The Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership (the Academy) is a statutory authority established under the Education and Training Reform Act 2006 (the Act). An Australian first, the Academy is designed in response to Victoria's unique education system context. At the Academy, we are passionate about meaningful and exciting work that has an impact on education and student outcomes. Our shared purpose is to create and offer evidence-informed professional learning programs, events and initiatives designed to take Victoria's highly skilled teachers and school leaders from great to exceptional and advance the quality and status of teaching and school leadership. We care about the quality of our work, demonstrate collective responsibility for continuous improvement and support each other to do the very best we can every day to achieve our goals. The Academy is a learning organisation that provides opportunities for employees to grow. We have a positive culture that we are building together, where people feel supported, valued and heard. The Academy is based in a purpose-designed CBD site, facilities in North Melbourne and at 7 Academy regional sites (Bairnsdale, Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Mildura, Moe and Shepparton). This ensures that rural and regional teachers are able to access high-quality professional development regardless of their location. The provision of professional learning for Victoria's highly skilled teachers, providing an unprecedented opportunity for state-wide leadership in teaching excellence, benefits every school, classroom and student. The legislated objectives of the Academy are: to improve outcomes for school students through the provision of specialised teaching and leadership excellence programs for exceptional teachers and school leaders to increase equity of access to professional learning to lift the quality of teaching across Victoria to provide a dedicated pathway for established exceptional teachers to contribute to school and system improvement to improve the quality of school leadership to raise public awareness of the capability and status of school leaders and teachers in the science and practice of teaching. The functions of the Academy are to: Design and deliver specialised cross-sectoral teaching programs and educational leadership programs for school leaders, informed by the expertise of its Board and in partnership with leading experts, tertiary institutions and other key stakeholders Provide expert, cross-sector advice to the Minister and the Department on matters relating to educational leadership, teaching and professional practice, and the impact of professional learning on student outcomes to inform broader school education policy and programs Develop and publish research, guidance, resources and materials for use by other providers of professional learning to influence the quality of market-delivered programs and support schools to make evidence-informed choices Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness and impact of the Academy's professional learning programs on practice and student outcomes to inform continuous review and adaptation of program design and delivery, and to inform expert advice to the Minister and the Department Partner and collaborate with relevant organisations including schools, tertiary institutions, community organisations, professional associations and other providers to identify the needs of the profession, support the delivery of services and enhance the impact of its programs Influence and advocate for evidence-informed teaching and leadership practice to promote and instil public trust and confidence in the profession and all Victorian schools, and support efforts to attract a more diverse and highly skilled workforce to meet the educational needs of Victoria's communities and the future Victorian economy.