Academy of Pacesetting States

1. Seeing Change Through to the Classroom Academy of Pacesetting States Orientation to Cohort #2 - 2011

2. Participating States and Regional Centers Nevada, Southwest Comprehensive Center New Hampshire, New England Comprehensive Center North Dakota, North Central Comprehensive Center Vermont, New England Comprehensive Center West Virginia, Appalachia Regional Comprehensive Center Wisconisn, Great Lakes West Comprehensive Center Bureau of Indian Education, CII

3. Objectives of the Academy of Pacesetting States The objectives of CII for the Academy of Pacesetting States are to provide: • A learning community for teams from states and the Bureau intent upon leading the way to rapid improvement of districts and schools. • Training, consultation, and support to enable partners to reach their goals for high quality Statewide Systems of Support that build local capacity to initiate and sustain rapid improvement that brings all classrooms to an optimal level of performance. • Training, consultation, and support for state teams to develop skilled experts

4. Objectives of the Academy of Pacesetting States The objectives of the members of the Academy of Pacesetting States are to: • Take full advantage of the opportunities to share talents and experiences with other states, the Academy faculty and partners. • Develop and achieve bold plans of action to: • Elevate the effectiveness of the Statewide System of Support; • Build local capacity to initiate and sustain rapid improvement that brings all classrooms to an optimal level of performance;

5. Measures of Success • Improvement of Statewide System of Support as indicated by rubrics-based evaluation; • Achievement of Plan of Action; • Evidence of impact on classroom instruction, local capacity to initiate and sustain rapid improvement.

6. Central Themes

7. Spheres of Influence on the Instructional Core

8. Building Local Capacity Culture of Candor • Leadership • Effective Teams • Collegial Coaching/Learning • Open scrutiny of data from both sides of equation • What students learn • What adults do that affects what students learn Indicators of Effective Practice • Guideposts for effective practice • Plain language, behavioral indicators • Aligned with research base • Drivers of planning and improvement • Necessary in a Culture of Candor

9. Catalytic Teams A Catalytic Team in a well-coordinated system of support to rapidly improve districts and schools in ways that show substantial effects in classroom instruction and student learning.

10. The ultimate goal in school improvement is for the people attached to the school to drive its continuous improvement for the sake of their own children and students.

11. We have important work to do.