Zachary Herrmann

Adjunct Assistant Professor

Teaching, Learning, and Leadership Division

Executive Director, Center for Professional Learning
Director, Strategic Leadership in Education Certificate Program
Co-Director, Project-Based Learning Certificate Program

Contact

zsh123@upenn.edu

(215) 573-6751

Media Inquiries:
Contact Penn GSE Communications.

Education

Ed.L.D. (Educational Leadership) Harvard University, 2017
Ed.M. (Education Administration and Leadership) University of Illinois, 2013
M.A. (Secondary Teaching) Stanford University, 2007
B.S. (Mathematics) University of Illinois, 2006

Areas of Expertise

Leadership
Collaboration
Team effectiveness
Creative problem-solving
Project-based learning

Programs

Project-Based Learning

Independent School Teaching Residency M.S.Ed.

Urban Teaching Apprenticeship M.S.Ed.

Strategic Leadership in Education Certificate Program

Leadership for Employee Engagement Certificate Program

Programs

Teaching, Learning, and Leadership M.S.Ed.

Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education Ph.D.

Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education Ed.D.

More Information

Dr. Herrmann’s website

Bio Nav

Biography

Professional Biography

Zachary Herrmann is the Executive Director of the Center for Professional Learning. In this role, he leads the school’s strategy to design and deliver professional learning opportunities for learners across the globe. Dr. Herrmann also serves as the director of the Strategic Leadership in Education Certificate Program, and the co-director of the Project-Based Learning Certificate Program. Dr. Herrmann leads professional learning focused on teacher and leader development, team effectiveness, innovation, and creative problem solving. Dr. Herrmann taught high school mathematics for several years, during which time he developed a collaborative professional development network of schools dedicated to improving teaching and learning with a focus on complex tasks, collaborative learning, and equity.

Dr. Herrmann also serves as a member of the professional faculty at Penn GSE, where he teaches within several of the school’s master’s and doctoral programs. The new courses he has designed and teaches at Penn GSE are “Collaboration & Conflict,” which engages students in an interdisciplinary exploration of how people work together to solve complex problems, and “Teaching and Learning in Student-Centered Classrooms,” which explores student-centered approaches to teaching and learning. He also teaches negotiation within the M.B.A. program at The Wharton School.

Publications

Featured Books

Core Practices for Project-Based Learning: A Guide for Teachers and Leaders

Teaching a Future President: Equipping Students to Take on Almost Impossible Problems

Selected Publications

Grossman P., Herrmann, Z., Kavanagh, S. S., Pupik Dean, C. G. (2021). Core practices for project-based learning: A guide for teachers and leaders. Harvard Education Press.

Herrmann, Z., Grossman, P. (2021). Leveraging what we know for better PD. ASCD Express, 16(12).

Herrmann, Z. (2021, March 17). Roles that encourage equitable collaborative learning. Edutopia.

Herrmann, Z. (2020). Make your school a learning organization. ACSD Express, 16(1).

Herrmann, Z. (2020, April 17). 4 guiding questions for effective remote collaboration. Edutopia.

Herrmann, Z. (2019). Cooperate or collaborate: Your team’s purpose could determine its process. Educational Leadership, ASCD, 76, 68–72.

Herrmann, Z. (2019). Teaching a future president: Equipping students to take on almost impossible problems. Rowman & Littlefield.

Grossman, P., Pupik Dean, C. G., Kavanagh, S. S., Herrmann, Z. (2019). Preparing teachers for project-based teaching. Phi Delta Kappan, 100 (7), 43–48.

Herrmann, Z. (2018). A strategy for effective collaboration. Edutopia.

Herrmann, Z. (2018). Rethinking Teacher Recruitment. Educational Leadership, 75(8), 18–23.

Herrmann, Z. (2018). All educators are negotiators. Usable Knowledge, Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Herrmann, Z. (2017). Partner up: The role of collaboration in education. Doctoral dissertation, Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Herrmann, Z. (2017). Cultivating classroom capabilities. TranscendEducation.org.

Herrmann, Z. (2017). Finding what’s true: A cross-disciplinary search for truth. Usable Knowledge, Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Herrmann, Z. & Wolf, Z. (2017). Getting beyond the teacherpreneur. Edutopia.

Herrmann, Z. (2017). Flourish by design. Usable Knowledge, Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Herrmann, Z. (2017). The challenge of change. Usable Knowledge, Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Herrmann, J., & Herrmann, Z. (2016). Game on! The six lessons teachers can learn from great coaches. Usable Knowledge, Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Herrmann, Z., & Kalapala, S. (2016). Consider teaching. Huffington Post, Contributor Platform.

Herrmann, Z. (2016). Teaching a future president. Usable Knowledge, Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Herrmann, Z. (2016). Tackling tough problems: Student leadership lessons. Huffington Post, Contributor Platform.

Herrmann, Z. (2016). Making it work for everyone. Usable Knowledge, Harvard Graduate School of Education.

News & Media

Penn GSE News

Taking small steps towards project-based learning

In an op-ed in EdWeek, Penn GSE’s Dean Pam Grossman, Zachary Herrmann, and Sarah Schneider Kavanagh write that incorporating project-based learning is just like running: start a little at a time.

October 21, 2021

How school leaders can support project-based learning

Project-based learning could change the game for students this fall. Sarah Schneider Kavanagh and Zachary Herrmann have some thoughts on what school leaders need to do to support it.

July 29, 2021

How can project-based learning prepare students for the 21st century?

In a new book, Penn GSE Dean Pam Grossman and GSE’s Zachary Herrmann, Sarah Schneider Kavanagh, and Christopher Pupik Dean say the approach can empower students to be engaged citizens and take on modern challenges.

June 22, 2021

The five challenges facing teacher PD

Writing in ASCD Express, Zachary Herrmann and Dean Pam Grossman define some of the challenges facing teacher professional development and how we might address them.

March 5, 2021

In the Media

Inaugural Projects for Progress recipients announced

Caroline Watts, Diane Waff, Zachary Herrmann, Marsha Richardson, and Regina Bynum were selected to implement their initiative “Bridging Gaps and Building Capacity: Student and Educator Supports for School Reopening in Learning Network 2.” The initative will provide evidence-based programming and professional development at one to two summer learning sites in West Philadelphia, followed by network-wide professional learning supports throughout the 2021-22 academic year.

Penn Today | May 18, 2021

4 Guiding Questions for Effective Remote Collaboration

"Teamwork has traditionally played a critical role in schools, and while many of us find ourselves physically isolated, our collaborative work with one another may be more important now than ever," Zachary Herrmann writes.

Edutopia | April 22, 2020

The Educator's Playbook

Guidelines for moving college courses online

Set norms. Check emotional health. And remember that your students might already be pretty good at this.

To build community this fall, think of your class as a team

Effective teams have the same characteristics that teachers are striving toward: a strong sense of connection, support, purpose, and accountability.