Districts can dramatically accelerate school improvement.
Mass Insight supports districts in identifying strengths and challenges, developing strategic plans, organizing structures of support, and creating systems for monitoring the effectiveness of efforts.
Diagnostics for Districts
Equity Audit
Mass Insight’s Equity Audit is a 6–8 month process that supports districts in understanding their current strengths, areas for growth and improvement, and provides recommended next steps to strategically and effectively strengthen equity and inclusion. Our thorough process includes a data and artifact analysis and numerous stakeholder engagement activities (surveys, focus groups, and interviews) in alignment with our District Equity Framework to clearly articulate the extent to which an equitable and inclusive work and learning environment is experienced by all stakeholders. We customize our approach to support the systems, structures, and capacity of the district during the Equity Audit process, as well as next steps in the district’s ongoing equity journey.
Equity Accelerator
Mass Insight’s Equity Accelerator is a 3–4 month process that acknowledges that districts are on an equity journey that oftentimes necessitates the opportunity to pause and assess what is working, where progress has been made, and where districts should strategically focus implementation efforts to continue positively impacting the system and stakeholder experience. Our Equity Accelerator provides the opportunity for districts to strategically reflect and engage in a series of facilitated work sessions and stakeholder experiences that will set the district up for dynamic, streamlined, and data-informed strategic next steps as they accelerate forward in their journey in pursuit of greater equity.
Implementation to Impact (I2I) Equity Assessment
Mass Insight’s Implementation to Impact (I2I) Equity Assessment is an adaptive tool aligned to our District Equity Framework that assesses district and school leaders’ perceptions about the current implementation progress and impact of equity-centered systems and practices. Following the completion of the I2I Equity Assessment, districts receive a report of findings, as well as a facilitated session with Mass Insight staff to start unpacking the results. The I2I Equity Assessment can be part of our Equity Accelerator process or as a stand-alone service offering.
District Diagnostic Review
Mass Insight’s district diagnostic review is a comprehensive assessment process for districts to understand current strengths, growth opportunities, and next steps to support improvement. The diagnostic process includes a data and artifact analysis, stakeholder engagement activities (surveys, interviews, and focus groups with students, families, and staff), and school observations. We use ten elements of our District Diagnostic Framework in a report of findings to support a district’s strategic next steps, including strategic planning. The district diagnostic process can be tailored to reflect district priorities and/or multiple school types (e.g. vocational technical, charter, Montessori, International Baccalaureate).
Custom Program Evaluation
Mass Insight conducts tailored program evaluation to support districts’ understanding of current programmatic strengths, growth opportunities, and next steps to support improvement. Our evaluation approach starts by defining key research questions the evaluation seeks to answer, followed by an extensive data and artifact review, stakeholder engagement activities (surveys, focus groups, and interviews) to inform a report of findings to support the district’s strategic next steps. Some of our past custom program evaluations include special education, MTSS, discipline, and alternative education programs.
Planning for Districts
District Strategic Planning and Department Planning
Mass Insight facilitates district strategic planning and department planning to address a district’s root causes of low performance by conducting a diagnostic review and facilitating a root cause analysis, strategy and goal setting, and action planning. Our facilitation process engages representative district stakeholders to develop manageable plans that recognize district growth opportunities and student needs, focus on a few key priorities, and reflect the capacity of staff to implement.
Transformation Zone Design and Development
Mass Insight helps districts design, develop, and implement transformation zones, an innovative model that gives schools the more responsive conditions they need to address the causes of gaps and low performance. We facilitate a zone design process to help districts establish the purpose and governance model, as well as determine participating schools for the zone. Then, we facilitate zone planning to prepare for launching the new zone, including new strategies for innovation and improvement, conditions and policies needed to bring strategies to life, and zone governance and support systems, structures, and staff. At every stage, our zone design and planning prioritizes district and school community inclusion, engagement, and investment.
Hiring, Transition, and Onboarding Planning
Mass Insight supports districts to strategically plan for and support key leadership transitions. We are experienced in supporting districts in creating new cabinet/executive level positions, including researching similar roles and responsibilities in other districts, and designing job descriptions, hiring rubrics, and interview materials and protocols. We are also experienced in developing onboarding plans for executive leadership positions—whether new positions or just new leaders—as well as supporting outgoing leaders and their incoming replacements through a thoughtful process that encompasses the technical and adaptive sides of transitions.
Implementation for Districts
Advanced Academics
Transformation Zone Support
Mass Insight helps districts design, develop, and implement transformation zones, an innovative model that gives schools the more responsive they need to address the causes of gaps and low performance. Once the zone has been designed and a plan for implementation is in place, we support ongoing zone capacity-building, strategy implementation, and performance management. We support zone office and zone school leaders with operationalizing new strategies and conditions through leadership coaching and skill-building, developing collective responsibility for zone success, and regular progress monitoring and improvement cycles to ensure zone progress towards measurable outcomes.
Leadership Development and Strategy Support for Principal Supervisors
Mass Insight works with districts to build the capacity of principal supervisors to coach principals on the leadership skills, knowledge, and systems necessary to improve schools by focusing on the instructional core. We support principal supervisors in strengthening management structures to ensure they have the necessary time and authority to develop principals, as well as navigate district conditions in support of addressing school and student needs.
Professional Development
As part of systems development support, Mass Insight provides customized professional development to support district and school leaders and staff in furthering district priorities focused on equitably improving the instructional core and the student learning experience. We leverage adult learning principles to ensure professional development is applicable, engaging, collaborative, and relevant to their practice.
District-wide or Multi-school Instructional Coaching System Development
Mass Insight partners with districts to design instructional coaching systems and work with staff to bring best coaching practices to life through training and custom performance management systems. Our tailored support integrates elements of improvement science and network improvement communities, and is based on the instructional rounds model. Coaching systems can be implemented at multiple schools or district wide to support greater alignment and focus on improving the instructional core.
Executive Leadership Coaching
Mass Insight partners with district cabinet or department leaders to provide strategic leadership coaching. Our executive leadership coaching includes: vision setting and planning support about district or department operational or cultural direction; facilitated short- and long-term department priorities, metrics, and strategies; design and research support; and ongoing implementation and management thought partnership.
Performance Monitoring and Management
Mass Insight partners with district leaders and leadership teams to support ongoing monitoring and management of their strategic plans. Strong plans (read our Road Map to Developing a School Improvement Plan) describe who is doing what when to advance district priorities, and we support districts to establish a regular monitoring process, create data tools, and provide protocols and training to build district leadership capacity.
Targeted Intervention: Chronic Absenteeism
Mass Insight partners with schools and districts to understand the chronically absent student experience, create and test evidence-based strategies for re-engaging chronically absent students, and codify and progress monitor strategies to address absenteeism. Partners receive an instantly usable Re-Engagement Guidebook tailored to their unique context to help with implementation and monitoring.
Are you ready to create more student success in your school or district?
Our team of former teachers, school and district leaders, and policy experts are ready to support you. Please fill out your contact info and we’ll get right back to you to talk about ways we can partner together.