Building Shared Understanding Through Feedback: Strengthening Feedback Practices
For school leaders, giving critical feedback is not an occasional task. It is a routine and essential part of leadership. These conversations happen i…
Component: Step 2: Set Goals and Take Action
Co-create a vision of the skills, dispositions, and behavior that you are trying to achieve for all students. Find a north star, and backwards map from that vision to create the goals and identify the actions that will get you there. School leaders strengthen bidirectional communication with the entire school community, including families, to partner in supporting students.
Reimagining Readiness: What One Student’s Experience Can Teach Us
What does it truly mean for students to be ready?
For many schools, readiness is still defined by what students know and how they perform on assessme…
School as Sanctuary: Practical Strategies for Responding to Immigration Enforcement
Students are experiencing the impact of ICE activity in deeply personal ways within their schools and communities. As educators, our responsibility is…
Start Small, Stay Focused: Leading Schoolwide Implementation That Centers Students
When I started this work, I wasn’t looking for a program. I was looking for something that would truly meet the needs of our students. I took a hard…
3-2-Q: A Practical Protocol for Reflection
Instructional teams are often short on time but high on urgency. In the middle of initiatives, data cycles, and daily demands, structured reflection c…
Leading with Transparency: Closing the Feedback Loop with Purpose
Collecting feedback is a critical part of leading a responsive school—but it’s what happens after that matters most. When we ask for input, we set…
How One Superintendent Built a Shared Identity from the Ground Up
When Dave Parker began his tenure as superintendent of Forest Grove School District, he didn’t have a blueprint. He had curiosity—and a desire to …
Challenging the Deficit Model: A Summary of Community Cultural Wealth
In our classrooms, strength and brilliance often show up in ways we’re not trained to recognize. Tara Yosso’s concept of community cultural wealth…
Developing Maxims for Sherman County: A Model for Authentic Engagement
In the heart of Sherman County, a remarkable process is unfolding—one that not only brings the community together but also empowers students to shap…
Open Lines of Communication: Hold Authentic Spaces to Gather Feedback and Have Brave Conversations
Open lines of communication to create brave spaces for your staff, students, and community to share their excitement, hesitations, and to crowdsource …
