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Each year the Rowland Foundation awards up to six Rowland Fellowships to Vermont middle grades and secondary school teachers. Since some teachers apply with a partner to share a fellowship, the number of Rowland Fellows selected from qualified applicants for each cohort varies from year to year.
The Rowland Foundation’s mission is to invest in Vermont teachers to positively change the culture and climate of schools. We welcome applications from classroom teachers of all disciplines, school counselors, special educators–all Vermont teachers who work directly with students in the middle or secondary grades are eligible to apply. Administrators, instructional coaches, coordinators, and program directors are not eligible.
Erica Wallstrom, 2014 Rowland Fellow, former Rutland High School Science Teacher, Board of Trustees
Rachel Cohen, 2019 Rowland Fellow, Colchester High School
The Rowland Foundation provides grants of up to $100,000 to each receiving school to support their Rowland Fellow’s change idea to transform an aspect of the school in order to positively impact its culture and climate. A large part of these funds cover substitute costs so that the Rowland Fellow can be released from teaching duties in order to develop their school change Fellowship initiative. The remainder of the funds support Fellowship activities so the Rowland Fellow can conduct research, do site visits, develop strategic partnerships, and organize the work of their Collaborative Work Group. Rowland Fellows submit an updated version of their Fellowship budget to the Executive Director twice a year.
All Rowland Fellows and their principals sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Rowland Foundation that outlines the obligations and responsibilities of all parties.
All Vermont middle and secondary grades teachers are warmly invited to submit a proposal for a Rowland Fellowship. To be eligible, teachers must be currently practicing their profession in a Vermont school and work directly with students on a daily basis. This includes Vermont teachers practicing in the secondary or middle grades, including all subject areas, as well as guidance counselors, mental health counselors, or healthcare professionals who are full-time staff at a Vermont school. Administrators, coordinators, and instructional coaches are not eligible to apply. The Rowland Foundation accepts proposals only from Vermont schools that are 1) eligible for public funding, and 2) do not have selective admissions.The Rowland Foundation’s selection process does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identification, language, religion, (dis)ability, or national origin.
Kathy Cadwell, 2016 rowland fellow, Harwood Union High School
The Rowland Foundation’s approach to school change is predicated on shared leadership and deep collaboration, consequently Rowland Fellowships are never completed in isolation. The Rowland Cohort Model is a two-year cycle that brings Rowland Fellows together to provide critical support for their challenging school transformation work.
The Rowland Cohort is also a commitment. Rowland Fellows commit to working with their peers and the Rowland Senior Associates who organize and facilitate Rowland Cohort Meetings. The Rowland Fellows take turns hosting Cohort meetings at their schools, which gives Fellows the opportunity to see the work of culture & climate at different schools around the State. The Rowland Foundation’s Executive Director attends all Cohort meetings in order to better support their work. Rowland Fellows also commit to engaging in the following activities during the two-year cycle of their Fellowship and Cohort work, sponsored by the Rowland Foundation to support shared leadership, innovation, and collaboration in their school change work:
Any successful Rowland Fellowship initiative is based on shared leadership. This is why the Rowland Foundation requires each Rowland Fellow to convene, organize, and lead a Collaborative Work Group to help design and implement their school change proposal. The Collaborative Work Group should consist of 7-10 people who are available to do the side-by-side, hands-on work of the Fellowship with their Rowland Fellow. Collaborative Work Groups typically include a cross-section of teachers, students, community members, and the Principal (or designee). The Collaborative Work Group should meet at least once each month with a planned agenda for each meeting. Rowland Fellows are strongly encouraged to use the Cohort’s collaborative practice strategies with their Collaborative Work Group.
| PRE-FELLOWSHIP WORK: Onboarding and Preparation | ||
| March: | New Fellows’ Orientation | |
| May: | New Fellows Dinner & Reception Fellowship Launch with Principals | |
| YEAR ONE: Research & Collaboration | ||
| September: | The Cohort of Rowland Fellows takes Collaborative Practice for Equity 3-credit graduate course together with Senior Associate Jeanie Phillips. Rowland Fellows’ teaching duties are covered by a long term substitute so they can pursue their Fellowship work. The first Cohort Meeting takes place at one of the Rowland Fellows’ schools. Rowland Fellows bring their Collaborative Work Group & Principal to the Shared Leadership Retreat. | |
| October: | Rowland Fellows attend the All Fellows Retreat to learn more about the Rowland Foundation’s work and to connect with Fellows from other cohorts. Rowland Fellows bring a school team to the Annual Rowland Conference for an important shared learning opportunity. | |
| November: | Rowland Fellows meet with their Cohort at one of their schools. | |
| January: | Rowland Fellows meet with their Cohort at one of their schools. Schools receive a grant disbursement of $25,000 to support their Rowland Fellowship. Rowland Fellows meet with their Cohort at one of their schools. | |
| February: | Project implementation begins | |
| March: | Rowland Fellows meet with their Cohort at one of their schools. | |
| May: | Rowland Fellows meet with their Cohort at one of their schools. Rowland Fellows present the results of their Fellowship work to date at the Annual Dinner with the Board of Trustees and Executive Director. | |
| June: | Final $25,000 grant disbursement is made to schools to support their Rowland Fellowship. | |
| YEAR TWO: Collaboration & Implementation | ||
| September: | Rowland Fellows return to teaching duties, typically with some release time built in so they may continue to lead their Fellowship work. The first Cohort Meeting of the new school year takes place at one of the Rowland Fellows’ schools. | |
| October: | Rowland Fellows attend the All Fellows Retreat to learn more about the Rowland Foundation’s work and to connect with Fellows from other cohorts. Rowland Fellows bring a school team to the Annual Rowland Conference for an important shared learning opportunity. | |
| November: | Rowland Fellows meet with their Cohort at one of their schools. | |
| January: | Rowland Fellows meet with their Cohort at one of their schools. | |
| March: | Rowland Fellows meet with their Cohort at one of their schools. | |
| May: | Rowland Fellows have their last official Cohort meeting at one of their schools. Rowland Fellows may continue to convene their Cohort, formally or informally, on their own. | |
| The Future: | After the end of the Two-Year Cohort Cycle supported by the Rowland Foundation, Rowland Fellows may still be implementing aspects of their Fellowship initiative or actively sharing their model with other schools. Some Rowland Fellows return in full to their teaching role, and some seek out new opportunities in educational leadership or elsewhere. After the Two-Year Cycle, many Rowland Fellows seek out leadership opportunities supported by the Rowland Foundation and available to them as “veteran” Fellows such as: the Rowland Leadership Grant, The Rowland Encore Grant, and the Rowland Women’s Leadership Grant. | |
The Executive Director closely reads and reviews all applications each year. Applicants who put forward the strongest proposals are then invited to interview with the Executive Director at the Rowland Foundation’s office in Burlington. Based on these interviews, the Executive Director recommends a list of finalists to the Board of Trustees who ultimately select the new cohort of Rowland Fellows.
The Rowland Foundation only selects proposals with the potential to make a real difference for all students at the school. Applicants should show a commitment to shared leadership, lifelong learning, and collaboration. Proposals should show a systemic approach to positively changing school culture & climate-not just a new course or alternative program. Also, significant attention is given to the level of support from the principal or head of school. For Rowland Fellows, this is always a critically important partnership.
Applicants are asked to submit a preliminary budget. Since release from teaching duties is usually a Fellow’s largest expense, it makes sense to ask your district’s business office for the reasonable average cost for a long-term substitute in your district. You should also include any conferences, site visits, and other planned travel, and the cost of meetings, gatherings, or retreats you wish to host for your steering committee or school community. We recognize that these numbers are subject to change. Once selected, Rowland Fellows will meet with their Principals and the Rowland Foundation’s Executive Director to finalize their budgets. Budgeting is an iterative process that, when done well, helps inform Fellowship strategies. Rowland Fellows are required to submit their updated budgets to the Executive Director twice a year during their two-year cohort cycle.
Great! They can help give you ideas for your proposal. There’s no limit on the number of Rowland Fellowships a school can receive. However, we do limit each school to a maximum of two applications per year, each requiring the principal’s enthusiastic support.
We don’t accept proposals from schools who have Rowland Fellows still in the two-year Cohort Cycle. We want to give Fellows the opportunity to substantially complete their Fellowship work before launching into something new.
Please visit this page for a list of schools who have had a Rowland Fellow.
As previously mentioned, Rowland Foundation grants need to be sustainable over time. It is our assumption that the school will create budget strategies to sustain the work moving forward. With that in mind, we generally do not fund:
The Rowland Fellows Cohort meetings typically take place every other month, with a few exceptions. (For a closer look at how the two-year cycle is structured, please consult our Two-Year Cohort Model above.) Our Senior Rowland Associates organize and facilitate the Rowland Fellows Cohort meetings. They also incorporate collaborative practice strategies and bring in additional resources as needed.
Rowland Fellows learn to rely on their cohort as a trusted peer group. During cohort meetings, Rowland Fellows help each other articulate challenges, explore new strategies, and celebrate successes during their Fellowship work. The Rowland Fellows Cohort model is a cornerstone of the Rowland Foundation’s approach to school change. The Executive Director attends all cohort meetings during the two-year cycle of a Rowland Fellowship.
One of your letters should be written by your principal or head of school to demonstrate their strong support for you and your proposal and how it is likely to impact your school’s culture and climate. At least one other letter should come from a current colleague. For the third letter, applicants often turn to other administrators, current or former colleagues, students, or other members of the school community. We recommend that at least one of your letters come from a colleague who you currently work with and would likely support for your Fellowship work as a member of your Collaborative Work Group.
If you choose to include digital support materials, please provide a QR code or tiny url that can be used to access the material on-line. Please do not send flash drives or other hardware with your application.
Please join our Executive Director, Michael Martin, for a Rowland Fellowship Info Night. Hop on our Google Meet, hear Mike talk about the fellowship, and ask any questions you have about it. You can register here.
