To assist system administrators as they pursue their own teacher leadership initiatives, this profile from Leading Educators and the Aspen Institute details the steps Denver Public Schools (DPS) took to design and implement its Differentiated Roles pilot. Specifically, it examines the initiative's opportunities and challenges within the context of…

Schools across the country are seeking creative ways to meet the high demands of school accountability. For example, in Montgomery (AL) Public Schools, "turnaround specialists" work at the direction of the local system's board of education. The district decided to treat turnaround specialists as partners who work with school principals…

When reforming practices to help all students succeed, secondary school leaders face the unique challenge of aligning the efforts of educators from different disciplines. In addition, they know that few common measures capture student growth across these disciplines. If a school has a history of success, a deep examination of its practices may not…

The "Value-Added School Review (VSR)" is an analytical model designed to assist schools in identifying and addressing opportunities for school improvement. The model works best when it is focused purposefully on students and the student learning outcomes as defined in the "Guide to Education". It complements the processes…

"Building Institutional Capacity for Data-Informed Decision Making" is the third installment of the Cutting Edge series, which aims to help colleges engage faculty, scale successful interventions, and create a strong culture of evidence through use of data to strengthen their institutional change and student success efforts. Though the…

The authors of this article were recently privileged to spend five days with a group of 10 talented principals who have been charged with turning around academically low-performing schools in their respective districts. These principals were selected as participants in a Turnaround Specialist Program initiated by Gov. Mark R. Warner of Virginia…

Quality leadership is a critical variable in the effort to promote school improvement. Professional development programs for experienced and prospective school principals represent a powerful strategy that links leaders with the ultimate objective of student achievement. To be more effective, the training of school administrators must revolve…

This resource document is one of a series of nine resource documents, each of which addresses a separate factor in the "Assessment of School Needs for Low-Achieving Students" survey that can help determine a student's academic success and each of which contains information that responds to specific survey items. This document addresses the factor…

With environmental awareness on the rise in the late 1980's and increasing into the 1990's, higher education is presented with a number of opportunities for environmental education. This paper addresses three ways in which institutions of higher education in Appalachia and elsewhere can respond to the continuing need and present calls for…

Presented are the accreditation standards for engineering schools as developed by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). Discussed are various challenges presented by the standards and the need to improve engineering education. Items considered are developing a definition of a "good" engineering education, topics…

What does it look like when a school uses data wisely? "Data Wise in Action", a new companion and sequel to the bestselling "Data Wise", tells the stories of eight very different schools following the Data Wise process of using assessment results to improve teaching and learning. "Data Wise in Action" highlights the…

The Boston Plan for Excellence in the Public Schools is a partnership among teachers, students, parents, administrators, and business leaders with the common purpose of restoring the Boston Public School System to its former position as a national leader in education. This publication examines the programs and activities, school by school, that…

The purpose of the Rhode Island Social Studies 1986-87 Project was to examine current levels of social studies curriculum development within Rhode Island schools, to investigate related issues, and to produce a written report of the findings. Chapter 1, "A Proposed Framework for K-12 Social Studies Education in Rhode Island Schools,"…

Recognizing that strong educational leadership is the pivotal point in successful school improvement programs, the Kansas school districts of Arkansas City, Winfield, and El Dorado joined together during the 1988-89 school year to establish the AWE Leadership Academy. The purpose of the academy is to provide a program of continued professional…

A program designed to provide educational administrators with the skills and resources to become more effective in their jobs is described. The program, offered as an annual series of two statewide workshops, focuses on developing anticipatory and prescriptive management techniques. Participants are encouraged to conduct follow-up inservice…