Guilford County Schools (GCS) is working with other local school districts to identify and train aspiring principals who will lead high-need schools.

The Piedmont Triad Leadership Academy (PTLA) is one of two new alternative licensure academies approved by the State Board of Education and scheduled to open for the 2011-12 school year. It will offer professional development and alternative administrative licensure with a focus on dramatically improving student achievement in high-need schools.

PTLA is a partnership between GCS, the Alamance-Burlington School System, Asheboro City Schools, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, the Piedmont Triad Education Consortium and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. It is funded by a three-year, $6.2 million grant from North Carolina's Race to the Top program and the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation.

The academy will enroll a cohort of at least 20 aspiring principals each year. Programs will include a full-time, year-long clinical residency and mentoring and coaching by experienced principals. Graduates could earn credit toward a Master of School Administration.

The school districts served by the PTLA have more than 150,000 students and about 100 high-need schools. According to current school leader turnover data, these districts will lose almost 200 principals or assistant principals over the next three years.

"Transforming high-need schools requires a special skill set, one that isn't easily found today," said Nora Carr, GCS chief of staff. "The opportunity to recruit and grow more leaders ready to tackle this challenge is really significant."

The State Board of Education also approved the Sandhills Regional Leadership Academy. The state's first principal academy, the Northeast Leadership Academy, opened in fall 2010.