Educators throughout the public and private primary and secondary school sectors in the Virgin Islands (VI) have began an 8-month leadership training programme with the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College (HLSCC) Institute of Education in collaboration with the Ministry of Education the college has announced. Photo: HLSCC

Director of the Institute of Education, Dr. Sandy Underhill along with her Administrative Assistant, Ms. Devia Smith. Photo credit: HLSCC

HLSCC in a release added that the programme is intended to support the transition to leadership for new principals and assistant principals and prepare future leaders for complex roles of leadership in education.

Director of the HLSCC Institute of Education, Dr Sandy M. Harrigan-Underhill explained that the training programme is a major and significant initiative designed to address leadership training gaps, build leadership capacity, and particularly to address succession planning in the VI.

“The training series promises to expose participants to skills, perspectives and behaviours of effective school leaders,” she said.

Interest in programme growing- Harrigan-Underhill

The programme will run from January to November 2023 and will include face-to-face sessions once a week every month and will involve fieldwork and collaborative projects. Participants are expected to develop an e-portfolio to document their experience and to chronicle their expected growth and development as a leader.”

“We are happy to report the overwhelming amount of interest in this initiative. We started the programme at capacity with twenty-eight educators consisting of both teachers and principals either holding leadership positions throughout the public and private primary and secondary school sectors or are aspiring leaders in the education system. We have since had several requests from the public and private schools to join the programme, including requests from our own HLSCC faculty as well,” Dr Underhill added.  

She said the college is making every effort to accommodate this additional interest, even if it means virtual attendance for late registrants as we recognise the importance of this type of training in Education at all levels.”

Harrigan-Underhill said over the course of the programme, the Institute will cover topics such as Adjusting to the Role of Principal, Leading with Emotional Intelligence, Leading Positive Behaviour Management, Leading Special Education, Stakeholder Relations, Leadership for Accountability, and Transformational Leadership.

The HLSCC Institute of Education works closely with the Territory’s schools - both public and private - through the Ministry of Education, to obtain data that will inform decisions about the Territory’s Education Training needs. 

Its mission is to develop effective educators who demonstrate progressive ideals, through research-driven innovative and reflective practice, that inculcate critical thinking skills and encourage capabilities for life-long learning in students.

To learn more about the HLSCC Institute of Education, contact Dr Sandy M. Harrigan Underhill via telephone at (284) 852-7039.