Learning Leaders Lab: 
A Yearlong Learning Experience for District Instructional Leaders

About

WASA is pleased to invite you to participate in Instructional Leadership Collectives as a member of the Learning Leaders Lab, a yearlong professional learning opportunity designed for district leaders who are working to strengthen instructional systems and improve learning outcomes for every student.

This experience is built for busy leaders who want practical strategies, trusted thought partners, and structured time to work through real instructional leadership challenges. Participants will join a small peer group focused on a shared problem of practice, take leadership actions between sessions, gather evidence of impact, and refine their next steps with support from colleagues across Washington.

Participants Will:

• Attend a virtual orientation to understand the purpose, structure, and expectations of the yearlong experience.
  
• Join a small instructional leadership collective that meets seven times during the 2026–27 school year.
  
• Focus on a shared problem of practice connected to a current instructional leadership challenge.
  
• Develop and test leadership actions between sessions.
  
• Collect and analyze evidence to understand what is working, what is shifting, and what next steps are needed.
  
• Receive feedback, ideas, and support from a consistent peer group and facilitator.
  
• Build deeper professional relationships with colleagues across Washington.
  
• Strengthen leadership efficacy in ways that support coherent instructional systems and improved student learning.
  
• Participate in a final wrap-up session to share key learning and insights across groups.

Problems of Practice for Small Group Collectives

Each small group collective will focus on the following guiding question:
What leadership practices help district leaders move beyond managing instructional programs to leading coherent systems that improve student learning?
Participants will identify their preferred problems of practice during registration. WASA will make every effort to place each participant in one of their top three choices.

Register

Problem of Practice

1. We have adopted instructional materials, but implementation is inconsistent across classrooms and schools.
   
   
2. Principals are expected to lead instruction, but many do not feel confident coaching teachers on curriculum-specific practices or making time for consistent instructional conversations.
   
   
3. We have a lot of assessment data, but it is not consistently changing instructional practice.
   
   
4. Professional learning is appreciated in the moment but does not reliably transfer into classroom practice.
   
   
5. We have growing demands for Tier II and Tier III supports to address student learning gaps, but we may be using intervention as a workaround for inconsistent Tier I instruction.
   

Why It Matters

1. Districts invest significant time and resources in curriculum adoption, but impact depends on strong implementation support, principal understanding, pacing expectations, assessment alignment, and ongoing monitoring.
   
   
2. District leaders can play a critical role in helping principals know what to look for, how to give useful feedback, and how to reinforce instructional priorities without turning the work into compliance monitoring.
   
   
3. Data meetings can become reporting exercises rather than opportunities to diagnose student learning needs, adjust instruction, and identify system-level barriers.
   
   
4. Leaders may need to rethink professional learning as an implementation system that includes modeling, practice, coaching, collaboration, feedback, and evidence of impact.
   
   
5. When core instruction is inconsistent, intervention systems can become overloaded and less effective. Leaders need ways to help schools examine whether students are receiving high-quality, grade-level Tier I instruction before expanding supplemental or intensive supports.

Program Schedule

Orientation
August 14, 2026 | 12 –1 p.m. | Virtual via Zoom
Participants will receive an overview of WASA’s vision for the instructional leadership collective experience, clarify program logistics, and learn about their small group. The large group portion of the orientation will be recorded.

In-Person Workshop
September 16, 2026 | 8 a.m – 4 p.m. | Puget Sound ESD 121 in Renton
Participants will come together to get to know one another, learn the Instructional Leadership Collective process, and begin working in their assigned small groups.

Small Group Collective Sessions
Seven 60-90-minute Zoom sessions | October–April
Each small group will set its meeting dates to accommodate as many participant schedules as possible. Sessions will provide structured time to learn, reflect, analyze evidence, and plan next leadership actions.

Wrap-Up Session
May 13, 2027 | 12:00–1:30 p.m. | Virtual via Zoom
Participants will share key learning, insights, and implications for future instructional leadership work.

Join the WASA Instructional Leadership Collaborative

This yearlong experience is designed for leaders who want to move important instructional work forward with greater clarity, structure, and peer support. If you are working to strengthen curriculum implementation, principal instructional leadership, data use, professional learning, Tier I instruction, intervention systems, MTSS, or instructional technology, this collaborative will provide practical support for your leadership.

Target Audience

This opportunity is designed for:

• Curriculum and instruction leaders
  
• Superintendents who lead or closely support C&I work
  
• District leaders responsible for intervention systems, MTSS, instructional technology, assessment, professional learning, or instructional improvement

Cost

$399 per participant, which includes orientation, seven facilitated small group sessions, and the final wrap-up session.

Up to 16.5 Washington State approved clock hours will be available based on participation.

A $100 administrative fee applies to all cancellations. No refund for cancellations received after October 15.

Space is limited to preserve the small-group experience.