Introduction

** PLEASE NOTE** Applications for 2009 Fellowships closed on Friday 1 May 2009 and no further applications will be accepted.

 Fellowship grants are awarded by the Leadership Centre as a strategy contributing to enhancing professional standards of school leadership in Western Australia.

Individual applicants, the Department of Education and Training and the community of school leaders in Western Australia are expected to benefit from the awarding of a fellowship grant.

Fellowship grants are directed towards initiatives that contribute to developing the understanding of educational leadership. Grants of up to $5,000 are advertised annually.
 

Application Form

NOTE: The Leadership Centre Board reserves the right not to award a Fellowship, even when applications have been submitted. In such cases the Board is not required to disclose the reason for not awarding a Fellowship. Previous Fellowship recipients are only eligible to reapply 2 years after the date of completion of the previous Fellowship activity.

The application is not intended to be lengthy or difficult to prepare. Applicants should provide only that information which will enable the Board to determine the nature and purpose of the proposed visit, study or activity and to be able to select the most meritorious application.

Applicants are required to include the following information in their application:

Personal Details

Name, address and contact information for both work and home should be supplied. A brief description of your current role and your school leadership objectives should be included in this section of your application.

Background Information

A curriculum vitae of no more than two pages in length should be provided, inclusive of information about any previous fellowships, grants, awards or financial support that has been received in relation to the applicant's work as a school leader.

Scope of Fellowships

Grants of up to $5 000 may be awarded toward activities, studies or visitation projects that have the potential to significantly inform key areas of systemic importance. Contribution toward educational policy development, knowledge and research capabilities and collaborations will be highly valued. The Board also encourages diversity in projects and would look favourably on smaller amounts of funding for initiatives that may involve part contribution toward an activity that has a systemic focus. Funding may be considered for individuals, group projects or initiatives involving clusters of school leaders. Such projects could include the investigation of educational innovation in another state or country, at a school or system level. Recent examples include Curriculum Implementation and Assessment, Characteristics of effective Principals and Flexible Learning for the Delivery of Post Compulsory Education.

Details of the Proposed Visit, Study or Activity

While fellowship grants are not available to fund fees for courses of higher education, proposed study programs may have relevance to areas of systemic importance. A plan detailing the proposed study, visit or activity and a rationale for undertaking it needs to be submitted as part of the application. Include an overview of arrangements that have already been made regarding contacts, bookings or commitments. An outline of how the fellowship grant would be expended should also be provided.

If the visit, study, or activity is being undertaken in association with another purpose such as a holiday, this should be indicated.

If another organisation has been approached for a grant, fellowship, or financial support, or has provided a grant, fellowship or financial support for the same visit, study or activity that is the subject of this Fellowship application, this should also be indicated.

Personal Benefits

Applicants should provide a statement explaining what they hope to gain by the study, visit or activity. In this section please indicate your understanding of the issues of school leadership and how your visit, study or activity relates to this.

System Benefits

In this section, applicants should describe the significance of the proposed activity and whether the activity addresses an issue or problem of broad systemic importance. Describe how the anticipated outcomes will benefit the Department of Education and Training and the community of school leaders in Western Australia (include relevance to any/ all of the following: policy development, knowledge and research capabilities, issues facing school leaders and collaborations). Applicants should also illustrate how information gained as a result of the visit, study or activity will be communicated back to the system and school leaders.

Application Cover Form

All applications must be accompanied by a completed Fellowship Application Cover Sheet.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Statements addressing the selection criteria should be of no more than 2 pages in length.

1. The degree to which the visit, study or activity is of benefit to broader systemic initiatives and the community of school leaders in Western Australia.
2. The extent to which the school leadership capacity of the applicant is likely to be improved by the visit, study or activity.
3. The means by which the visit, study or activity will be communicated to inform school leaders and the system as a whole.

APPLICATION COVER FORM

All applications must be accompanied by a completed Fellowship Application Cover Sheet.

PDF 81KB
Word 83KB

AGREEMENT TO FELLOWSHIP CONDITIONS (PDF 92KB)

Department of Education & Training Travel Application

• Travel Application Form

PDF 99KB
Word 66KB

• Travel Expenditure Declaration

PDF 74KB
Word 72KB

• Travel Policy and Procedures

PDF 104KB
Word 73KB

Fellowship Grant Recipients

Reports from previous grant recipients

Fellowship Approvals

Advice for Applicants

The granting of a Leadership Centre Fellowship does not necessarily mean that you have, or will be granted, approval for leave or approval for travel. Each of these need to be applied for separately. You can maximise your chances for approval for leave if you use the following guidelines which have been taken from Departmental policy documents or have been negotiated with the relevant Executive Director in regard to Leadership Centre Fellowships.

• Guidelines for Approval for Leave
• Guidelines for Approval for Travel

Approval for Leave

Approval for leave should be made to the Director General through the Principal (if a staff member) or District Director (if a principal). Approval of leave will be considered according to the following principles:

• The leave is required for purposes which deliver significant educational benefits.
  To assist in this determination, you should submit, with your application for approval for leave, a copy of your application for a Leadership Centre Fellowship Grant and a copy of your letter of approval from the Board of the Leadership Centre granting you the Fellowship.
• The leave is being taken at the most appropriate time.
  If the period of leave being applied for includes time in which you would normally be on duty at school, you must submit an explanation why you require that time to undertake the Fellowship and why the Fellowship could not have been taken during time you would not normally be on duty at school.
• Resource implications of leave are minimised.
  Leave to undertake a Leadership Centre Fellowship that does not involve the employment of replacement staff is preferable to additional costs being incurred. Cost neutrality should be considered where possible.
• Duration of leave is appropriate.
  Application for paid leave in excess of 10 school days to undertake a Leadership Centre Fellowship should be accompanied by evidence of exceptional educational benefits which will result from undertaking the Fellowship.
• The educational program of the school is not at risk.
  Relevant planning prior to the period of leave should be undertaken to ensure that ongoing work responsibilities are accommodated and allocated to other staff. The educational program of the school should not be disrupted during the period of leave.

Approval for Travel

Staff applying for approval for travel should read the Policy and Procedures Guidelines which were issued in January 1999. These are available from the Travel Services Co-ordinator on 9264 4528. Some of the information from that document is reproduced here for your convenience. You should confirm everything you read here by referring directly to the most recent Departmental documentation.

The requisite approval for travel is required for insurance and workers compensation requirements.

The following requirements apply to all travel:

• Irrespective of the source of funding, appropriate authorisation for travel must be obtained prior to the travel being undertaken.
• Except with the permission of the Minister for Education, all staff are to travel economy class utilising the best fare of the day.
• Individuals travelling on government business at government expense must not claim gifts, travel or other benefits for personal use. Officers must not utilise points accumulated on government business under the 'frequent flyer' scheme to acquire personal benefits, such as upgrading of tickets above normal travel entitlements, or for private travel. It is acceptable, however, to accept travel incentive bonuses if they are utilised for the Department's benefit, such as free travel.
• When approved travel arrangements are amended, such as names, destinations etc, further approval must be sought before the amendments can be confirmed.

Intrastate Travel

All Leadership Centre funded travel is to be approved by the Executive Director (Schools) through the Principal, and District Director. A travel application form is to be used for obtaining approval.

Interstate Travel

All Leadership Centre funded travel is to be approved by the Director General, through the Principal, District Director, and Executive Director (Schools). A travel application form is to be used for obtaining approval.

Applications for approval for interstate travel must be submitted for approval a minimum of three weeks before the proposed date of departure.

International Travel

All Leadership Centre funded travel is to be approved by the Minister for Education, through the Principal, District Director, Executive Director (Schools) and the Director General. A travel application form is to be used for obtaining approval.

Applications for approval for interstate travel must be submitted for approval a minimum of six weeks before the proposed date of departure.