Below are some of the most recent news articles featuring Public Impact and our work. To read more, searchable by topic, visit our resource database. For more news about our Opportunity Culture® initiative, visit the Opportunity Culture® website.
Guilford County System Tries New Approach to Help Students at Struggling Schools
The Greensboro News & Record, January 14, 2019 by Jessie Pounds
After 10 years teaching English at Dudley High School, Ashley Ekwem-Thorpe had plenty of “Panther” pride, but also a desire for a new adventure. So this school year she applied for a new position advertised at…
Opportunity Culture Schools Outpace State Results in N.C.
EdNC, January 2, 2019, by Emily Ayscue Hassel and Bryan C. Hassel
As the founders of the Opportunity Culture initiative to extend the reach of great teaching to many more students, we keep a tight focus on how students and teachers benefit from Opportunity Culture implementation in their schools….
IPS Provides Opportunity for Teachers to Grow as Multi-Classroom Leader
RTV6, December 17, 2018, by Lauren Casey
Teacher retention is an issue plaguing many schools in our state, even right here in Marion County. So the biggest district in the state is taking a new approach to retaining their star teachers by offering them a new chance…
15 School Districts Worth Visiting
Getting Smart, November 30, 2018
Leading a public school district is difficult and complicated work. But done well, there is no other job that can change how a community thinks about itself, its children and its future. The following are 15 districts that are changing the trajectory…
Using Teacher-Leaders To Improve Schools
The Hechinger Report, November 29, 2018, by Tara García-Mathewson
Edgecombe County Public Schools in rural North Carolina has long had trouble filling all of its open teaching positions. Historically, there just hasn’t been enough interest among qualified candidates. But that’s changing.
Local Principal Awarded National Fellowship
Rocky Mount Telegram, November 19, 2018, by Amelia Harper
North Edgecombe High School Principal Donnell Cannon recently was selected as one of 15 Opportunity Culture Fellows nationwide. The 15 fellows come from multi-classroom leaders and principals serving in school districts that have adopted the Opportunity Culture model. This year’s fellows were selected as…
70 Elementary and Middle Schools Worth Visiting
Getting Smart, November 18, 2018
Here at Getting Smart, we believe school visits are the best form of professional learning. Based on a couple thousand school visits, and with help from colleagues and readers, we’ve compiled a list of elementary and middle schools that can give educators a…
What Principals Can Do to Keep Good Teachers in Their Schools
EdWeek, October 16, 2018, by Madeline Will
Principal Mary Beck knew that in order to transform her Chicago high school’s staff culture, she had to go the distance—13.1 miles, to be exact. Beck, who is the principal of Nicholas Senn High School on the North Side of…
What Schools Can Learn From Google (Spoiler: It’s Not What You’d Expect)
eSchool News, October 3, 2018, by Talia Milgrom-Elcott and Mo-Yun Lei Fong
One of the American workplaces with the most to learn is, ironically, public schools themselves. Too few schools prioritize employee satisfaction, failing to recognize the link between it and customer value. In other words, they…
Achievement Zone Transformation: A Georgia School District Raises Achievement with a Turnaround Strategy
American School Board Journal, October 2018, by Nora K. Carr
When Georgia’s Fulton County Schools formed its Achievement Zone, the district hoped to improve a cluster of 10 schools characterized by poverty and low achievement. Three years later, strategies forged in the Achievement Zone are transforming the…