Center for School Transformation
Evoking Excellence in Education
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Whole System Transformation Initiatives
Many school district personnel are feeling discouraged by the
increasing pressures of accountability and resource limitations. The
Center for School Transformation turns around that discouragement at
the speed of imagination by taking a person-centered, no-fault,
strengths-based approach to change. There are no easy answers, but
we know how powerful the imagination can be once it is unleashed in
the service of action-learning.
Our whole-system transformation initiatives involve as many
stakeholders as possible in an engaging and enjoyable process of
discovering the best of what is, dreaming of what might be, and
designing the strategies to make it so. Here are some resources and
case studies on how the process works:
- Appreciative Inquiry: A Transformative Paradigm, by Jane Magruder Watkins and David Cooperrider, provides a brief and general overview as to the history, philosophy, and practice of Appreciative Inquiry (AI).
- Positive Image, Positive Action: The Affirmative Basis of Organizing by David Cooperrider is must reading for anyone interested in the organizing principles of AI.
- Taking a Strengths-Based Focus Improves School Climate, by Bob & Megan Tschannen-Moran, explains how the transformation process works in schools with the help of a case study including pre- and post-initiative data.
- From Problem to Possibility: Leadership for Implementing and Deepening the Processes of Effective Schools, by Alan J. Daly and Janet Chrispeels, sets Appreciative Inquiry in the context of increased school accountability.
- The Fostoria Schools Summit, in Fostoria, Ohio, outlines a robust Appreciative Inquiry process involving all segments of the school community. The newspaper stories in the Fostoria Review Times, as well as the handouts from our 2007 NSBA Presentation, document both the process and progress that was made. You can also watch two videos, one that was used as part of the Promotional Campaign and the other that documents the Summit itself.
Our whole-system transformation initiatives utilize
Evocative Coaching to support the process. We
work with school leaders before, during, and after the initiatives to better cultivate cultures of trust and creativity.
Such leadership coaching has proven to be an important ingredient to
the success of these initiatives.
Five-Principle Coaching,
by Bob Tschannen-Moran, explains the ties between coaching and
large-group processes.
Based, in part, upon the work of our Co-Founder, Dr. Megan
Tschannen-Moran, a member of the faculty in Educational Policy,
Planning and Leadership in the School of Education at the College of
William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, and author of
Trust Matters: Leadership for Successful Schools (2004),
the Center for School Transformation has put together a robust
program that generates measurable improvements in school culture,
working relationships, and student success.
Want to see if the Center for School Transformation can assist your
district, division, or building to celebrate what's right in
your school? Complete the Contact Form
to get the conversation started. We look forward to hearing from you
soon.
