From Presence to Partnership: Morgan State's Role in Urban Education feat. Darryl Williams

In this episode of In the Lead with UCEA, Executive Director Dr. Mónica Byrne-Jiménez talks with Dr. Darryl Williams, Interim Assistant Chair for Administration in the Dept of Teacher Education and Professional Development,Professor of Practice, and Program Director at Morgan State University.  Mónica and Darryl talk about Darryl’s background and the work he’s doing at Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD. Darryl explains the strategic partnership between Morgan State University's School of Education and Urban Studies and Baltimore City Public Schools (BCPS) and elaborates on the Equity Center Principal Pipeline Initiative (ECPI) and its aim to develop sustainable and equitable leadership within the BCPS. Darryl emphasizes the importance of relevant, community-focused education and highlights the collaborative efforts that have strengthened the principal preparation program. They also reflect on the historical impact of Morgan State University as a historically black college and university (HBCU) and the critical importance of trust and communication in building effective institutional partnerships.In the Lead with UCEA is produced by University FM.Episode Quotes:On strengthening the pipeline[08:01] I came at the beginning of year three of the partnership. So, I think the contribution that I saw when I came was really having key individuals come together and looking at the redesign of the principal pipeline. So, that included pre-service, those who were studying to become an administrator, those who then finished the program at the university, and those who were seeking placement as a principal intern or a first-year principal. So, in order to do that, the university had to sit down with the school officials and really look at what we were trying to strengthen in that pipeline. And so, that involved key individuals from the school system as well as the School of Education. And I think what we contribute that's unique for Morgan, and again, I go back to that strategic plan, there are goals that the School of Education and Urban Studies had. But we could also partner with other schools within the university, such as the School of Business and Management.On his focus on student recruitment[12:57] When I arrived, I had a focus and interest in one of the quality measures, which was the candidate admissions. So, that's about the recruitment. How were we recruiting? So, we went from a simple trifold that had some information to then being a part of many of the leadership symposiums, many of the recruitment efforts in the school system, (and) opportunities to have QR codes. So, we became a little bit more high-tech, much more visible. How Baltimore City’s uniqueness strengthened the partnership[16:59] When you think about Baltimore City, you think about the richness of its history, you think about some of the challenges, you think about how they have built this pipeline to really help our leaders to be successful leaders to turn schools around. Sometimes there may not be as many resources. Sometimes there's great resources. Sometimes we are looking at small schools, we're looking at large schools. Sometimes we're looking at the phenomenon of a K-8 school. Those are unique. That's the context in which we have in our city, but what a great opportunity to really prepare students to take on those responsibilities. You know, I think about the history, I think about the resources, and just to see the partnership that the City schools really want the students to be successful because they're their staff. And so, we want them to be successful because a part of that is we get to say, "Yes, they are Morgan graduates." And also, our accreditation, we continue to provide evidence around our accreditation of how our graduates are doing. So, I think it's a win-win.Show Links:Dr. Darryl Williams | Morgan State UniversityDr. Darryl Williams | National Center for the Elimination of Educational DisparitiesDr. Darryl Williams | LinkedIn ProfileECPI | Wallace Foundation