EPFP

EPFP is a program of the Institute for Educational Leadership.  It is a ten-month professional development program for individuals whose work record reflects strong leadership abilities or potential and a concern for improving the life chances of children and youth.  Participants in EPFP hold full-time positions in diverse organizations, i.e., education, business, non-profit, and government, at the local, state and national levels.  The New England Program draws 50 to 75 Fellows from Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Western Massachusetts.  Fellows are supported by sponsors, i.e., their employing businesses or agencies.

 THE FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM

Fellows remain in their full-time positions and use their work environment as the context for examining important leadership and policy issues in their states and in the nation.  EPFP activities are organized and directed by the New England EPFP Site Coordinator, The Center for Secondary School Redesign.

EPFP brings Fellows and ideas together through a variety of off-site learning opportunities (see the Program Content section below), through electronic networking and information sharing, and through participation in two national conferences during the Fellowship year that bring together Fellows from all 14 state programs.  The Leadership Forum (click the 2006 Leadership Forum Agenda button for a sample program) heightens Fellows' understanding of leadership challenges and of themselves as leaders.  The Washington Policy Seminar (click the 2007 Washington Policy Seminar Agenda button for a sample program) increases Fellows' knowledge of national policy issues and processes and gives them a chance to explore the impact of national policy on their work. These national programs are integrated with five offsite sessions conducted by the New England EPFP.  The exercises and discussions at these sessions examine in depth, and from all perspectives, the issues of contemporary education.
 

Participation in EPFP yields important results.  The program’s complementary dimensions of work/learning, state/national, and actual/virtual activities provide Fellows with a unique personal development laboratory for applying new insights and for practicing new skills.  Fellows are given many opportunities to:

5. create realistic and actionable plans for having a positive impact on education policy in their states.
 

This is truly a powerful and unique professional development experience.  As a result, employing agencies, businesses, and organizations are rewarded with better-informed and more skillful employees.

PROGRAM FEES AND EMPLOYER SPONSORSHIP

Each person’s employing business or agency–the sponsor–pays the base program fee of $3,500 and travel costs to the two national meetings and the five off-site New England meetings, and any special site-specific programming fees.  The total estimated cost to sponsor a Fellow is $5,500 to $6,000.  In addition, the employer provides release time for off-site and national activities.  The five New England off-site programs are held Friday evenings and Saturdays, which may require an early release on Friday afternoon for travel time to the off-site location.

NEW ENGLAND EPFP PROGRAM CONTENT

The five NE EPFP offsite events (October, January, February, March, and May) are held at the SERESC (Southeastern Regional Education Service Center) conference facilities in Bedford, NH.  Programs start with dinner and a working session Friday evening, and run from 8:00 to 4:00 on Saturday.  

1.   September: Program orientation (information by mail).  Pre-program leadership evaluation - multiple assessments completed and sent to the CSSR Site Coordinator for scoring. Participants are assigned to cross and within-state teams.

2.   October 26-27: Welcome and Program Overview; History of Education; Issues in Education - economic, social, and civic impact; Funding in Education; and cross-team topic assignments.

3.   November:  No formal meeting.  However, cross-state teams are assigned topics in leadership in October, and each will be required to post a “white paper” on their leadership topic at least one week prior to the Leadership Forum in the beginning of December.

4.   December 2-5: National EPFP Leadership Forum.
Embassy Suites Atlanta – at Centennial Olympic Park, 267 Marietta St., Atlanta, Georgia 30313; cross-state teams required to post a debrief of the conference.

5.   January 18-19: A New Look at Leadership; Education and Policy Specific Leadership; and within-state topic assignments.

6.   February 22-23: Best Practices in Education; How Educators are Educated; Organizations Devoted to Improving Education; and cross-state team presentations (aligned with main session topic)

8.   April 9-12: National Washington Policy Seminar.  Grand Hyatt Washington, 1000 H Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20001. Cross-state teams required to post a debrief of the conference.

9.   May 16-17: State Education Policy Initiatives - presentations by same-state teams - real action to be taken by participants within their home states - attended by state policy and lawmakers; and Graduation

Contact information if you are outside of New England or if you reside in Connecticut or the Boston Metro Area:

• Connecticut: http://iel.org/epfp/state/ct.html
• Boston Metro Area: http://iel.org/epfp/state/ma.html
• Outside of New England http://iel.org/epfp/index.html