Scaling UDL: Building a Leadership & Coaching System Across Schools
Project Overview
As a regional Director of Inclusive Instruction, I led a multi-year effort to embed Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and inclusive instructional practices across a network of schools. The work focused on building systems that empowered leaders and coaches to support teachers in designing accessible, rigorous learning for all students.
Rather than offering one-off trainings, I designed a leadership-centered professional learning and implementation system that aligned school leaders, special education teams, and general educators around a shared vision of inclusion.
Goal
Create a sustainable UDL implementation system that improves leader capacity, strengthens inclusive instruction, and ultimately drives better outcomes for students with disabilities and other historically marginalized learners.
The Problem
Across schools, inclusive practices were inconsistent and unsystematic:
- UDL was known in theory but rarely implemented with fidelity.
- Leaders and coaches lacked concrete tools for observing and supporting inclusive instruction.
- Professional learning was fragmented and not tied to a clear roadmap.
- Special education and general education teams often worked in silos.
The Challenge
How do you move from isolated strategies to a coherent system that helps leaders and teachers consistently design accessible, high-quality learning experiences for every student?
The Solution
I developed a three-part UDL implementation system focused on leaders, teachers, and tools:
1. Leadership Learning Series
Recurring sessions for principals and coaches on UDL, observation tools, and change management strategies,
with opportunities to analyze classroom artifacts and plan next steps.
View Year Implementation Plan →
2. Teacher-Facing PD & Co-Teaching Supports
Professional learning for teacher teams on lesson design, differentiation, and co-teaching models, paired with planning templates and examples of UDL-aligned lessons.
View Professional Development Slides →
My Process
Step 1 — Discovery & Needs Analysis
Conducted interviews and focus groups with leaders, special educators, and teachers; reviewed student outcome data; and mapped existing instructional systems to identify gaps and assets.
Step 2 — Design the Multi-Year Roadmap
Developed phased goals over multiple years, balancing quick wins (shared tools and language) with long-term culture change around inclusion and collaboration.
Step 3 — Build Leader & Teacher Learning Experiences
Designed leadership sessions and teacher PD rooted in adult learning theory, using scenarios, practice, and reflection rather than lecture-based formats.
Step 4 — Create Implementation Tools
Developed UDL walk-through tools, lesson planning templates, and coaching protocols that made expectations concrete and gave teams a shared framework for planning and observation.
Step 5 — Pilot, Gather Feedback, Iterate
Piloted the system in a subset of schools, collected feedback from leaders and teachers, and refined tools and sessions before scaling more broadly.
Tools Used
Results
Leaders reported greater confidence observing and coaching for UDL and inclusive practices.
Schools participating in the implementation showed multi-year gains in proficiency for students with disabilities compared to prior trends.
- Greater consistency in how schools defined and supported inclusive instruction.
- Stronger collaboration between general education and special education teams.
- Clearer systems for planning, observation, and feedback aligned to UDL.