ACSA-AASA Aspiring Superintendent Academy® for Women Leaders
AASA and ACSA are partnering to bring the Aspiring Superintendents Academy® for Women Leaders to the west coast — a leadership development experience built for women who are considering, exploring, or actively pursuing the superintendency.
Built on the legacy of our nationally recognized Aspiring Superintendents Academy® for Women Leaders, this program was designed around the real professional, political, and personal realities women navigate on the path to district-level leadership — and meets you exactly where you are.
Based in California and developed in partnership with ACSA and AASA, this Academy serves women leaders across California and the western region of the United States, offering a West Coast pathway aligned with AASA's national leadership development efforts.
Core Curriculum Areas Include:
- Framing the Superintendency
- 3C's of Leadership: Culture, Community and Communications
- Leading Systems of Learning
- Balancing Leadership
- Governance and the Superintendency
Participants may include district leaders from California and across the western United States who are looking for a regionally grounded, nationally connected leadership development experience.
This Academy is designed for women educational leaders who:
- Are considering or actively pursuing the superintendency
- Are exploring whether the superintendent role aligns with their leadership goals, values, and life priorities
- Seek thoughtful preparation, mentorship, and sponsorship from experienced women superintendents
- Value learning in community with other accomplished women leaders
- Are committed to equity-driven leadership and system-level impact
Price
Registration Fees:- ACSA Members - $4,600
- Non-Members - $4,900
Participants must be members of ACSA to receive the special ACSA-member rate.
In-Person Meeting Dates:
- September 18-19, 2026 | Sacramento, Calif.
- November 3-4, 2026 | Chula Vista, Calif.
- February 23-24, 2027 | Atlanta, Ga. during AASA's 2027 National Conference on Education. Academy participants will receive complimentary registration to NCE.
- April 16-17, 2027 | Sacramento, Calif.
Virtual Meeting Dates:
- October 8, 2026
- March 11, 2027
The Academy is designed to:
- Develop confidence, clarity, and readiness for the superintendent role
- Support women who are exploring whether the superintendency is the right next step for their leadership journey
- Provide authentic, experience-based learning grounded in real superintendent leadership
- Strengthen leadership practices that advance inclusive, just, and student-centered systems
- Create a trusted network of women leaders who learn from and support one another
- Strengthen the pipeline of women superintendents across California and the western United States
Academy Leads
Partner
Details
September 18, 2026 to April 17, 2027
Contacts
-
Valerie Truesdale
Senior Vice President, Leadership Network
AASA, The School Superintendents Association
703-774-6930
-
Bill Sanderson
Director of Leadership Academies
Association of California School Administrators (ACSA)
