Effective school leadership plays a central role in shaping teaching quality, educator working conditions, and school improvement. As expectations for school leaders—including principals, assistant principals, instructional coaches, and department chairs—expand and leadership roles become more complex, there is growing demand for stronger evidence on what helps school leaders be effective and sustain strong leadership over time.
AIR partners with states and districts to strengthen school leader preparation and development. Our work helps partners understand which approaches support effective leadership practices, strong teaching conditions, and leader retention.
Our team provides technical assistance and conducts evaluations to generate evidence that strengthens school leader preparation and professional growth, with a focus on:
- School leader preparation pathways, examining how program design, practical experiences, and candidate selection relate to leadership practice and school outcomes.
- Instructional-focused leadership, including how school leaders support curriculum use, teacher development, and coherent instructional systems.
- Coaching and professional learning for school leaders, studying leadership development approaches that support continuous growth and sustained improvement, including technology‑enhanced learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI)‑supported approaches.
- Leadership pipelines and talent management, including succession planning, recruitment, and retention.
- Using multiple measures of evidence, beyond test scores, to inform preparation program improvement, leadership support strategies, and policy decisions.
By integrating evidence with practical support, AIR helps education systems strengthen school leadership and improve conditions for teaching and learning.
