The Ascend Fellowship is a highly selective, 14-month national leadership experience designed for Chief Academic Officers (CAOs), Chief Schools Officers (CSOs), and other senior academic leaders responsible for driving academic excellence across multiple schools.

The fellowship brings together a national cohort of peers to strengthen systems thinking, strategic influence, and leadership capacity. Through immersive convenings, virtual touchpoints, and a trusted community of practice, fellows build the skills needed to lead with greater clarity, confidence, and impact at scale.

Today's academic leaders are managing increasing complexity. CAOs and CSOs are responsible for developing principals, driving instructional vision, building academic coherence, leading improvement efforts across multiple schools, and sustaining organizational performance.

While these leaders have tremendous influence, few receive leadership development specifically designed for the realities of executive academic leadership.

Ascend was created to close that gap by providing the community, learning, and leadership development necessary to lead at scale.

Ascend is designed for senior academic leaders who are responsible for academic strategy, people, and outcomes across multiple schools.

Ideal participants include:

• Chief Academic Officers (CAOs)

• Chief Schools Officers (CSOs)

• Executive Directors

• Vice Presidents of Academics

• Other senior system-level academic leaders

If you are leading academic excellence across a network of schools rather than a single campus, Ascend is designed for you.

Ascend is not intended for:

• School-based leaders without network-level responsibilities

• Leaders early in their leadership journey

• Individuals seeking technical instructional training only

• Professionals who are not responsible for academic strategy, people leadership, and outcomes across multiple schools

The fellowship is designed around the leadership demands of high-impact academic and school leadership. Fellows strengthen their ability to:

• Build clear academic vision and strategic priorities

• Develop strong academic systems and continuous improvement practices

• Recruit, develop, and retain exceptional leaders and teams

• Engage stakeholders and create alignment around organizational goals

• Lead instructional coherence across multiple schools

• Drive performance through disciplined execution and accountability

Ascend combines four elements rarely found together:

Peer-Powered Learning

A trusted national cohort of leaders facing similar challenges and opportunities.

Systems-Focused Leadership

Development focused on leading across schools, teams, and organizational systems.

Deeper Impact Together

A space to share proven strategies, challenge assumptions, and elevate outcomes for students.

Elevating the Field

A commitment to developing the next generation of C-level education leaders.

Yes.

Ascend intentionally brings together Chief Academic Officers and Chief Schools Officers in one national community of practice. Fellows benefit from shared learning, diverse perspectives, and collective problem-solving while strengthening the impact of both roles.

The fellowship recognizes that while CAOs and CSOs have distinct responsibilities, they share a common mission: creating exceptional outcomes for students.

Absolutely.

While fellows learn together throughout the program, each convening includes role-specific breakout experiences.

Chief Academic Officer Pathway

Topics include:

• Instructional coherence

• Curriculum and assessment strategy

• Academic intervention systems

• Principal coaching and instructional leadership

• Data cycles and continuous improvement

Chief Schools Officer Pathway

Topics include:

• School leader development

• School culture and operational consistency

• Cross-school accountability

• Leading through complexity and change

• Talent sustainability and network alignment

This structure provides both shared community and highly relevant learning.

The Ascend Fellowship includes:

• Four in-person convenings

• Three virtual touchpoints

• A national cohort of peers

• Role-specific learning pathways

• Real-time problem-solving and strategic discussions

• Community-building and relationship development

• Leadership reflection and action planning

The experience is intentionally designed to support real-world application and sustained leadership growth.

The fellowship spans 14 months and is designed to provide meaningful leadership growth over time through repeated opportunities for learning, application, reflection, and connection.

Ascend uses a hybrid model.

Fellows participate in four immersive in-person convenings and three structured virtual touchpoints between convenings to maintain momentum, accountability, and support.

Convening 1

• September 16-18, 2026

  New Orleans, Louisiana

Convening 2

• January 28-30, 2027
  Location TBD

Convening 3

• June 9-11, 2027
  Location TBD

Convening 4

• September 15-17, 2027
  Location TBD

Convenings are retreat-style experiences designed to foster deep connection, strategic reflection, and meaningful growth.

By the end of the fellowship, participants are better equipped to:

• Lead with greater strategic clarity

• Build stronger academic systems

• Develop principals and leadership pipelines

• Improve organizational coherence

• Drive sustainable improvement across schools

• Influence outcomes at scale

• Navigate complexity with greater confidence

The ultimate goal is simple:

Stronger Leaders. Stronger Systems. Greater Impact for Students.

The Ascend Fellowship investment is $22,500.

The program cost includes:

• Four in-person convenings

• Three virtual touchpoints

• National community of practice

• Role-specific learning experiences

• Executive-level leadership development

Organizations may distribute the cost across multiple fiscal years to support budgeting and participation.

Greenhouse E3 is a national leadership organization committed to developing extraordinary education leaders.

The organization has supported more than 110 leaders nationally, with 80% identifying as leaders of color and a Net Promoter Score of 92/100.

Built by practitioners and rooted in the charter sector, Greenhouse E3 combines deep sector expertise with a proven track record of leadership development and executive support.

To learn more about the Ascend Fellowship or express interest in joining a future cohort complete the brief interest form linked at the bottom of this page.

Or contact:

Herneshia Dukes
National Fellowship Director
hdukes@greenhouse3.org

Next Cohort Launch

September 2026

Spots are limited.

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