When schools and districts partner with NTC, they achieve rapid results — from establishing effective induction programs or coaching structures that align with instructional priorities to utilizing data to enhance student engagement.
But the real question is: How can we make progress that lasts?
Through our federal Education Innovation and Research (EIR) grants, many of our partners experienced what their leaders call “transformative change.” We asked superintendents and staff in two sites what made it work — and most importantly, how they’re sustaining those gains systemwide.
“[NTC] wouldn’t let us fail.”
Straight to the Point: Leadership Supports that Drive Success
Superintendents identified the following NTC supports and unique strategies as crucial for immediate and ongoing success:
- Step-by-step support to align district and school leadership
- Clear roadmaps for planning, goal-setting, and progress checks
- Professional learning tied directly to district priorities
- Tailored supports, with a focus on leadership training, to identify, address, and take action
- Aligning initiatives, improving coherence, and reducing redundancies
- Building leadership and structural capacity so improvements are sustainable in the long term
- Practical, differentiated learning with regular touchpoints and collaboration
- Using learning walks to collect and analyze actionable data
- Reviving PLCs from routine meetings into high-collaboration, problem-solving spaces
Leader to Leader: Advice for Driving and Sustaining Complex Change and Improvement
Tips from superintendents for fellow district leaders:
Prioritize visibility and engagement
- Be visible, engage in the process. Don’t just hand it off.
- Actively supporting principals is key.
- Lead by doing. Be a part of the work, the team.
- Be sure to support and recognize those behind the scenes who are providing different levels of leadership. Nurture those collaborative relationships.
- Communicate. Talk about the work — at faculty meetings, with the school board.
Be data-based and stakeholder-driven
- Use the data to set your course. Don’t let survey and assessment results collect dust in three-ring binders. Find and reflect on the information that tells you what’s going well and where you need to focus to improve instruction.
- Look especially at contradicting data; that’s probably where the work is.
- Seek out perspectives to push past the status quo. Invite multiple voices to the table to inform the work.
Feedback from coaching staff to school and district leaders:
- Stay involved. Trusting us is great, but we can’t do it without you and without your involvement.
- Adopt a start-small-to-go-big approach. Don’t expect big leaps. Baby steps make the difference and will bring everyone along at a pace that breeds success, not chaos
- Seek balance between engagement and decision-making. Create the conditions for successful teams. It’s not one person running the show. Give staff agency.
The lesson from these districts is clear: transformative change is possible — and it lasts — when leaders stay engaged, data drives decisions, and capacity is built from within. At NTC, we prioritize sustainability over short-term, flash-in-the-pan gains. Our approach helps leaders create the conditions where progress sticks.
If you’re ready to strengthen your leadership and sustain improvements that truly impact students, we’d be delighted to schedule a time to discuss your challenges and opportunities.
