Advancing Teacher Leadership
The Kenan Fellows Program is designed to:
- Develop teacher leaders in the classrooms across North Carolina and advance the art of teaching
- Enrich teachers' content knowledge in mathematics, science and technology through strategic partnerships with businesses and higher education
- Develop innovative and inquiry-based relevant curricular tools and resources in partnership with the NC Department of Public Instruction to be disseminated to teachers and students across our state
- Foster teaching based on inquiry, problem solving and real life application
- Build a cohort of teacher leaders across North Carolina
The Kenan Fellows for Curriculum and Leadership Development Program, established in 2000, grew out of a community effort to address teacher retention and recruitment. Community consensus supported an effort to elevate the classroom teacher and provide resources to support the findings of the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future 1996 report, What Matters Most: Teaching for America's Future…All education reform begins and ends with the classroom teacher. Quality teachers matter! Teacher quality is directly linked to student achievement.
Leveraging Partnership Power
Classroom teachers selected as Kenan Fellows represent the most outstanding and committed educators across the state. As Fellows, they engage in a two-year fellowship in partnership with distinguished scientists and university faculty to develop innovative curricula for use in classrooms all across N.C. The Kenan Fellows Program is supported by grants from foundations, government organizations, corporations, and individual partners. At the forefront of these partnerships is the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, which provides direction for curriculum development based on current classroom needs. The Kenan Fellows Program promotes teacher innovation and creativity.
Energizing School Curriculum
This Program differs significantly from existing programs because it develops leaders in our classrooms. The National Research Council (NRC) has refocused public attention on current deficiencies in science education, and NRC Standards provides guidelines for teachers' professional development, recognizing that practicing teachers represent the science community in our classrooms. The Kenan Fellows have opportunities to learn science content and inquiry-based teaching strategies in collegial environments that allow for sharing of knowledge and that encourages them to connect their learning directly to the context of their own classroom - all while remaining fully active in the classroom. It is just this offering of professional development that promotes the art of teaching and honors educators in the classrooms.
In summary, the Kenan Fellows Program is two-fold…Teacher Leadership Development and Curriculum Development. In addition to promoting quality teachers, the Kenan Fellows Program focuses on developing curricula that will excite and engage students. All curricular resources developed by Kenan Fellows in collaboration with University Mentors are made available to teachers and the public through the Internet.
Author: Briana Corke
School: Carrboro Elementary School
Project Information: Works to allow students to apply their understandings of magnets and electricity by designing or improving an existing invention.
