Who we support
CEN exists to help aspiring leaders teach well, lead wisely, and steward influence faithfully within a national Christian education movement. Leadership formation is understood as a shared responsibility between individuals, schools, and governing bodies, not a solo journey.
CEN offers a wide range of professional learning and leadership development opportunities designed to support leaders at different stages of responsibility and influence. CEN offers professional learning at school, coaching and mentoring as well as formal qualifications through the National Institute. Leadership development is being refined into three distinct pathways.
Designed for emerging leaders learning to influence without formal authority. This pathway develops identity, judgement, and early leadership literacy. It is mapped to the AITSL Middle Leader Standards, providing professional robustness alongside biblical grounding.
For leaders carrying responsibility for people and culture. This pathway develops resilience, relational leadership, governance awareness, and sound judgement under pressure. It aligns with the AITSL Principal Standard.
For leaders moving toward executive responsibility. The focus shifts to stewardship, succession, and senior leadership, with deeper attention to institutional health and long-term faithfulness.
Many aspiring leaders carry responsibility without clear authority or structured pathways. You may be balancing a heavy teaching load with growing expectations. You may be leading initiatives, year levels, or teams without formal preparation. You may be unsure whether leadership is part of your long-term calling, or how to discern that faithfully.
Aspiring leaders most often connect with CEN when leadership is forming a larger part of their role, usually in partnership with their school:
Leadership development through CEN is normally school-partnered, with nomination, support, and funding shaped by school priorities and governance processes.
CEN offers courses and workshops that support aspiring leaders in both practice and perspective.
Some courses are included for member schools, while others are offered as fee-based programs. Access and priority are usually shaped through CEN membership and school partnership.
Our digital professional learning modules are designed to run simply in staff meetings. The workshops take around an hour, with short engaging videos, interactive Slido questions, and practical activities that spark real conversation.
This induction resource will take you on a journey over the course of one to two years, to unpack the core purpose and task of Christian education.
This FREE online short course introduces the foundational vision of Christian education and equips parents and teachers for further engagement in their Christian school community.
This workshop/course seeks to present a clear and compelling approach to an overview of the whole Bible in ways that will impact life of the school.
This workshop/course recognises that all learning is formational and that Christian educators will, by design, seek a Christ-shaped formation of heart and mind.
This workshop recognises that schools and their communities are embedded in powerful, life-shaping cultural contexts characterised by their own narratives.
This workshop/course equips teachers with skills and confidence in designing school curriculum from a biblical perspective in response to a mandated curriculum.
This workshop/course explores the vision of Christian education. It explores questions like; What is Christian education? What is the purpose of Christian schooling?
This workshop/course explores the role of assessment in deeper, transformative learning and explores what types of assessments should be used in the Christian classrooms.
Through the National Institute for Christian Education, CEN’s partner organisation, aspiring leaders can pursue accredited postgraduate study grounded in Christian educational philosophy.
This includes graduate certificates and masters programs, coaching and mentoring qualifications, NICE@School initiatives, research symposia, Christian Teachers Journal (CTJ), and applied research projects.
Every master’s student completes a capstone research project within a CEN school, contributing to a growing body of practice-based research that serves the wider movement. Aspiring leaders are not only learners here, they also help shape future thinking in Christian education.
Within CEN member schools, aspiring leaders may access:
These gatherings are designed to inspire and encourage, reduce isolation, broaden perspective, and help leaders learn alongside others who share similar convictions and challenges.
Leadership development is grounded in biblical foundations and shaped by lived experience across Christian schools. Emerging leaders gain language for culture, governance, and mission, not only classroom practice.
Formation begins with the lordship of Christ over all of life, including education. A Christian understanding of the human person; created, fallen, redeemed and called to faithful living, shapes how leaders approach authority, stewardship, curriculum, and succession.
No. Programs and networks serve emerging, middle, and senior leaders.We prioritise raising up future leaders and support boards and school leaders in succession planning. Our schools will continue to need faithful and talented leaders into the future.
Many pathways are school-partnered and require nomination or support. Others are open enrolment and can be accessed independently. Contact us to discuss your options and plan your way forward.
All programs connect learning to real school contexts through mentoring and applied work.We celebrate that all of life is under Christ’s lordship, so everything we provide arises from a biblical worldview and supports staff to thrive when playing their part in this Christ-centred mission.
Online programs, state networks, and national gatherings are designed to maximise access and reduce isolation. Many of our schools serve outside metropolitan areas so access for distance students is a core consideration.
Some courses are included for member schools, while others are fee-based. Talk to your school or contact us to find out more.
Most aspiring leaders begin by speaking with their school about development priorities, or having a conversation with their State Executive Officer (SEO) about appropriate pathways.
From there, leaders may join a network, enrol in a foundational course, or be nominated for a leadership pathway aligned with their role and readiness. CEN welcomes those who are curious about leadership, those nominated by their school, and those discerning their next step with care.