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NextGround
One of the first two cohorts

Your first time leading instruction.

The First-Time Instructional Leader cohort is one of the first two NextGround cohorts, alongside Instructional Design, starting January 2027. Everything below describes what it is designed to cover.

Availability

Starts January 2027. Registration opens November 16.

Waitlist members get early access before registration opens to everyone.

Time commitment

Plan for at least 2 hours per week

Each cohort is led by a practitioner who has done the work. You join live calls twice a month with guest speakers like district leaders and hiring managers, watch short videos you can finish on a busy day, connect with educators from other districts, and build a portfolio month by month. Support continues through your first 90 days in the new role.

Pricing

See pricing when you register

Waitlist members register early with their personal code and get an early bird discount. Registration opens to everyone November 16.

Who it's for

First time in instructional leadership, whatever the title.

The title on the door changes. The first year of leading other adults' practice looks remarkably similar. These are a few common examples, not the full list.

New instructional coachLiteracy or math specialistSpecial education managerInterventionist leadDean or grade level chairDepartment or team leadCurriculum support roleAny role where you support teachers or lead adults
Where it points

Roles this path points toward.

A few common destinations, campus and district. If your next role has you supporting teachers or leading instruction, this path fits.

Campus

Instructional coachTeam leadDepartment chairSpecialistDean of instruction

District

Content specialistDistrict coachProfessional learning specialistCurriculum coordinatorMany more
A preview of the curriculum

What's inside each pillar.

Whether you land on a campus or at the district, your first year is about earning credibility with the people you serve and the people you report to. You can expect curriculum like this. We're finalizing the details with our practitioners so every piece builds toward your final portfolio.

PeopleWho you lead and who you need
  • Mapping the relationships your success depends on, before you need them
  • Inheriting a team and earning trust from people who didn't choose you
  • Leading people who don't report to you
+ more inside
CultureHow things really work
  • Learning how decisions really get made in a new organization
  • Reading the unwritten rules in your first 90 days
  • Earning credibility with administrators without losing the trust of the people you serve
+ more inside
SystemsKeeping your work moving
  • Onboarding yourself quickly when nobody has time to onboard you
  • Understanding how time, money, and priorities move, so your ideas don't stall
  • Building routines that hold up in the busiest seasons of the year
+ more inside
LeadershipRunning your piece of the work
  • Presenting to senior leaders so they act on what you bring them
  • Sending one message to many audiences, from all principals to every teacher in a district
  • Making decisions in your first year and owning them
+ more inside
AdvocacyBeing heard in rooms above you
  • Speaking up for students and staff in rooms above you
  • Getting your priorities onto leadership's agenda
  • Making your impact visible before anyone has to ask
+ more inside

Anyone can read about it. Here you do it.

Learn it

Short videos on each pillar that you can finish on a busy day.

Practice it

Crew Time role plays built around these exact moments, with no clean answers.

Show it

Portfolio work a practitioner reviews, so you walk into the interview with proof.

What the cohort covers

What the cohort covers.

    Part 1

    Understand the role

    What an instructional leader is actually responsible for day to day, how the job is evaluated, and where first-timers most often struggle.

    Part 2

    Build the core skills

    Coaching conversations, adult learning, facilitation, feedback, and talking about data with people who may not want to hear it.

    Part 3

    Practice the hard moments

    Scenario work on resistance, someone who agrees and then changes nothing, and being handed data and asked what you notice.

    Part 4

    Show your thinking

    You finish with work you can point to: a support plan, a week map, reflections, and language that connects your experience to the role.

    Part 5

    Prepare for the move

    Resume and application support, interview practice for leadership questions, and preparation for the first 90 days in the seat.

Live calls

What the calls are for, and when.

  • Thursdays
  • 6 PM Central, 2 hours
  • 2-3 calls per month

Practice, not lectures. You meet your small crew and take turns leading role plays pulled from real situations, like the hard conversation with a teacher who used to be your peer, then hear exactly how it landed and what to try next.

What a call looks like

  1. 0:00Arrive and land
  2. 0:10Whole group: Devin sets up the skill
  3. 0:20Crew time: three role plays, a different person leads each round
  4. 1:20Break
  5. 1:30Whole cohort: one crew replays its hardest moment and everyone offers a move to try
  6. 1:50Your one thing before next call
Sample

Call 1

Who are you as a leader?

Sample

Month 3

Leading hard conversations: peer to supervisor

Tentative call dates

Mon, Jan 4 balance dueWed, Jan 20 lessons open
January
21
February
418
March
418
April
11522
May
620

These dates are our plan. We may adjust them around things like state testing, but we work hard to keep them.

This may fit you if

  • It is your first time leading other adults' practice
  • You already help the person next door, informally
  • You like adult learning as much as you like working with students
  • You want influence without leaving the building

This probably isn't your destination if

  • You want a role with less people-facing conflict
  • You're looking for an immediate pay jump above all else
  • You want to step away from schools entirely. Look at the education-adjacent and beyond-education destinations instead
See other destinations
Who guides it

Guided by a former teacher who has held the role.

Devin LewisFounder of NextGround

Devin has been a paraprofessional, teacher, instructional coach, and most recently Director of Teacher Evaluation. He is building this cohort from the leadership work itself, not from a course outline.

Meet the practitioners

What you'd walk away with

  • A clear picture of what the role requires
  • A better sense of whether it actually fits you
  • Practice with the conversations leaders have
  • Work you can show in an interview
  • Language that connects your current experience to the role

Next stop

Curious what learning with us feels like?

Take a private look inside the learner app. No account or password needed.

No sign-up needed. Your preview stays open for 24 hours.

See the ways to join
General registration opens Sunday evening

Waitlist members are registering now. Be ready when doors open.

  • An email the moment registration opens
  • Small cohorts, limited seats

Waitlist members are registering now. Drop your email and we will send you the link when doors open.

Routes open in small cohorts. Public registration opens Sunday evening. Drop your email and we'll send you the link.