In a recent mini-episode of the High Tech High Unboxed podcast, Partners in School Innovation CEO Derek Mitchell returned to talk with host Alec Patton about his daily reading practice: a routine that supports his leadership, fuels his imagination, and helps him stay rooted in reflection.

Community schools are a powerful, long-term strategy for rethinking how schools support students, families, and communities. This article breaks down the model, clears up common misconceptions, and offers practical guidance for implementation.

Leading transformation in schools takes a different kind of leader. Learn how our Change Agent Framework supports educators in leading with purpose and advancing equity in lasting, practical ways.

Effective school leadership is the foundation of meaningful educational change, especially in underserved communities. In a recent episode of Principal Matters: The School Leaders Podcast, our very own Dr. Derek Mitchell, shared his insights on how equity-centered strategies can drive lasting improvements in education. Drawing from his diverse career—spanning education, technology, and even professional dance—Dr. Mitchell discussed the power of shifting from a scarcity mindset to one of abundance, recognizing the brilliance within communities, and using the 'Skill, Will, and Way' framework to tackle challenges.

Learn how a Theory of Action (ToA) can support educators with connecting goals to outcomes and read about real examples from Partners in School Innovation Director of Program Design and Development Amanda Bachelor on how schools and districts we’ve worked with have used ToAs.

In "Sometimes The Bias You Need to Disrupt is Your Own" in Unboxed’s Issue 27: Fall 2024, Partners in School Innovation coach Paula Espinoza describes how undertaking antiracist and anti-bias work with schools resulted in site leaders learning strategies that challenged prior beliefs. She shares insights from the journey in this article.

Discover how disaggregated data empowers educators to uncover hidden inequities and make targeted, impactful decisions, including a real-world example.

Delve into the critical role of Change Agents in modern schools and districts to forward goals of equity in education. Read more to understand the Partners In School Innovation framework for driving impactful change in schools and districts.

In the “Totems, Talent & Teaching the World to Change with Derek Mitchell” Coffee & Change podcast episode, Bill Kirst speaks to Partners in School Innovation CEO Derek Mitchell about his origin story, how teachers and parents change children’s worlds, and what it means to be a Change Agent.

In the “The Centrality of Operations Leaders in Transformational Change” article for AASA’s School Administrator magazine, the authors elaborate on why you can’t overlook a district’s bus drivers, nurses, custodians, accountants and others if you seek to cultivate academic excellence. They offer strategic approaches to involving and developing support staff further.

Storytelling is crucial to the process of introducing and pulling people into the vision and mission of work to achieve equity in education. Learn about four ways that you can sustain school transformation efforts through creative approaches to revealing stories that matter most to your community.

Find the greatest effectiveness in surfacing stories that matter by highlighting learning and celebrating success among students, teachers, and parents. Learn about six ways that you can bring forth these stories to catalyze change and sustainable school transformation.

Make it clear to educators, students, community members, and other constituents what your greater vision is for school transformation. Here are three collaborative ways that teams can clarify impact and better surface stories that matter and catalyze change.

Stories are powerful windows into lived experiences and hold the potential to connect people, help them learn and heal, and open eyes to how necessary equity work is. Explore three creative and intentional ways to open deeper dialogue for meaningful storytelling.

Learn three ways to surface stories that catalyze change by engaging your community with creativity and intention. Get school teams, students, and community members involved in deliberate and thoughtful reflection to bring forth motivational stories that foster equity.

There are many ways to engage school teams, students, and community members in meaningful reflection in order to surface inspiring stories. Here are six ways to surface stories that matter and catalyze change that call everyone in to reflect as a team.

Explore Chris Emdin's compelling educational insights, which urge educators to critically evaluate their methods and implement collaborative dialogues to enhance classroom dynamics.

In the “How to nurture and sustain school change in challenging times” HTH Unboxed podcast episode, Derek Mitchell talks to Stacey Caillier about what he’s learned about how to help schools get better at giving every kid what they need to thrive and why this work matters so much to him.