Related Publications
Apr 2017State policy should encourage and empower school district innovation and improvement strategies.
Apr 2017This case study profiles the unique school improvement effort in Springfield, MA, and compares it with other turnaround strategies.
Mar 2017Paul Hill and Ashley Jochim offer ideas and examples for how state chiefs can best use their powers to effectively lead the improvement of schools and districts.
Nov 2016This paper provides the first comprehensive review of the research to date on state interventions, assessing the advantages and limits of five common turnaround approaches and outlining key ingredients for success.
Nov 2016Edited by Ashley Jochim and Betheny Gross, the sixth and final volume of the SEA of the Future provides SEAs a new framework under ESSA for strategic planning and concrete tools for implementation.
Jul 2016Betheny Gross and Paul Hill discuss the challenges and opportunities for state-level experimentation created by the Every Student Succeeds Act, in the Harvard Law and Policy Review.
Jul 2016CRPE research analyst Ashley Jochim and Drew University associate professor Patrick McGuinn explore why states are abandoning the assessments aligned with Common Core State Standards.
Jun 2016This paper explores opportunities for state education agencies to leverage their unique assets to advance district-charter collaboration..
Apr 2016CRPE collaborated with the Fordham Institute to develop an online school policy leadership toolkit, a resource to help policymakers and advocates focus on getting great principals into all schools.
Nov 2015Paul Hill and Ashley Jochim profile portfolio strategy efforts in five cities and offer lessons for leaders to sustain long-term education reform amid political opposition.
Nov 2015Edited by Betheny Gross and Ashley Jochim, this fifth volume of the SEA of the Future explores how state education agencies can bolster their ability to use research and data to drive key spending, policy, and program decisions.
Oct 2015CRPE partnered with Mathematica and CREDO on a rigorous analysis of online charter schools. Our paper examines how state policy shapes the online charter school landscape.
Jun 2015This paper was written by Ashley Jochim for the American Education Institute's conference, The State of Entrepreneurship in K–12 Education, held June 24, 2015.
May 2015Edited by Betheny Gross and Ashley Jochim, this fourth volume of the SEA of the Future details how rural schools and districts are innovative in how they deliver services, recruit teachers, use technology, and serve special populations.
Mar 2015In this paper, two different "camps" on school reform find common ground on how to improve educational accountability.
Nov 2014In this paper for the Rural Opportunities Consortium of Idaho, Paul Hill explains the importance of improving education in rural areas.
Sep 2014This meeting summary outlines common principles to guide the redesign of next-gen accountability systems.
May 2014Edited by Betheny Gross and Ashley Jochim, the essays in this third volume of the SEA of the Future describe a "productivity infrastructure" intended to provide a foundation for the work of SEAs.
Feb 2014In this paper for the Bush Center, Paul Hill explains why educational productivity matters and how new governance arrangements can promote it.
Dec 2013This study explores the primary obstacles that inhibit state education agencies from better supporting school and district improvement.
Nov 2013Edited by Betheny Gross and Ashley Jochim, this volume begins a conversation with state education leaders about productivity.
May 2013This edited volume explores how state education agencies (SEAs) can leverage performance management tools to provide strong support for school improvement.
Sep 2012This report offers a set of powerful new tools to help state policymakers diagnose their principal workforce needs and develop comprehensive strategies to address them.
Sep 2012This brief summarizes a more detailed report that offers new tools to help state policymakers diagnose and address their principal workforce needs.
Sep 2012This project shows how eight state education agencies have reshaped their organizations to address the challenges of improving their lowest-performing schools. By focusing on states at the forefront of the turnaround effort, CRPE researchers hope to identify promising paths that SEAs can follow as they begin to reorient their missions around performance management.
Mar 2012In 2009, the federal government committed over $3 billion to help states and districts turn around their worst-performing schools. This report looks at the results of a field study of the first-year implementation of those grants in Washington State, where researchers found that districts and schools are using the grants for only marginal change.
Sep 2011This essay was written for the PIE Network 5th Annual Policy Summit, September 2011. The authors argue that state education agencies need to shift from their role of compliance monitor to performance manager—a shift most are ill-positioned for. This essay outlines the known factors constraining efforts to transform SEAs, including limited resources, short timeline, and rapidly changing parameters.
Sep 2011As states look at building their own recovery school districts, this essay outlines key lessons from Louisiana’s leaders.
Sep 2011This essay looks at the efforts in a handful of states that are moving to simultaneously reform and expand how they oversee the preparation and certification of teachers and leaders.
Sep 2011This essay was written for the PIE Network 5th Annual Policy Summit, September 2011. The authors argue that states can maximize their support for turnaround work by pushing for bold, workable plans, providing technical assistance, helping districts find and train leaders, and offering political cover for tough decisions.
Sep 2011This essay was written for the PIE Network 5th Annual Policy Summit, September 2011. The authors note that state education agencies have been tasked with increasing student outcomes on fewer funds and examine whether they are up for the challenge.
Aug 2011CRPE Senior Research Analyst Betheny Gross presented this overview of the latest evidence on choice policies including public school choice, vouchers, and charter schools at the National Conference of State Legislatures Legislative Summit 2011, in San Antonio, Texas.
Aug 2011This report examines whether State Education Agencies (SEAs) have the capacity they need to fulfill their expanding roles in turning around schools in need of improvement.
Jun 2011This study identifies key functions performed by state education agencies, estimates the relative level of resources devoted to each activity, and explores ways SEAs could free up resources to build school improvement capacity.
Jun 2011This working paper reports on a meeting in which representatives from several states gathered for a candid discussion of the lessons learned from Louisiana's dramatic school turnaround efforts.
Nov 2008This report is the conclusion of an extensive six-year national study funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The authors criticize school finance systems for being outmoded and not linked to student results and offer a four-part action plan for overhauling today's school finance systems.
Dec 2006This chapter of Hopes, Fears, & Reality: A Balanced Look at American Charter Schools in 2006 shows how states can get an honest picture of how charter schools are performing under their laws.
Dec 2006This edition of Hopes, Fears, & Reality explores some of the most controversial issues facing the charter school movement and the implications of continued growth for leading players in the charter school debates.
Jun 2000This paper is the result of a review of efforts across the country, and specifically in five states, to introduce performance accountability into education reform strategies.
Dec 1997This report sketches a strong and unique accountability system for Washington State, one that is driven by measurements of student performance and incentives to improve, creates clear lines of responsibility, gives every school a chance to perform and improve, employs powerful incentives, and doesn't stop until every child is in a good school.
