The Teacher Collaborative’s Leadership Co-Labs provide opportunities for teachers to grow toward their leadership potential in a supportive, collaborative, and inspiring space. Our 2023–2024 Leadership Co-Lab, Equity Leaders, is specifically for teachers who would like to jumpstart work toward more equitable outcomes in their schools and districts.

In Equity Leaders, you’ll formalize, deepen, and expand your approach to change leadership with an emphasis on the early stages of creating bold change—equity auditing, establishing a set of allies, visioning, and planning for maximum impact.

We’ll create a space where you can collaborate, structure activities that can support your growing leadership skills, and guide you toward opportunities and resources to realize your goals.

You’ll learn how to apply actionable leadership skills, connect with a network of support, and plan for action that makes a real difference. Upon successful completion, teacher leaders will be prepared—with a plan—to lead initiatives for change in their classrooms and school communities.

How it works:

From November through May, educators in this Co-Lab will attend monthly meetings (in addition to optional drop-in hours) focused on change leadership and other teacher leadership competencies, engage in asynchronous activities like piloting and auditing, and work on a culminating implementation plan, individually or in small groups. Participants have the option to enroll in this program as a graduate course for 1 credit and will also receive a stipend—more on this below.

Eligibility: Any Massachusetts-based Pre-K through 12th grade teacher is eligible to participate in our Leadership Co-Lab. We seek a diverse but selective cohort of teachers representing the full diversity of our educational community. Priority is given to participants who:

  • Have at least 2 years of teaching experience

  • Demonstrate engagement in contributing beyond their classroom and potential for leadership

  • Can successfully articulate goals and ideas for change that will support greater equity and excellence for schools and, ultimately, students

  • Preferred, not required. Have previously participated in a Teacher Collaborative event, Co-Lab, task force or other program

Benefits

Teachers who successfully complete this Leadership Co-Lab and final project will have the option to enroll in this as a course for 1 graduate credit through Fitchburg State University. In this case, Teacher Collaborative will pay for the graduate credit and will pay the teacher a $250 stipend upon successful completion of the Co-Lab. Teachers could also choose a $450 stipend and no graduate credit.  Moreover, teachers who successfully complete the program will receive 15 PDPs, may earn microcredentials in their areas of focus, and will access a host of opportunities and resources available to our Leadership Co-Lab “graduates” …not to mention the new connections they’ll make along the way!

Details:

  • Meets the last Tuesday of every month, beginning November 28, 2023 and running through late May, in the afternoon (exact time TBD by participants)

  • Optional drop-in office hours on other Tuesdays 

  • Meetings are held on Zoom 

There will be an optional information session on October 24th from 4-4:30pm about this opportunity - please add this to your calendar and receive the Zoom link. Otherwise, those with questions may contact Diana Lebeaux at diana@theteachercollaborative.org or check out our website at theteachercollaborative.org. 

*Please note, in December and May this Co-Lab meets one week early.

 
 

Co-Labs are not your typical PD. Learn more about our innovative model of teacher-to-teacher learning and then apply to join a Co-Lab this school year!

 

PAST CO-LAB OFFERINGS

Some of these Co-Labs may be offered again in the future. Make sure to sign up for our email list to learn about all Co-Lab opportunities throughout the year.

 

Teach for Wellness (Learning Co-Lab Fall 2023)

Over the course of this 4-session Co-Lab, teachers learn and grow their skills, gain access to new teacher-created resources, connect with other educators, and apply new strategies to existing plans - all with the support of 3 Co-Lab facilitators, two of whom are currently practicing teachers!

 

Cultivating Changemakers (Leadership Co-Lab Winter 2023)

In this Leadership Co-Lab, teachers worked together to formalize, deepen, and expand their approach to change leadership so that they would be prepared to make an impact at their schools and districts.

 

Practicing Culturally Responsive Teaching in our Classrooms (Fall 2022)

Teachers received an introduction to Culturally Responsive Teaching practices and had an opportunity to collaborate with other teachers to deepen their knowledge and classroom instruction.

 
 

Student-Centered Learning (Spring 2022)

Participants worked together to create the Innovation in Practice: Student-Centered Learning Toolkit, which was published in the fall of 2022. Each teacher contributed a strategy that they had tested out in their own classroom that is aligned to a different student-centered practice.

Other Co-Labs have included:

  • Innovation Co-Lab: Passion to Teach: Project-Based Learning (2019-2022)

  • Leadership Co-Lab: Passion to Learn: Online and Hybrid Strategies that Work (2020-2021)

  • Leadership Co-Lab: The Art of Anti-Racist Teaching (2020-2021)

  • Learning Co-Lab: Suburban Educators for Equity (2019-2020)

  • Innovation Co-Lab: Learning is Rocket Science (2019-2020)

  • Innovation Co-Lab: Blended Learning in the Middle School Math Classroom (2018-2020)

  • Innovation Co-Lab: Exploring Bias in the Classroom (2018-2019)

  • Innovation Co-Lab: Classroom Design (2018-2019)

  • Learning Co-Lab: Mindfulness for Educators (2018-2019)