PBL Leadership Academy
High Tech High & California Department of Education PBL Leadership Academy
The PBL Leadership Academy is a year-long in-person and online teacher professional development program for diverse teams of California public educators committed to growing project-based learning within their schools, especially as a means to improve educational experiences for traditionally marginalized students.
PBL for Today
Across California, educators are grappling with how to address equity gaps in learning, how to engage each and every learner in authentic work, and how to do both safely and effectively. The PBL Leadership Academy supports teams of educators who thoughtfully create personalized leadership projects that address authentic needs within their own school communities.
Why Join?
Engage Students
Project-based learning grounds education in larger, purposeful endeavors—and students’ communities and lived experiences—to facilitate dynamic growth among students and educators.
Build Your Design Skills
Develop your creative capacities as you design, critique, and implement original solutions with your colleagues and students to address your school-communities’ authentic needs.
Join a Powerful Network
Join a dedicated community of educators committed to growing the practices and principles that sustain deeper learning across California.
The 2022–2023 Academy
In the PBL Leadership Academy, you will...
- Learn together in two Leadership Institutes at HTH:
- Fall Institute: October 20–21, 2022
- Spring Institute: April 27–28, 2023
- Collaborate monthly with a current HTH educator who serves as your Team Mentor.
- Together, you will develop your PBL practices, design PBL curriculum, access resources, and more.
- Your mentor can offer customized workshops, critique protocols, ideation sessions, and more.
- Join online professional learning communities and events:
- All teams will reconnect in the Winter Institute, held online for two afternoons, after school hours on January 25 & 26, 2023.
- You will be invited to several additional workshops held online in the fall and spring—which will also be open to your colleagues and students!
- Earn Continuing Education Units (CEUs) through the HTH Graduate School of Education.
Who Can Apply to the PBL Leadership Academy?
California public educators who serve learners in middle school, high school, or community colleges are encouraged to form teams and apply.
HTH will launch the application very soon—check back for the link!
Who should be on our team?
The ideal team is composed of four highly collaborative educators hoping to grow as PBL designers and facilitators!
Each team should include at least one classroom teacher-leader and at least one school or district administrator.
From there, design your team around authentic goals for your school and community. Teams typically include educators focused on English, Math, Special Populations, and/or Career Technical Education.
The most important element to consider in designing your team is your structures for collaboration. In the past successful teams have focused on many different things, but one thing they all have in common is an authentic way to regularly work together.
How Do I Apply to the PBL Leadership Academy?
Build a school, district, or county-based team of four educators who will lead this work. Then, complete the application. HTH will launch the application very soon—check back for the link!
The 2022–2023 PBL Leadership Academy runs from September 2022 to May 2023.
Participating teams commit to joining the seasonal Leadership Institutes and coaching sessions with their HTH Educator-Mentor.
How much does the PBL Leadership Academy cost?
Participation costs $650 per participant ($2600 per team of four).
Participation is generously supported for California public school educators by the California Department of Education.
How do I learn more?
Email Randy Scherer, PBL Leadership Academy Director today.