Organizing for Sustainability and Scale West Wind Education Policy Inc. Circe Stumbo, President, and Deb Hansen, Senior Policy Analyst March 10, 2011

Our Guiding Question How can state initiatives be aligned toward a common vision in ways that build state capacity and ensure successful implementation and ultimate scaling up?

Our Organizing Premise Look not only at high quality research-based initiatives … look also at an implementation infrastructure. Move from a collection of individual initiatives to a system of interconnected strategies

Education Improvement Innovative practices do not fare well in existing organizational structures and systems Organizational and system changes are essential to successful use of innovations –Expect it –Plan for it Adapted from Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Thinking About Systems Systems are designed to achieve precisely the results they get —R. Spencer Darling Systems thinking examines the linkages and interactions between elements of the system

Systemic Equity Leadership Leadership is about disrupting the system that produces the results we don’t want

Systemic Equity Leadership Entails intentional actions to:  reveal the forces within systems that have created inequities in education;  disrupt those systems; and  create a new and better system.  While this can be exciting, it also involves loss, incompetence, and disloyalty

Exercising Leadership Systems Thinking Personal Mastery Mental Models Team Learning Building Shared Vision Distinguishing Leadership & Authority Technical & Adaptive Work Decision Support Data System Recruitment & Selection Systems Change Student Outcomes Facilitative Administration Systems-Level Partnership Coaching & Consultation Training Adaptive Leadership Implementation Capacity Learning Organizations Adapted by West Wind Education Policy from Fixsen & Blase, 2007

Challenges to Sustainability Proliferation of reforms New reform priorities Organizational structures and specialized knowledge/skills Turn-over in leadership

New Reform Priorities Race to the Top State Fiscal Stabilization Fund Investing in Innovation (i3) Blueprint for ESEA Reauthorization

New Reform Priorities College & Career Ready Effective Teachers & Leaders Data Systems Turning Around Low-Performing Schools Equity & Opportunity Rewarding Excellence Innovation & Improvement Successful, Safe & Healthy

Turn-Over in Leadership Presidential administration in Congressional balance of power shift in 2010 New governors in 2010 New chief state school officers in

Source: Council of Chief State School Officers

Making Sense of Your Work It is incumbent on you to help everyone understand you work in the context of major local, state, and national priorities This also supports stronger, aligned state leadership

Build for the Future Create a new infrastructure to support implementation capacity on a sustained basis in your State Change your education system to better support effective education practices from now on Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Topics Transformation Zones PDSA (plan, do, study, act) Cycle PEP-PIP Cycle (Policy Enabled Practice – Practice Informed Policy) State Capacity Development Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

The function of bureaucracy is to institutionalize the suspension of human judgment. (Lisbeth Schorr, 1992) An aligned bureaucracy is the best friend of scaling up. (SISEP, 2009) PEP-PIP Cycle Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

PEP-PIP Cycle Policy-Enabled Practice Practice-Informed Policy Turning policy into effective practice Turning effective practice into policy Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

PEP-PIP Cycle Involvement of major stakeholders –Parents and advocacy groups –Unions –Principal/ Superintendent Associations –Legislative Committees –And others Meaningful involvement = Actual influence on decisions Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Transformation Zone A Transformation Zone is the first example of the new ways of work in the new education system (get it right, expand it) Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Transformation Zone Use Innovations Develop Implementation Infrastructure Change System Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Transformation Zone Make use of an innovation in practice (operationalize, fidelity, outcomes) Establish implementation supports (work on practical Drivers and Stages) Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Transformation Zone Align system components and functions Create system capacity and momentum for larger scale changes Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Transformation Zone A “vertical slice” of a system –Small enough to be manageable –Large enough to include nearly all of the relevant aspects of the current system Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Transformation Zone Operations in the TZ allow strengths and problems to “rise to the surface” –Reality-based, in the moment –Coalesce resources – human, financial and technological – for mutual benefit –Not just “get by,” but capacity to “get ahead” Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Initiate change Manage the change process Reduce risks Recover rapidly from errors Build capacity Transformation Zone Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Transformation Zone Suspend/ amend the usual rules Demonstrate the operational value of a system change, EBP, or innovation Retain the best (of the old) while changing the rest (discriminate between the two) Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Transformation Zone Reduce impact of mistakes (minimize damage, increase flexibility, repair rapidly) Begin to build scale-up capacity Begin work on “alignment” of policies and regulations Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Example TZ in a State 10 ESAs in a State An ESA (near the Capitol) includes 10 regional offices, 108 school districts, 440 schools, and 20 cities The Transformation Zone includes 1 ESA, 2 regional offices, 23 districts, 106 schools, 2 cities plus suburbs, & 2 counties (a “vertical slice” of the system) Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Implementation Team School Management (leadership, policy) Administration (HR, structure) Supervision (nature, content) Teacher Community Context State District Implementation Team Simultaneous, Multi-Level Interventions Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

TZ Activities Trial and learning Continuous improvement Reflective practice Active inquiry Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

State Management Team Implementation Team Innovation Teachers Students Policy Enabled Practice (PEP) Practice Informed Policy (PIP) System Change “External” System Change Support Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

State Management Team Implementation Team Innovation Teachers Students Policy Enabled Practice (PEP) Practice Informed Policy (PIP) System Change Decision Support Data System Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

State Management Team State Transformation Team Regional Implementation Team N = 50 – 200 Schools First Regional Implementation Team N = 9 Staff N = 50 Schools Regional Implementation Team N = 50 – 200 Schools Regional Implementation Team N = 50 – 200 Schools IMPLEMENTATION CAPACITY FOR SCALING UP EBPs [Phase 1] External Support & 2 FTE STS Too many overqualified people = Capacity Dev. Source: Dean Fixsen, et al, National Implementation Research Network

Our Conversation How does my work serve the overall statewide vision for education reform? How do we connect lessons and skills from evidence-based practices with other significant priority issues and efforts?

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