, and to ensure that the practical work of opening new schools has been supported and completed through the program.
Individual Learning Plans
After enrollment in the program, fellows complete a leadership assessment based on the competencies. This forms the foundation of the Individualized Learning Plan (ILP) for each fellow. While there is a core of program requirements, those might be modified depending on the background knowledge and experience a candidate brings to the program. Decisions such as residency site selection, coaching, university courses and program deliverables are all tailored around the ILP. Fellows are assessed against the competencies and their ILPs at multiple points and from multiple perspectives throughout the program.Residencies
GSS Leaders requires fellows to spend extensive time in the field to learn from, and participate in, the leadership of high-performing, autonomous schools. Prior to leading their own schools, fellows have the opportunity to lead and manage adults, evaluate teachers, analyze data, make decisions, prepare budgets, create systems, implement programs, and experience the multitude of demands placed on school leaders. Fellows are matched with successful schools and school leaders who are invested in their progress and willing to guide their development. Formal residencies entail a minimum of 12 weeks in the role of leadership and must include a “solo flight” during which fellows are the primary person in charge of a school or sizable program.Coursework
Fellows complete several kinds of coursework during their year: the summer institute; monthly seminars; university courses and site visits.- The summer institute is an intensive week led by GSS program staff, local and nationally renowned experts in school and business leadership. In addition to building knowledge and skills, the summer institute builds a sense of commitment to the mission of starting a high performing school as a means to closing the achievement gap and preparing all students for college, and develops lasting relationships among a cohort who will share a common set of experiences and challenges.
- Seminars meet weekly during the academic year and usually include some simulated authentic experience, case study and/or presentation by renowned thought-leaders; and reenergize the cohort and reconnect them to their common mission. Each seminar has a deliverable which is a short assignment due shortly after the session. Deliverables are all intended to help Fellows develop plans for the schools they will lead.
- University courses are offered through partner universities to address competencies and fulfill requirements, as applicable, for principal licensure and/or to apply towards a graduate degree. GSS has partnered with the School of Public Affairs at the University of Colorado, Denver and Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver to fulfill course requirements for the program. Fellows may elect to pursue a Master’s in Public Administration from UCD or a Master’s of Business Administration from DU in addition to the requirements for GSS and a Colorado principal’s license.
- Site visits allow fellows to see high-performing schools in action and to bring back ideas and practices to inform their own leadership. GSS fellows participate in multiple, structured and facilitated site visits to some of Colorado’s highest performing autonomous schools, and take at least one multi-day trip to another major city to visit nationally renowned, exemplary schools.
