States of Being
Center for Coaching & Leading
Founding Director, Linda Belans, Ed.D.
The impact of States of Being reverberates through all my district leadership work. The stories in the book are a gorgeous choreography between author and reader, much like the dance between people in a coaching relationship. States of Being offers real development in the field of education and is an approach that can radically transform individuals, relationships, teams, and organizations. – Andrea Zayas, former Chief Academic Officer -Boston Public Schools
I have been coaching leaders across the country and abroad for more than 30 years, primarily in underserved schools and communities. My lifelong equity work, activism, and organizing began in Oakland, California in 1968, followed by teaching and learning at every level, from kindergarten through university.
My work draws on experiences I have been accruing over my lifetime including coaching, teaching, leading, participating in the arts and humanities, journalism, broadcasting, parenting and grandparenting. I was the founding director of the KIPP Leadership Coaching Program, and am founding director of The Center For Coaching & Leading. States of Being: Leadership Coaching for Equitable Schools, is the culmination of all these experiences.
Along the way, I have been recognized with numerous awards and honors including the prestigious 2006 Duke University Presidential Diversity Award, and two Gracie awards for women in media. Currently, in addition to coaching school leaders across the country with my team of deeply experienced States of Being coaches, I am mentoring journalists in Ukraine who yearn to develop skills to write about dance while war rages all around them.
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For a more complete look at my story, please visit lindabelans.com.
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Distilled from decades of teaching and coaching experience, this book contains a treasure trove of guidance for school leaders and coaches who want to deepen their practice and re-direct it to address issues of equity and justice. The clarity of its prose, the practicality of its advice, and the elegance of its organization make this slim but weighty volume not only a handbook but also an inspiring outline for revising the search for meaning in schools and beyond. Jim Henderson, Ph.D