A Leadership Development Curriculum for Virginia Public Schools

Note:  As of August 2003, the Leadership Development Curriculum has been revised to correlate with the newly revised Standards of Learning.  These resources are available below in .PDF format.

In recognition of the need for leadership ability in all aspects of life, at its November 1999 meeting the Virginia Board of Education adopted a Resolution on Leadership Development. Representing the board’s interests in creating an optional Leadership Development Curriculum, President Kirk T. Schroder established two committees to assist in developing such a curriculum for public school students in kindergarten through grade twelve. In January 2001, members of the Leadership Development Committee, comprised of some of Virginia’s most recognized and successful leaders, met to generate ideas for themes and concepts about leadership that they felt should be included in the curriculum.  The Leadership Development Drafting Subcommittee, consisting of educators who currently incorporate the development of leadership skills into their instruction and their extra-curricular work with students, used the ideas from the committee, as well as current research on effective leadership, to create the Leadership Development Curriculum.  At a meeting in May 2001, the Leadership Development Committee endorsed the leadership student expectations component of the document that was approved by the Board on June 20, 2001.

The Leadership Development Curriculum consists of several components.  The introduction, goals, and strands explain the principles around which the document is organized. The defined goals of the Leadership Development Curriculum are as follows: to develop in every K-12 student an awareness of his or her own leadership potential; to assist young people in developing essential leadership skills that enable them to act responsibly in all aspects of their lives; to develop citizens who possess the leadership abilities to meet present and future challenges in a global society; and to provide students with opportunities to learn and practice essential leadership skills within a learning community.  The organizing strands that frame the document at all grade levels include: Developing Knowledge of Self and Others, Defining Leadership, Developing Leadership Skills and Practices, and Practicing Leadership through Service. 

The curriculum is sub-divided into grade clusters for the purpose of developing student leadership expectations: K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12.  Each grade cluster contains thirteen expectations that provide an array of skills, processes, and opportunities that enable students to develop leadership skills appropriate to their age group. 

Additional components of the Leadership Development Curriculum include:

• sample teaching activities that incorporate the development of leadership skills into content instruction that already occurs in Virginia’s schools
• an extensive list of resources that includes books, guides, Web sites, and other materials that may assist teachers as they include leadership development in their daily instruction
• a chart showing the developmental nature of the leadership student expectations across grade clusters
• samples of leadership curricula that have been developed by other Virginia programs
• correlations of the Virginia Standards of Learning and Career and Technical Education Competencies to the leadership student expectations.