Chapter 16: Developing Leadership Capacity in PDS Master Teachers

Grounded in the principles of constructivist leadership, the Master Teacher Program at the University of North Carolina Wilmington began as a three-year initiative to highlight and strengthen the extraordinary work and leadership potential of teachers in a multi-district professional development system. Currently in its fifth year, the program has evolved to include an array of collaborative opportunities impacting not only our partnership teachers, but also college faculty, professional development school beginning teachers, and the students they serve. This chapter shares the experiences of program participants and a multitude of ways in which each has engaged in practices meant to enhance and promote teacher leadership in our partnership.