H I S D

Leadership can be thought of as a capacity to define oneself to others in a way that
clarifies and expands a vision of the future. ~Edwin Friedman
HOUSTON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT
BOARD OF EDUCATION
Houston Independent School District
Greg Meyers
President
ACP Principal Academy
Paula Harris
First Vice President
Diana Davila
Second Vice President
I
D
Anna Eastman
Assistant Secretary
S
H
Carol Mims Galloway
Secretary
Harvin C. Moore
Michael Lunceford
Lawrence Marshall
HISD ACP Principal Academy Expected Outcomes
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Provide a comprehensive, ongoing, high-quality leadership training
program to prepare ACP Principal Academy fellows to obtain a Texas
Standard Principal Certification.
•
Provide standards-based curriculum framework, school leadership
and business content-embedded coursework, and mentor-guided,
experience-rich internship that allow the fellows to develop and hone
the skills identified in HISD Profile of a Leader in preparation for effective
school leadership in a large urban setting.
•
Ensure post-certification job placement support for ACP Principal
Academy fellows as top-tier candidates for district principal and assistant
principal vacancies.
C
Houston Independent School District | Professional Development Services
Alternative Certification Program | Office of Leadership Excellence
Sharon Koonce
Assistant Superintendant, Professional Development
Josephine Rice
Director, Academic Training
Shannon Verrett
Manager, Leadership Development
Lidia Gazdyszyn Zatopek
Manager, Certification Training
LGAZDYSZ@houstonisd.org
www.pdserv.org | www.houstonacp.org
I P
A L
D
Chuck Morris, Ed.D.
Deputy Chief Academic Officer
N
P R I
Terry Grier, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
E M
Y
Manuel Rodriguez, Jr.
A C
A
Houston Independent School District | Professional Development Services
Alternative Certification Program | Office of Leadership Excellence
If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader. ~ John Quincy Adams
As part of the district’s strong commitment to developing human capital and
establishing multiple pathways for leadership development, Houston Independent
School District (HISD) Alternative Certification Program (ACP) is seeking talented,
dedicated educators to participate in a two-year, state-approved, cohort-based
principal certification program.
HISD ACP Principal Academy is a
rigorous academic program designed
in collaborative partnership with the
University of St. Thomas School of
Education, the University of St. Thomas
Cameron School of Business, and HISD
departments and personnel. Academy
fellows engage in intensive set of learning
experiences with a strong focus on
building exceptional leadership skills and
business acumen to become education
change agents who champion the needs
of all students.
Program Components - HISD ACP
Principal Academy is comprised of seven
comprehensive components:
• ACP Principal Academy Team Building Camp
• University of St. Thomas School of Education
graduate coursework
• University of St. Thomas School of Business
MBA coursework
• HISD Facilitative Leadership Colloquium Seminars
• Preparation for the
Principal Certification
Texas
Standard
• Mentor-Guided, Experience-Rich Internship
HOUSTON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT ACP PRINCIPAL ACADEMY
Selection Process
HISD ACP Principal Academy applicants must undergo a rigorous
four-phase selection process to ensure that fellows have the
talents, dispositions, and skills required of an HISD principal.
PHASE ONE:
•
•
•
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• Post-Certification Job Placement Support
Internship:
PHASE TWO:
•
Year One - Thirty pre-internship observation hours will occur as part of the certification process.
ACP-Principal Academy fellows will observe and reflect on a variety of leadership practices
that currently exist on school campuses. Observation experiences are aligned to the Texas
Principal Standards.
Year Two - At the core of the practical experiential learning is an internship. Under the coaching and
mentoring of an experienced mentor principal and ACP field supervisor, ACP Principal Academy
fellows are engaged in structured, standards-driven, campus-based/job-embedded learning. The
internship expands the skills and knowledge gained through coursework by placing the fellows in
real-time, authentic, contextual setting experienced daily by school administrators and allowing
them to synthesize and apply these skills and experience immediate feedback from mentor principal
and ACP field supervisor.
It is the policy of the Houston Independent School District not to discriminate on the basis of age, color, handicap or disability, ancestry, national origin, marital status, race, religion, sex, veteran status or political affiliation
in its education or employment programs and activities
Applicants complete Intent to Apply form located at http://pdserv.org . Intent to
Apply form is submitted via e-mail to ACP.
Principal complete Principal Nomination form-submit via e-mail.
Applicants will receive instructions via e-mail to complete the PrincipalInsight
online interview.
Eligible applicants will be notified to submit an Application Portfolio Binder
which consists of official university transcripts, evidence of successful leadership
and teaching experience, resume/employee data form, and three references of
which one must be from current supervisor/principal.
Eligible applicantsare notified via e-mail to attend the HISD-ACP Principal
Academy Mixer.
PHASE THREE:
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Eligible applicants will complete a Skills Demonstration assessment.
•
•
Eligible applicants participate in a structured interview
ACP verifies the skills demonstration assessment and structured interview results.
•
ACP notifies applicants via e-mail of their eligibility to proceed to the final phase.
Minimum Qualifications - HISD ACP Principal Academy is
open to internal and external candidates who meet all program
qualifications and selection criteria. Applicants must meet the
following minimum qualifications:
PHASE FOUR:
•
Master’s degree
•
•
Selected applicants submit Application Portfolio binders.
Selected applicants are observed at their work place.
•
Two to three years of successful teaching experience on a valid
teaching certificate
•
E-mail and written mail notifications go out to finalists and their principals.
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3.0 overall GPA
Post-Certification Support - As the top-tier candidates
for district principal and assistant principal vacancies, ACP
Princiapal Academy fellows, upon successful completion
of the certification program (or upon receiving a job
offer while going through the program), will receive
ongoing support from the district and Human Resources
department to facilitate their hiring opportunities.
Program Costs? - The U.S. Department of Education
School Leadership Grant will partially offset the program
costs for internal candidates nominated by their
principals and selected for the ACP Principal Academy.