Alum spotlights

As Interim Principal at Berkeley High School in Berkeley Unified School District, Tonia Coleman (PLI Cohort 14) works closely with teachers, students, and support staff in creating a positive school culture and climate with high expectations and high support.

« PLI has impacted my leadership by emphasizing the importance of collective leadership and relationships. Strong trusting relationships with colleagues, teachers, students, and families are instrumental in providing access to opportunity and success for all students, identifying systemic issues that need to be dismantled, and supporting the needs of struggling students in the classroom and at the organizational level. Collective leadership and trusting relationships, which are both premier tenets of the PLI program, have led to effective organizational change and positive school culture and climate. »

In her position as Senior Director of Talent Development, Recruitment & Retention at Oakland Unified School District, Sarah Glasband (PLI Cohort 15) is responsible for sourcing, cultivating, and supporting employees across roles in the district, including creating pathways to support the development of BIPOC educators and staff.

« Rooting my work in my vision and values is critical to the success of team leadership. . . . I learned through PLI and LSP to strategically work with others, to buffer, to build bridges, to be tactical, to delegate—to build a team I can have a ride-or-die feeling with because we share the same values and vision. I learned how to clarify roles and responsibilities, how to let go and when to hold on, and how to work in service of a more racially equitable culture. »

In his position as Middle School Network Superintendent in Oakland Unified School District, Cliff Hong (PLI Cohort 8) hires, trains, and supports school leaders to fulfill the mission of ensuring that all students receive a world-class education and have a joyful experience in our schools.

« PLI transformed me as a leader. Before experiencing the program, I was dataand systems-oriented, but PLI helped me to better understand that leadership is first and foremost about people. Through PLI, I practiced pushing systems and society to create educational communities that serve all students, but particularly those who have been historically disempowered and marginalized. PLI helped me articulate my mission as a leader in schools. »

In her role as Principal at Jefferson Elementary in San Leandro Unified School District, Natalie Valencia (PLI Cohort 17) oversees the daily operations of the school site and works with students, families, and staff to maintain a positive school culture.

« The first time I ever felt that my identity was viewed as a strength was during my time in the Principal Leadership Institute. School should feel that way for everyone, and it is because of the PLI that my leadership is rooted in creating schools that are welcoming to all. I learned to look at the principal’s role through a new lens, one where I serve as a facilitator who empowers others to become leaders and build a sustainable school system. »

Janine Marcoux (PLI Cohort 21) served in a cabinet-level position as the Director of Early Childhood Education for Robla School District in Sacramento, providing leadership and oversight for a large California State Preschool Program of more than 250 students, before joining the 21st Century California School Leadership Academy’s UTK Leadership Initiative as a trainer.

« I lean on the foundation I gained from PLI almost daily. I often refer back to readings, intentional learning experiences, and thoughtful discussions from the program that grounded me in the work of social justice leadership and helped to cultivate my leadership identity. Through PLI, I learned to harness the power of “we” and the importance of honoring the collective wisdom of our communities so that we can partner together to disrupt the status quo, transform systems, and hold equity at the core. »

As a fifth grade teacher at Tara Hills Elementary in West Contra Costa Unified School District, Gerardo Palafox-Just (PLI Cohort 13) prioritizes encouraging and supporting students, helping them find their voices and build their confidence so they can better tackle any academic challenge.

« PLI has allowed me to have more of a panoramic perspective of my work in education. Although my work today focuses on the outcomes of one classroom, I’m able to recognize more clearly how the inequities of our school, district, state, national, and global systems directly affect the daily lives of the students in that classroom. There are innumerable leadership lessons that continue to inform my practice. Exercising the economy of words, for example, has made me a more careful and precise listener to the needs of the people around me. Also, adaptability and flexibility continue to be my lifeline, ensuring my success within the educational system. »

In her role as Principal at Hopkins Middle School in Fremont Unified School District, Nancy Kuei (PLI Cohort 17) strengthens relationships, understanding of student needs, and shared leadership across staff, students, and families to drive school improvement actions together.

« PLI’s balanced approach that is both research-based and practice-oriented helped me see the power of formal and—more importantly—informal systems that impact the school every day. Our PLI experience with courageous conversations, leading with a clear “why,” and using different data to effectively tell a narrative, are some of the many lessons that still impact me and help with my reflections daily. »

In her position as A–G Improvement Coordinator for West Contra Costa Unified School District’s College and Career Department, Jessica Petrilli (PLI Cohort 12) coordinates the work of California’s A–G Improvement Grant and works with administrators, counselors, and teachers to improve A–G eligibility for students.

« PLI has made me think about everything through a lens of equity and advocacy. My PLI lessons remind me to maximize the potential I see, collaboratively problem solve, and remain creative, flexible, and resilient in the face of the most daunting challenges. PLI lessons also remind me that systems change requires both building collective capacity and individual agency, and I use that approach in my role in supporting site administrators, counselors, and teachers across the district. »

« PLI is doing the deep work of preparing leaders for the unprecedented challenges we face in our schools, especially for students who are historically resilient in schools with fewer resources. We continually cultivate the leaders who endure through challenging times and indeed thrive. »

—PROFESSOR JABARI MAHIRI, FACULTY DIRECTOR, LEADERSHIP PROGRAMS, BERKELEY SCHOOL OF EDUCATION

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Principal Leadership Institute Berkeley School of Education University of California, Berkeley 2121 Berkeley Way Berkeley, CA 94720-1670 principals.berkeley.edu