CCISD’s leadership program to expand to every elementary school by 2030

What started as a leadership program called Leader In Me at Falcon Pass Elementary in 2018 has grown to 22 Clear Creek ISD campuses with a goal of reaching all elementary campuses by 2030.

About the program

Leader In Me is a whole-school transformation process that teaches 21st-century leadership and life skills to students, according to CCISD’s website. 

The program is based on Stephen Covey's “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” which are:

1. Be proactive

2. Begin with the end in mind

3. Put first things first

4. Think win-win

5. Seek first to understand, then to be understood

6. Synergize

7. Sharpen the saw

Students practice the habits in class and throughout the school day, officials said.

“We want every child to leave elementary school confident about who they are, know what their skill sets are and their talents are, so they can take that on into intermediate and high school,” said Monica Giuffre, CCISD’s executive director of elementary education.

Breaking it down

• Leader In Me enrollment, 2025-26: 14,113 students

• Cost, 2025-26: $132K

• Schools that will be added by 2030:

  • Ferguson Elementary

  • Greene Elementary

  • League City Elementary

  • North Pointe Elementary

  • Ward Elementary

  • Weber Elementary

  • Wedgewood Elementary

The funding source

Leader In Me is funded through community partners—which currently include Houston Methodist, Seabrook Rotary, the city of Webster and the city of Nassau Bay—and the Clear Creek Education Foundation. 

Annual membership fees are $9.35 per student per year, Giuffre said.

What’s next

The district plans to keep expanding Leader In Me by adding two or three campuses each year to reach all elementary campuses by 2030, officials said.

CCISD also started a district-wide Lighthouse team to help plan how the program will be implemented.