A collaboration involving Harvard University, the Meridian Public School District and the Phil Hardin Foundation is destined to become a model not only for the state of Mississippi, but also the nation.

MPSD principals, assistant principals and new superintendent Dr. Charles Kent will be heading to Harvard University July 5-12 to participate in a pilot program at Harvard’s Institute for School Leadership. The program is under the auspices of the Ward Fellows Program.

“This collaboration between Harvard University, the Meridian School District and the Phil Hardin Foundation has been established to help these individuals and teams of school leaders develop leadership skills and strategies necessary to build capacity and significantly improve instruction for our students at the k-12 level,” said Rebecca Combs, executive director of the Phil Hardin Foundation.

“Harvard has worked with many administrators and understands this environment of standards-based reform, pressing state and federal mandates, and high stakes accountability, which make it essential for school leaders to manage and leverage proven strategies that promote excellence in both teaching and learning,” Combs said. Outgoing MPSD Superintendent Sylvia Autry worked with Combs for several months to facilitate the program.

"This is probably one of the best professional development opportunities for school leaders," Autry said. "We have extremely high expectations for our principals. They've got to insure that quality instruction is being delivered in the classroom, that students are making progress and that they are making wise decisions as leaders."

Although Harvard has sponsored a program for principals for several years, this program was developed specifically for Meridian.

"Harvard has worked closely with us to develop this program for the needs of our leaders, our schools and our community," Autry said. "We are the only school district in the United States to have this specialized program."

According to Dr. Robert Peterkin of the Harvard Graduate School of Education, this is the first time in the history of Harvard that an entire school district will receive this type of intensive, multi-year training. The program is a three-year commitment and, if successful, will be replicated throughout the country.

But before the administrators head for Harvard in Cambridge, Mass, a team from Harvard has arrived to provide facilitation to prepare Kent and his administrators for their training at Harvard in July. Peterkin with associates Chantal Francois, Leslie Boozer and Connie Chung worked with the administrators on Tuesday to identify their district strengths and to establish the unique challenges facing the Meridian Public School District to incorporate them into their training in July and over the next three years. They will continue their training today at the MSU Riley Center.

Between the training at Harvard, the Harvard facilitators will return to Meridian during the school year to brainstorm with Kent and his administrators to evaluate their progress and address continuing issues. The school district will also require the administrators to meet with the superintendent during the school year to continue their dialogue, planning and implementation of strategies developed at Harvard.

“This multi-year collaboration could not have been possible without the leadership and vision of Dr. Sylvia Autry and the Meridian School District Board," Combs said. "Together, we have envisioned an opportunity to make the Meridian School District a premier school system within the State of Mississippi."

The Ward Fellows Program was established in 1992 to honor the first president of the Phil Hardin Foundation who throughout his life "perpetuated the tradition of competence, conscience, renewal and service," said Robert Ward, current president of the Hardin Board.