M.A.P.L.E—Mentoring for Administrators to Propel Leadership in Education

Build a nature-based school with staff who stay for the long-term, children who flourish, & families who promote the school with rave reviews

How would it feel to…

→ Achieve greater enrollment without sleepless nights

→ Confidently lead a team of teachers, work with families, and meet the many demands of regulators without feelings of isolation

→ Have reduced staff turnover so you can focus on moving your program forward

→ Process & problem-solve complex situations with trusted, reliable support from other like-minded education leaders

→ Meet your goals with success & greater ease with the support of trusted allies

→ Develop your own leadership style and skills so you can end the day energized rather than exhausted

Imagine a community of trusted colleagues where you don’t have to explain what a nature-based school is, but instead can focus on overcoming daily challenges.

If you’re ready for connection, support, & accountability as a leader, without having to justify or explain your nature-based approach, join us for… 

M.A.P.L.E—Mentoring for Administrators to Propel Leadership in Education! 

The 2024-25 cohort is currently in progress.

To be notified about any openings or the start of the next cohort, please join the waitlist below!

Here’s how M.A.P.L.E. works...

  • 1-hour small group discussion sessions twice monthly (Sept-June; 10 months) so you will have personalized support and perspectives from others who face similar challenges (For 2024-25, we meet on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of each month. The first Wednesday we meet at 4:00pm Eastern/1:00pm Pacific and third Wednesday at 11am Eastern/8am Pacific.)

  • Hands-on help with crafting documents (e.g., policies, handbooks, letters to families), designing staff trainings, aligning budgets and program offerings, and more! It’s like having your very own copy editor who actually understands what you do and why you do it.

  • Individual traction report to keep track of your progress and ask questions (See an example here; Rachel will review these before the meeting, provide some feedback in the document, and also curate a list of questions for the hour)

  • Ongoing communication with the entire group so you don’t have to wait until our meetings for feedback (Slack)

  • Support from a consistent, small group of colleagues (<20) for the entire year so you can build a professional network and support system to last beyond the program

  • Participation in the group also includes an annual membership to The Grove, our online membership with a growing resource library, webinars, individual support, and more. (Valued at $270)

This small group is NOT a course. 

You've got an established nature-based school or program. What you really need now is timely support and guidance as you face the day-to-day challenges and work toward your strategic goals.

M.A.P.L.E. is hosted by Rachel Larimore...

Rachel Larimore, Ph.D.

Hi, I’m Rachel Larimore, founder and Chief Visionary of Samara Early Learning! As an author, speaker, and education consultant, I help early childhood educators start nature-based schools or grow the nature-based approach in their existing program so that children learn with nature to expand their worlds and live rich, full lives.

With more than 25 years in education and a decade of that time as a nature-based preschool director, I understand all too well the many challenges that come with program-wide implementation of the nature-based approach. That’s why I created Samara Early Learning.

At Samara Early Learning we help educators avoid the common and sometimes costly mistakes of shifting toward nature-based approaches. Our goal at Samara is to help you stay focused on what matters–helping young children learn with nature as part of their formal education.

With the support we offer in business planning, operations, staffing, and curricula, our clients are able to create highly respected nature-based schools and programs that families clamor to attend. This includes everything from consistent teaching practices, working with families, and working with staff.

 

Please note: This isn’t the Rachel show!

My role is to bring together a fantastic group of education leaders and act as your guide and facilitator. In MAPLE, you'll build new relationships, learn from one another, and help each other.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

  • I take a broad view of what counts as an “administrator” to include anyone responsible for the planning and implementation of a program. In fact, I think of it more as people in leadership positions. This could be a school director, assistant director, school principal, curriculum coordinators, instructional coaches, professional learning coordinators, and even lead teachers who are supervising other teachers.

  • I am limiting the M.A.P.L.E. group to 20 participants for the 2024-25 school year. This allows for personalized support and the opportunity to build strong relationships with peers.

  • We will meet the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month. For 2024-25, we meet on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of each month. The first Wednesday we meet at 4:00pm Eastern/1:00pm Pacific and third Wednesday at 11am Eastern/8am Pacific. Our Slack channel communication will begin in July and we’ll have our first community call on September 4.

  • While there are some differences between infant, toddler, preschool, and elementary programs, there is much more in common. Thus, for the 2024-25 school year we’ll have one group and the ages folks serve will vary. (Many will have multiple ages within their program.)

  • If you’re already an annual member of The Grove, we will reduce the cost of your M.A.P.L.E. registration by your annual membership amount. If you’re a monthly member we’ll switch you to annual membership as part of your M.A.P.L.E. enrollment.