Districts nationwide are facing budget cuts that, to some, feel more like funding cliffs. Accordingly, school teams are re-examining their personnel, programs, and schedules so that they can make difficult decisions about where to spend resources to realize the greatest improvement. The principals who are able to make decisions with data from…

Since 2004, the staff of the Know Your Schools~for NY Kids project has been conducting studies to examine what marks the difference between high- and average-performing schools. No matter what the level of schooling, the two groups of schools differ in how they use evidence to make decisions. In general, high-performing schools' approaches to…

Data can serve as a powerful tool to ensure equity for students: if educators examine data through the lens of social justice, they will reveal success stories and wounds. At the author's former school, Nipher Middle School in Saint Louis, Missouri, the wounds of previous data-driven decisions were real. Using a social justice lens to examine…

Leading for equity is hard, yet inspiring, work. It requires thoughtful and bold conversations about race and poverty; close examination of policies and practices; and astute attention paid to a variety of data and evidence of student achievement, progress, and success. Above all, it requires a willingness to look deeply at one's beliefs and…

Writing instruction is central to the implementation of the Common Core State Standards. It is embedded across all curricula. Under the Common Core guidelines, students must produce writing that includes not only narrative and literary responses as part of the language arts curriculum but also argumentative and informative/explanatory texts in…

This article describes the Wakefield Cohort program at Wakefield High School, located in Arlington, Virginia, which has a thirteen-year history of success in supporting minority male students. While data show the program's effectiveness, former students' stories are more powerful; therefore, this article presents the stories of two graduates about…

Tom O'Brien calls Brentwood High School a school of opportunity and hope. He has been principal of the 3,600-student, 300-teacher school for 14 years. The sprawling complex on Long Island, NY, is home to students from 47 countries, and English is a second language in the majority of homes. This article discusses why Brentwood High School is deemed…

Disparities in suspension rates for White, Black, Hispanic, and American Indian students are more often a result of inequitable disciplinary actions than differences in behavior. Exclusionary discipline undermines students' academic achievement by weakening their connection with school and removing them from the classroom. Students who experience…

There are two ways to avoid time-crunch panic attacks: work smarter and delegate wisely. In this article, the author provides a list of some strategies and tactics he has used to help more than 500 school executives in North Carolina work smarter, delegate more effectively and become more effective instructional leaders. These strategies fall into…

Preparing all students for success requires a renewed emphasis on supporting high-quality teaching, on using data to inform decision-making, and on creating a culture of high expectations. To support the shift toward college and career readiness, more than 45 states and the District of Columbia have adopted the Common Core State Standards (CCSS).…

Three years ago, the authors accepted positions as high school principals in Buffalo City (NY) Schools after serving as elementary school principals in the district for many years. In their new positions, they were to lead schools that were designated by the New York State Department of Education as "persistently lowest achieving,"…

Principals are often overwhelmed by the sheer amount of data they have and are unsure how to use the information. When the authors talk about "data," they mean all the information principals have or might collect that can support their work with teachers to make their school more rigorous. The authors believe that data can guide decision making,…

Schools and districts across the country are being subjected to some of the fiercest budget cuts in recent history, even as principals are held increasingly accountable for significantly improving student achievement, particularly in schools labeled "persistently low-achieving." For the 5,000 lowest-performing schools, there is the…

In this article, the author discusses the response by the Board on Testing and Assessment (BOTA), which is under the auspices of the National Research Council, regarding the Race to the Top (RTT) fund regulations that have been proposed by the U.S. Department of Education (ED). BOTA's commentary was offered in the "Letter Report to the U.S.…

A school leader's most visible role is the manager of the day-to-day operations of a school. A less visible but far more important role is that of an instructional leader who works with teachers and other staff members to ensure that every student has a high-quality, rigorous academic experience. Ensuring that schools and classrooms are rigorous…