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Listen to the full conversation between Dr. Jackie Wilson and Dr. Jasmine Kullar to hear how Cobb County is creating a sustainable leadership pipeline rooted in trust, mentorship, and shared purpose:

Why growing your own matters

In Cobb County, Georgia, the leadership pipeline starts early, and runs deep.

Dr. Jasmine Kullar, Chief School Leadership Officer, explains how the district is deliberately identifying, developing, and supporting talent from within. "We鈥檙e not waiting for vacancies to decide who might step up. We鈥檙e building the pipeline now."

Their Grow Your Own (GYO) leadership development strategy spans multiple levels: teacher leaders, assistant principals, principals, and central office leaders. The idea is simple but powerful: invest in people, not positions. Research on the importance of building a leadership pipeline with intentionality has been a for decades.

Creating a culture of leadership

Dr. Kullar emphasizes that leadership is not about titles鈥攊t鈥檚 about influence and initiative. In Cobb, teachers are tapped to lead teams, mentor others, and contribute to schoolwide decisions long before they become administrators.

Jackie Wilson, host and Executive Director of the National Policy Board for Educational Administration, highlights the importance of this model. "When you treat leadership as a mindset rather than a role, you change the entire culture of your schools." 

How the district taps and tracks future leaders

Once identified, potential leaders enter cohorts and receive tailored coaching, shadowing experiences, and professional learning. Dr. Kullar stresses the importance of knowing each candidate personally: "We don鈥檛 just want to know what they鈥檙e good at. We want to know how they handle pressure, how they build trust."

The role of collaboration at every level

Cobb County has implemented structured mentorship opportunities as well as required collaboration with thought partners for every step in the pipeline. From peer coaching for aspiring APs to senior leaders mentoring rising principals, support is built into the system.

Dr. Kullar explains: 鈥淭his type of collaboration is not an add-on. It鈥檚 an expectation. Everyone in our system is a member of a collaborative team who support, mentor and coach each other.鈥�

Ensuring sustainability through succession planning

One standout strategy? Succession planning.

Rather than reacting to turnover, Cobb has succession plans for key positions at the school and district levels. This reduces disruption and keeps momentum going.

"It鈥檚 about continuity," says Dr. Kullar. "Our students deserve consistency in leadership. That only happens when you plan for it."

The takeaway: Systems build people鈥攁nd people build schools

In this episode of the 萝莉网School Leadership Podcast Series, Dr. Jasmine Kullar gives listeners a firsthand look at what happens when a district commits to internal development.

As Jackie Wilson puts it: "The difference between a good school system and a great one often lies in how well it grows its people."

AASA, with support from the Wallace Foundation, produced this series featuring school system strategies that serve to enhance the leadership pipeline.