From Education Dive, January 14, 2019, by Shawna De La Rosa
School culture is important, but it can be difficult for administrators to control. Culture can impact student attendance, learning and test scores. It can even affect teacher retention. Once created, a culture is difficult to change since it’s reflective of student and educator attitudes. Administrators can create a plan for change, but it ultimately has to have buy-in from the school community.
From The Greensboro News & Record, January 14, 2019 by Jessie Pounds
After 10 years teaching English at Dudley High School, Ashley Ekwem-Thorpe had plenty of “Panther” pride, but also a desire for a new adventure. So this school year she applied for a new position advertised at Hairston Middle School, a feeder school to Dudley.
From EdNC, January 2, 2019, by Emily Ayscue Hassel and Bryan C. Hassel
As the founders of the Opportunity Culture initiative to extend the reach of great teaching to many more students, we keep a tight focus on how students and teachers benefit from Opportunity Culture implementation in their schools. In North Carolina — the largest implementation state so far, with 80 schools this year — the latest student growth numbers give one great example.
From The Hechinger Report, November 29, 2018 by Tara Garcia Mathewson
Edgecombe County Public Schools in rural North Carolina has long had trouble filling all of its open teaching positions. Historically, there just hasn’t been enough interest among qualified candidates. But that’s changing.
From Education Dive, November 20, 2018, by Allie Gross
A solution to teacher recruitment and retention may be hidden within a district’s staff, according to a new article in The Hechinger Report that details Opportunity Culture, a creative initiative where effective educators double as “teacher-leaders” and spend time coaching other teachers in a school.
From Education Week, October 16, 2018, by Madeline Will
Principal Mary Beck knew that in order to transform her Chicago high school’s staff culture, she had to go the distance—13.1 miles, to be exact.
From Education Dive, October 3, 2018, by Amelia Harper
Indianapolis Public Schools is working to change the student teaching experience so students are working with teacher leaders, have sufficient district support and emerge better prepared to lead a classroom.
From eSchoolNews, October 3, 2018 by Talia Milgrom-Elcott and Mo-Yun Lei Fong
It’s Management 101 that employees need to be inspired to create services and products that are relevant and effective.
From Chalkbeat, May 9, 2018 by Dylan Peers McCoy
When Jeremy Baugh took the helm as principal of School 107 three years ago, staff turnover was so high that about half the teachers were also new to the struggling elementary campus, he said. For his first two years, the trend continued — with several teachers leaving each summer.
Opportunity Culture multi-classroom leaders, blended-learning teachers, and elementary school subject specialists write a series of columns that appeared on RealClearEducation.com and then on The 74, and elsewhere.