Partnerships for Collective Impact

Educational improvement at scale requires broad-based alliances made up of parents, teachers unions, civil rights organizations, municipal and state agencies, youth leaders, community-based organizations, research institutes, funders, and higher education. These cross-sector partnerships must be built around equity and a common vision of transforming opportunity and outcomes for all students.

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by
Ellen Foley, Jacob Mishook, and Jaein Lee

The federal government can support college readiness by fostering organizational partnerships that coordinate services, share data, and smooth the transition from high school to college.

by
Keith Catone

The work of teachers unions in Chicago and nationwide offers a promising model of teacher and community engagement.

by
Jacob Mishook

Districts need to develop robust measures to track their students’ college readiness, starting as early as elementary school – and use those measures to put supports and interventions in place.

by
Amy Cournoyer Gooden and Kelly Chase

Boston University and the Malden, Massachusetts, school district worked with the community to support English learners and develop a curriculum around five “habits of mind.”

by
Jessica Rivera, Esperanza Donovan-Pendzic, and Mary Jo Marion

A collaboration in Worcester, Massachusetts, between the district, higher education institutions, and community organizations, including a Spanish-language television program, provided culturally responsive out-of-school enrichment programs for English learners.

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Angela Valenzuela, Emilio Zamora, and Brenda Rubio

An out-of-school program for fourth-grade English learners in Austin, Texas – jointly developed by the school district, the City of Austin and a local community group – has co-constructed a curriculum that incorporates the Aztec dance or ceremony Danza Mexica as a core component.

by
Karen Van Ausdal, Carlil Pittman, and Treyonda Towns

Partners from Chicago Public Schools and local education organizing groups share their experiences with the PASSAGE initiative.

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by
Tony Majors and Tom Ward

In Nashville, the school district has partnered with law enforcement, juvenile justice, community organizations, parents, and students in efforts to tackle inequitable disciplinary practices.

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by
Allison Brown and Kavitha Mediratta

Representatives from Open Society Foundations and The Atlantic Philanthropies discuss philanthropy’s role in school discipline reform.

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by
Alethea Frazier Raynor

Ending identity-based discipline disparities will require transformative partnerships that focus on both school-level and systems-level change.