How We Work

Three key principles guide our partnerships with districts and schools.

1. Local stakeholder support is essential.

Throughout the school turnaround and transformation process, WestEd builds trusting relationships with local stakeholders by

• being transparent about the turnaround effort,
• measuring progress toward meeting agreed-upon goals,
• providing regular opportunities for stakeholders to provide feedback and to learn about progress.

2. Implementation is key.

A well-crafted, customized action plan is crucial to a school’s eventual success; however, the plan is only as good as its implementation. That is why our School Turnaround plans are built with implementation and eventual sustainability in mind. Our focus on implementation is based on the work of Dean Fixsen and his colleagues at the National Implementation Research Network.

3. Mutual accountability matters.

Dramatically and quickly improving student learning requires a communitywide effort in which all stakeholders — district administrators, principal, teachers, other school staff, and WestEd — are held accountable for meeting high, clearly defined expectations. Whereas accountability these days is often thought of as a top-down punitive measure, reciprocal accountability acknowledges that all players are responsible to each other and to their common goal of dramatically improving student achievement.