About Us

Since its inception in July 2009, when SUNY Oswego received its initial award from NYSED, Project BLEND has devoted resources to developing a cohesive educational leadership system in New York State. We have consistently demonstrated our commitment to preparing tomorrow's school leaders for success in high-need school buildings and districts. We provide high quality research-based program elements and a rigorous, authentic clinical internship within our registered pre-service Certificate of Advanced study in Educational Leadership. A portion of Project BLEND's funding is allocated to support tuition scholarships for aspiring leaders. This, combined with a diverse range of professional development offerings, focuses on the current challenges confronting our region's high-need schools.

 Project BLEND is currently in its third cycle of funding.  In our current phase, titled EnCoRe (Engaged Collaborative Resilience) we are enhancing three key features of our program to more effectively prepare future leaders for the demanding challenges of administrative positions and encourage current school leaders to collaborate with BLEND to maintain personal resilience against challenges they may face as leaders.

Over the years we have worked with members of the SUNY Oswego faculty who have expertise in Literature, Mathematics, Human Development, Music, Creative Writing, Economics, Computer Science, and Human Computer Interaction. Sara Coultrap McQuinn, Rhonda Mandel, and James Earley contributed several years to the project before moving on to other commitments. Our current Arts and Sciences faculty colleagues for 2015-2018 are Damian Schofield, Daniel Wood, Maureen Curtin, and Elizabeth Dunne Schmitt.

In 2015-2018 phase, Project BLEND has the commitment of seven external partners as we recruit 18 new Scholars (six per year). The partners are: Dr. Giselle O. Martin-Kniep and Communities for Learning; Dr. Thomas Kelsh and Abacus; Dr. Dolores Grayson and GESA for Administrators; Dr. Harvey Silver and Silver Strong & Associates; Christiana Bishop and the HeartMath Institute; Douglas Hamlin and the NYS Superintendent Development Program; and Beth Lozier who will serve as a mentor for our newest cohort of Scholars. All have pledged support for this initiative, and each has a proven track record of mentoring our next generation of leaders.