The University of Rochester and East High School in Rochester, New York, entered into a partnership in 2015, hoping to transform the school to prevent shut down by the state. Both partners were wary because of the district's failed attempts at reform and the history of similar partnerships elsewhere. A new state-level reform option allowed the…

School reform initiatives designed to improve school quality require strong leadership, strategic planning, data analysis, and systemized performance accountability. Utilizing school reforms includes rethinking curriculum and instruction to improve quality and promote equality, restructuring school operations with a focus on both the students and…

Graduation and dropout rates are the center of the conversation about high school reform, with President Obama and the U.S. Department of Education leading the charge to boost high school and college graduation rates among our nation's students in the next ten years. Recognizing the need for a comprehensive approach to keeping teens in school and…

The Colorado Strategic Options Initiative promotes the restructuring and redesign of education to enable all schools and communities to meet all students' and citizens' needs in the future. The concept of restructuring education may be seen as part of an evolutionary process from the 20th century industrial, assembly-line model to the eventual…

Community organizing for school reform is a growing national phenomenon, as young people, parents, neighborhood residents, and faith-based institutions struggle to improve the quality and equity of public schooling, particularly in urban school districts. Now a decade old, community organizing projects are influencing local public schools in…

In California, the regional partnership structure is being used to support implementation of recommendations for middle level school reform. The partnership's loose structure allows flexibility in financial contribution and opportunities to solicit paying partners from the local community. A support network or forum allows individuals and schools…

Since the state takeover, the Philadelphia school district has created a new governance model, in which for-profits, non-profits, and universities receive contracts to manage schools. Further, these and other organizations also receive contracts to provide a range of additional services. The shift to a public/private institutional structure,…

Focuses on subtle changes that evolved over three-year study of parent involvement cadre working to implement Harry Levin's Accelerated School Model targeted at high-risk students. Although the school in this study appears to have successfully involved parents in their children's education, parent cadre's underlying purpose is not being adequately…

Offers guidelines for selecting community members for systemic restructuring efforts in public schools. Definitions of community and of systemic restructuring, or educational systems design, are presented; the importance of selection efforts is discussed; a community selection model is described and explained; and further research is suggested.…

High school improvement is possible with visionary leadership and common goals. Ayer (Massachusetts) High School is a small, comprehensive school that has restructured itself to meet 21st century needs. Revolutionary changes have occurred in instructional improvement, core curriculum, technology education, class size, graduation requirements,…

A former principal describes how a "problem" rural Alaskan school became a model of positive self-esteem, community involvement, student achievement, and enthusiasm for learning. She discusses problems (cultural dissonance and fragmented curricula), the project's philosophical basis in cultural sensitivity and personality-type theory,…

This document reports on a study of a model full-service community school and explains the kind of services provided, staffing considerations, ways of involving community partners, governance arrangements, and parent involvement. It considers the barriers to creating this kind of school and explores ways to fund programs. The narrative offers a…

Many schools and states have moved in recent years to more "authentic" ways of assessing student learning. However, most assessments are essentially summative, one-shot measurement of outcomes. This book is based on the work of Designing Schools for Enhanced Learning, a group of schools and educators that have worked with the Regional…

O'Farrell Community School, in San Diego, California, was built on the principles of restructuring, teacher and community empowerment, interagency collaboration, and interdisciplinary teaching. Supported by the Panasonic and Stuart Foundations, the school offers an enriched, untracked three-year academic program for grades six through eight. All…

Kentucky's 1990 Education Reform Act instituted new governance structure creating school-based councils composed of parent and teacher representatives who participate with principals in decisions involving eight major areas. School councils' role has remained ambiguous in personnel matters. Model presented here enhances principal's decision-making…