Building the Capacity of Systems to Strengthen, Sustain, and Expand Reform

Three pressing questions stimulated the addition of a fifth strategy to the First Things First framework:

• Under what conditions will our reform strategies be more swiftly and more thoroughly implemented?
• How can we help prepare our partners to sustain and strengthen the core strategies, once initial funding and intensive IRRE support ends?
• How can successful implementation of these strategies expand with fidelity to the larger numbers of schools that need them in a district or state?

While the answers to these questions continue to evolve, and while research on them is in its early stages, experience has shown us specific practices help schools and districts improve student achievement more quickly and build on initial gains more effectively.

• We develop up front a single, unified improvement plan that meets all district, state, and federal compliance requirements and ensures accountability, efficiency, and coherence.
• The plan establishes clear metrics and thresholds for success in moving student outcomes forward, putting effective practices in place, and — for IRRE — in delivering high-quality professional development and other supports.
• Everyone agrees on who is responsible for what and on the need to reallocate financial and human resources if responsibilities and benchmarks aren’t met at specified intervals.

To increase sustainability, we also include specific activities and timelines for building the financial, political, and human capacity to strengthen and sustain reform beyond the initial period of funding and intensive involvement by IRRE.