When Tiffany Anderson took over as superintendent of Jennings School District near St. Louis in 2012, she faced high poverty and low academic achievement. As part of the turnaround effort, she focused on building supports for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds, particularly those in foster care who struggle with social-emotional trauma and frequent changes in […]
On July 2, 2018, at 10:35 a.m., 25 middle school students in the Peoria, Illinois area had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to speak to an astronaut aboard the International Space Station. The conversation took place during the weeklong summertime STEM Academy, which was launched three years ago by the Peoria Heights School District, the University of […]
After raising the grade during his first year at Edith I. Starke Elementary School, Principal Dwayne Copeland maintained the C average for three years by creating a PTA and by adding field trips to school offerings. Principal Dwayne Copeland increased Edith I. Starke Elementary School's state grade from an F to a C during his first year and has maintained […]
A student success program at West Valley School District #208 in Yakima, Washington, provides additional support for learners from pre-K through high school graduation. The initiative includes five steps: Collaborations between childcare and district kindergarten teachers that prepare children to start school Small group exercises with a whole-child focus Reading and math interventions in grades […]
Consider what the world will be like in 2031 when today's kindergartners graduate high school. "We don't know exactly what it'll look like, but there are a couple things we do know" says Randy Ziegenfuss, superintendent of Salisbury Township School District (Pennsylvania). "For people in that world to be successful, they're going to have to […]
In his new book What School Could Be, innovation expert Ted Dintersmith profiles schools that focus on innovation and "real" learning, rather than endlessly drilling on formulas and definitions that don't matter in today's world. Our archaic model of education trains kids for a world that no longer exists, and accelerating advances in technology are eliminating millions of […]
At first, the class was like any other at Georgia's Quitman County School District. Kids sat at desks while an adult lectured. Despite appearances, this was no ordinary lecture. Schneider Electric organized STEM activities for the kids in this Quitman County high school class. These activities are part of Quitman County's energy performance contract with […]
Personalized learning for students has long been a priority in K12 education, but for some reason, some districts haven't applied this same approach to teachers. For years, PD has been completely one-dimensional. Teachers sit in district- and state-mandated PowerPoint-driven seminars that fail to encourage collaboration or authentic engagement in the material. Often, teachers leave feeling […]
When Amy Arbogash took the reins of the technology department at Verona Area School District in Wisconsin in 2017, it was in the middle of a multiyear shift to personalized instruction. Students were developing their own learning plans during the rollout of a 1-to-1 iPad program. That is why the district gave Arbogash the title […]
North Clackamas School District Superintendent Matthew Utterback minds the gap. That is, the gap between white students and everyone else. That's why the 2017 National School Superintendent of the Year takes special pride in the details of his Oregon district's 18 percent graduation rate increase. "There's now no gap between graduation rates for students of […]
