ACADEMY OF PACESETTING STATESOrientation to the Summer Session - 2009

Seeing Change Through to the Classroom

Academy of Pacesetting StatesSeeing Change Through to the Classroom

The Center on Innovation & ImprovementPartners

Virginia Department of Education

Center for School Improvement and Policy Studies

(Boise State University)

Regional Comprehensive Centers

Location

The Chauncey Conference Center, Princeton, NJ

 July 19-24, 2009Supported in part by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Elementary and Secondary

Education. Award #S283B050057

Participating States and Regional Centers

Alaska, Alaska Comprehensive CenterArkansas, Mid-Continent Comprehensive CenterIdaho, Northwest Comprehensive CenterIllinois, Great Lakes West Comprehensive CenterLouisiana, Southeast Comprehensive CenterMichigan, Great Lakes East Comprehensive CenterMontana, Northwest Comprehensive CenterOklahoma, Mid-Continent Comprehensive CenterVirginia, Appalachia Regional Comprehensive

Center

Regional Center RepresentativesGerry Briscoe, Alaska Comprehensive Center

Janie Russell, Mid-Continent Comprehensive Center

Kit Peixotto, Northwest Comprehensive Center

Monique Chism, Great Lakes West Comprehensive Center

Darlene Morgan Brown, Southeast Comprehensive Center

Bersheril Bailey, Great Lakes East Comprehensive Center

Cathryn Gardner, Northwest Comprehensive Center

Sarah Hall, Mid-Continent Comprehensive Center

Keith Smith, Appalachia Regional Comprehensive Center

Academy Faculty

System Leader Strand Carol Chelemer Susan Hanes Tom Kerins Carole Perlman Sam Redding

Instructional Specialist Strand Kathy Kurpeikis Brenda May Nancy Protheroe

Change Agent Strand Mary Keith Barbara Kennedy Steve Schenck

Facilitators Bernadette Anderson Marcia Beckman Lisa Kinnaman Maureen Mirabito Marilyn Murphy Pam Sheley

GuestsLittle Planet Learning (Host of Thursday Evening BBQ): Don Gilmour, Bill NelsonU.S. Department of Education: Rosie KelleyHigh Schools That Work: Coryell Duty, George Johnson, Sharon Stone, Scott Warren

State Teams

AlaskaCharlie Crangle, Technical Assistance Coach Dawn Elizabeth Davis, Education Specialist IIAmelia Ludeman, Education Associate IILeslie Morse, Deputy CommissionerJonathan Paden, State System of Support Administrator ArkansasAlice Barnes-Rose, Assistant Commissioner Stephen Brodie, Public School Program AdvisorDeborah Coffman, Associate Director of Professional DevelopmentDevonda Cox, Special Assistant to the CommissionerKathryn Lavender, ACSIP Supervisor  IdahoTony Feldhausen, Capacity BuilderMarybeth Flachbart, Deputy Supt.—Student Achievement/School ImprovementEarnie Lewis, Capacity BuilderDeb Pfost, Regional School Improvement CoordinatorRosie Santana, Regional School Improvement Coordinator IllinoisDawn Camacho, Dawn, Principal Consultant Gina Hopper, Division Administrator—Grants and ProgramsJohn (Mark) Williams, Division Administrator-Career Development and PreparationMaureen Richel, Instructional SpecialistTerry Rusin, Consultant  

LouisianaTasha Anthony, School Improvement Supervisor Brenda Jeans, Instructional SupervisorJanet Langlois, Section LeaderDonna Nola-Ganey, Assistant SuperintendentRalph Thibodeaux, Deputy Director of High School Redesign  MichiganLaska Creagh, Instructional SpecialistLinda Hecker, NCLB ConsultantAbby Hilgendorf, Instructional SpecialistMichael Nauss, Contract-High Priority Schools Elizabeth VanDeusen-McLeod, Consultant   MontanaBJ Granbery, Division Administrator/Title I DirectorJack O’Connor, Director of Statewide System of SupportDavid Stringfield, Instructional CoachKathi Tiefenthaler, Reading First SpecialistMarg Watson, School Coach  OklahomaKaryn Hutchens, Executive Director—Teacher and Professional DevelopmentCindy Koss, Assistant State Superintendent—Standards and CurriculumJackie Mania, Program Specialist-School Support Mary Pearson, Executive Director-Title I/School SupportJennifer Watson, Team Leader—Office of Standards and Curriculum VirginiaMichael Hill, Partnership for Achieving Successful Schools CoordinatorYvonne Holloman, Division Level Support Teresa Lee, Special Education Instructional SpecialistKathleen Smith, Director—Office of School ImprovementVeronica Tate, Title I Specialist

Presentations

Instructional Leadership, Gordon Cawelti

Indicators of Effective Instruction, Larry Kugler

Rapid District Improvement, Brett Lane

Tough Decisions: School Closures and Staff Dismissals, Julie Kowal

Change in Big Districts, Heidi Ramirez

Bold Ideas: State as Change Agent, Paul Pastorek

School Turnarounds, Lauren Morando Rhim

* Restructuring that Worked, Dana Brinson, Tommie McCarter, Lindsay Krey

* Note: Tommie McCarter and Lindsay Krey are principals of schools in this study that have dramatically turned around.

Week at a Glance

Sunday Orientation, Strand MeetingsMonday – Thursday (with slight variations as per agenda)

7:00 Breakfast 7:30 - 8:15 Table Tasks with Role-Alike Groups 8:15 Welcome and Introduction 8:15 - 9:45 Presentation, Q & A 10:00 - Noon Strand Sessions 12:00 -1:00 Lunch 1:00 - 3:00 Strand Sessions 3:15 - 4:30 State Team Meetings 4:30 - 6:00 R & R 6:00 Dinner 6:45 - 7:45 Presentation, Q & AFriday – Planning and Presentation of Elevator Pitch

Procedures

1. You have lots of materials We will ship them home for you—your personal Pacesetter library Don’t carry them all—your Strand faculty will tell you which ones you will need The Workbook should always be at hand Bring Patterns of Practice for Monday morning—Larry Kugler

2. Friday is official Pacesetter shirt day – for team pictures3. Your Workbook includes a section for you to record your daily reflections4. The evaluation form in the back of the Workbook should be filled in throughout the

week, while sessions are fresh in your mind and so you don’t miss the bus on Friday

5. For your State Team meetings Your Regional Center team member will facilitate and keep notes Begin with each Strand reporting briefly (3 minutes each) the lessons learned and takeaways

from the day Spend 10 minutes reviewing the System Leader’s work on the SSOS rubric and discussing it Work on the State Team Plan Development document in the Workbook

Your thoughts will evolve through the week, and you will amend what you have previously done

You have lots of ground to cover, so stay on track and keep moving

6. Your Chief State School Officer has received a letter asking him/her to meet with your team soon after you return

Objectives of the Academy of Pacesetting States

 The objectives of the faculty and partners of the Academy of Pacesetting States are to provide:

 

1. A learning community for state teams from states intent upon leading the way to rapid improvement of districts and schools.

2. Training, consultation, and support to enable states to reach their goals for high quality Statewide Systems of Support that build local capacity to initiate and sustain rapid improvement that brings all classrooms to an optimal level of performance.

3. Training, consultation, and support for state teams to develop skilled experts in three critical areas:

System Leaders who administer the Statewide System of Support and coordinate its components (including the people who carry it out);

Change Agents who understand not only effective operational practices, but also the dynamics of change in an educational setting; and

Instructional Specialists who understand effective classroom instruction and how it can be cultivated in districts and school systems to reach a critical mass of instructional excellence.

Objectives of the Academy of Pacesetting StatesThe objectives of the member states of the Academy of Pacesetting

States are to: 1. Take full advantage of the opportunities to share talents and

experiences with other states, the Academy faculty and partners.

2. Develop and achieve bold plans of action to: Elevate the effectiveness of the Statewide System of Support; Build local capacity to initiate and sustain rapid improvement

that brings all classrooms to an optimal level of performance; Create strong programs of Change Agents and Instructional

Specialists to serve as Catalytic Teams to rapidly improve districts and schools in ways that show substantial effects in classroom instruction and student learning.

To Meet the Objectives

Member states:1.Send teams of five for the full week of the

summer session;

2.Participate in monthly days of distance learning;

3.Hold monthly conference calls with Academy faculty and their regional centers; and

4.Return for a meeting and advanced training the following summer.

 

Measures of Success

1. Improvement of Statewide System of Support as indicated by rubrics-based evaluation;

2. Achievement of Plan of Action as approved by the Chief State School Officer;

3. Evidence of impact on classroom instruction, local capacity to initiate and sustain rapid improvement.

Central Themes

Spheres of Influence on the Instructional Core

16

Theory of Action (Change)

Building Local Capacity

Culture of Candor Leadership Effective Teams Collegial Coaching/Learning Open scrutiny of data from both sides of equation

What students learn What adults do that affects what students learn

Indicators of Effective Practice Guideposts for effective practice Plain language, behavioral indicators Aligned with research base Drivers of planning and improvement Necessary in a Culture of Candor

Catalytic Teams

Change Agents and Instructional Specialists serve as Catalytic Teams in a well-coordinated system of support to rapidly improve districts and schools in ways that show substantial effects in classroom instruction and student learning.

The ultimate goal in school improvement is for the people attached to the school to drive its continuous improvement for the sake of their own children and students.

Greeting from Secretary Arne DuncanI am pleased to send greetings to the participants in the Academy of Pacesetting

States.

President Barack Obama and I believe that preparing young people for success in life is both a moral obligation of society and an economic imperative for our country. Children have only one chance for an education, and the youth who are in school now need a better education today if they are to thrive and succeed tomorrow. That’s why we must continue to emphasize the importance of education to the future of our young people and to our nation’s standing in the world.

You will face challenges ahead as States focus on the difficult task of turning around chronically low-performing schools. This academy brings together a dynamic mix of State education leaders, instructional leaders, and change agents to learn what works best in meeting these challenges and how to move forward in implementing crucial changes in the nation’s education system. As we take on these challenges, your efforts can help States meet the educational reform assurances in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The President has written about the unfinished work of perfecting our country that falls to each of us. “It’s a charge we pass on to our children, coming closer with each new generation to what we know America should be.” The participants in this academy have important work to do. Best wishes for a productive and memorable gathering.

We have important work to do.