Increasingly, school districts are adopting new approaches to managing the replacement, recycling or refurbishing of outdated equipment. Administrators can follow five best practices to tackle the problem in a practical, sustainable way—while keeping long-term goals in mind.

Integrating the arts into science lessons helps the lowest-performing students retain more content, and doesn't require much funding to do.

Jeffery Smith (top, left) boosts graduation rate and lowers dropout rate for Virginia district; John Jungmann (top, right) launches Missouri district collaboratives; LeVar Ammons (bottom, left) becomes director of equity and student success in Illinois; and Michael Looney (bottom, right) is heading up a Georgia district.

Fewer than 40 percent of fourth and eighth grade students nationwide are proficient readers. Now, led by parents of children with dyslexia, some states are trying to change how reading is taught. In Arkansas, a group of determined advocates have upended traditional reading instruction.