Instructional Leadership Collectives

From strategic priorities to evidence of impact

Instructional Leadership Collectives (ILCs) bring educational leaders together to investigate persistent problems of practice, take collective action, and learn from evidence.

Unlike one-time professional learning, ILCs use a long-term hybrid approach that combines in-person learning, monthly facilitated sessions, structured inquiry, and application in participants’ own settings.

The goal is not simply to complete an improvement plan. It is to help leaders develop shared understanding, engage in meaningful joint work, and evaluate the difference their leadership actions are making.

Connecting the Work to What Matters

Every partnership begins with the organization’s context. Michael Nelson and Peter DeWitt create a crosswalk connecting the school, district, region, or organization’s strategic plan with relevant leadership frameworks, existing initiatives, and priorities identified by participants.

This process helps leaders see:

• Where goals and initiatives already align
• Where language is shared but understanding may not be
• Which persistent challenges deserve deeper inquiry
• How each collective’s work contributes to broader organizational goals

Rather than adding another disconnected initiative, ILCs help organizations create greater coherence across the work already underway.

Inquiry Grounded in Real Challenges

ILCs are formed around challenges surfaced through strategic documents, local data, surveys, dialogue, and structured reflection. 

Across our partnerships, themes have included:

• Tier 1 instruction
• Equity, access, and belonging
• Student engagement
• Grading and assessment
• MTSS and tiered supports
• Collaborative cultures
• Instructional walkthroughs
• Leadership capacity and change

These themes are not predetermined. They emerge from the needs and priorities of each organization. Our approach has also been shaped by well over 1,000 participant responses collected through surveys, exit tickets, and Mentimeter.

How Collectives Work

Each collective moves through six connected phases:

1. Identify themes
Leaders examine strategic priorities, local data, and their experiences to surface recurring challenges.

2. Form collectives
Participants are grouped around shared themes, contexts, or areas of responsibility.

3. Design the inquiry
Each collective identifies a focused Problem of Practice, establishes a priority, and develops a Theory of Action.

4. Take action and study implementation
Members test agreed-upon leadership actions and use leading evidence to understand what is changing in practice.

5. Evaluate progress and impact
Collectives examine lagging evidence to determine what happened, why it happened, and how their actions contributed.

6. Share learning and begin again
Participants communicate what they learned across the organization and use those insights to shape the next inquiry cycle.

Throughout the process, collectives use structured protocols and the Collective Inquiry Placemat to support honest dialogue, disciplined analysis, and shared decision-making.

Who Participates?

ILCs are designed for leaders across roles and contexts, including:

• Teacher leaders
• Instructional coaches
• Middle leaders
• Principals and assistant principals
• District and central-office leaders
• Superintendents and system leaders

This cross-role structure builds relationships, reduces isolation, and strengthens coherence across schools and systems.

ILCs are:

• Contextual: Grounded in authentic organizational priorities and problems of practice
• Evidence-informed: Focused on learning from progress and impact
• Collaborative: Built around shared understanding and genuine joint work
• Flexible: Adaptable across schools, districts, regions, and larger systems
• Sustainable: Designed to strengthen internal leadership capacity over time

As leaders take action together, interpret evidence, and see signs of progress, they can strengthen their shared belief that they are capable of improving outcomes. This is how ILCs help develop collective leader efficacy.

Instructional Leadership Collectives create a place for leaders to do more than meet together. They learn together, lead together, and determine together whether their work is making a difference.