UNF doctoral student builds mentorship pipeline for next generation of school leaders

Throughout her career, Jennifer Collins has had people in her corner. Mentors who guided her through her first years as a teacher, supported her transition into school leadership and helped her grow into the principal she became. That experience stayed with her and eventually shaped the work she does today.

Now, as supervisor of School Improvement and Leadership Development for Clay County District Schools, Collins has made it her mission to ensure early-career educators and administrators have the same support she once relied on. She has built a mentorship program in Clay County that pairs new assistant principals and principals with experienced administrators, giving emerging leaders the guidance and professional backing to find their footing. And as a doctoral student at the University of North Florida, she is turning that work into research, studying mentorship structures for novice school leaders and what makes them effective.

"I have had so many mentors who helped and supported me," Collins said. "It is my hope that I can do the same for aspiring and current leaders."

Collins grew up in Longwood, Florida, where her mother was a teacher and where Collins spent her childhood going to school alongside her. That early experience planted the seed.

"I wanted to make an impact on kids and their lives," she said. "I wanted to pass on that same thing to more kids."

She went on to pursue elementary education at the University of Florida through the PROTEACH program, earning both her bachelor's and master's degrees there, before spending five years teaching third and fourth grade.

From the classroom, she set her sights on the principal's office, completing a second master's degree in Educational Leadership at UNF while still teaching. The motivation was simple: she wanted to reach more people.

"According to research, second to teachers, principals have the largest effect on student achievement," Collins said. "I wanted to impact students, teachers, families and an entire community."

After serving as a principal in Duval and Clay counties for 13 years and being named Clay County's Principal of the Year in 2021-22, Collins moved into her current district-level role, where that reach expanded further still.

"Now I get to work with school administrators and support them in their efforts," she said. "That reach extends to all stakeholders in Clay County."

On her desk sits a small handmade sign that reads "Dr. Collins." When she became a principal for the first time, she shared her goal of earning a doctorate with her staff and her art teacher made the sign for her. She has kept it where she can see it ever since. That goal is now within reach, as she is set to graduate this summer.

She is not navigating this journey alone. Collins started her doctoral program the same semester her oldest daughter began her freshman year at UNF. The two often meet for a meal before class, navigating the stresses of college together, one semester at a time.

That parallel journey took on added meaning when Collins faced an unexpected financial obstacle. As a Project PREP Scholar, she had been awarded funding through a partnership between Clay County District Schools and UNF, but the federal grant was abruptly discontinued in Spring 2025. As a single mother with a daughter also enrolled at UNF, Collins wasn't sure she could continue. "I panicked," she said. Through advocacy from program faculty and support from the UNF Graduate School, funding was secured for her remaining semesters.

"Each time I receive an email about funding, I cry tears of joy and relief," Collins said. "I do not take that for granted at all."

The Ed.D. cohort model has also shaped her experience, connecting her with professionals from both K-12 and higher education and broadening her perspective beyond the schools she has spent her career in.

Looking ahead, Collins hopes to teach educational leadership at the collegiate level bringing her years of classroom, building, and district experience to the next generation of school administrators. When she does, that small handmade "Dr. Collins" sign will probably be somewhere nearby.