Washington State

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• Washington States Story of
• Building Capacity for
• Next Generation Science Standards
• NGSS Annual Network Meeting for State Leadership
  Teams National Partners
• February 18 19, 2014
• Atlanta, GA

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• Ellen Ebert, PhD
• Science Director, Teaching Learning,
• Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction
• Washington State NGSS Lead
• email ellen.ebert_at_k12.wa.us
• Peggy Willcuts, EdD
• STEM Education Outreach, Office of STEM
  Education
• Pacific Northwest Natl Laboratory
• Co-Director of SE LASER Alliance
• email peggy.willcuts_at_pnnl.gov

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• Agenda for Presentation
• Six conditions for Building Leadership Capacity
  initial discussion
• Washington State LASERs story then and now
• NGSS Timeline for Washington State
• Closing discussion QA

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Six Conditions for Building Leadership Capacity Six Conditions for Building Leadership Capacity
Six Conditions Your State
Is mutually beneficial to all parties interests of each group are attended to
Operates through shared governance decision-making  
Involves equitable sharing of financial and material resources project benefits  
Looks out for and works against power differentials that may be operating (e.g., between university and community / school participants)  
Leverages diverse expertise of the team to create productive learning opportunities  
Fosters continuous communication to build capacity and trust
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• HISTORICAL TIMELINE
• Prior to 1999
• Some NSF grants
• School improvement efforts no science
• Culture of sharing and working together
• Needed a model
• National Science Resources Center/LASER
• 1999
• Launch of Washington State LASER
• Yearly Strategic Planning Institutes

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LASER Model Pushes for Regional Capacity Building

• Build upon 9 Education Service Districts
• 296 school districts many small
• Engage in vision building
• Help build resources and support (time,
  treasure, talent)

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NW LASER ALLIANCE

• Insert LASER map

NS LASER ALLIANCE
NC LASER ALLIANCE
OLYMPIC LASER ALLIANCE
NE LASER ALLIANCE
SS LASER ALLIANCE
M2H LASER ALLIANCE
SC LASER ALLIANCE
SE LASER ALLIANCE
SW LASER ALLIANCE
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Building a Team

• From all Stakeholder Groups
• Business
• K-12 Education
• Higher Education
• Informal Science
• Parents Community

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• Distributed Leadership with Key Stewards
• Technical Assistance for School Improvement
  Efforts
• Grassroots to Key Influencers
• Mixed Funding
• Partnerships
• Alliance/Hub Concept
• NSF-funded Implementation and Dissemination
  Center Models

Scaling Up Strategies
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Washington State LASERThen and Now

• Strategy Invest upstream for downstream
  results.
• Build the capacity of schools, districts and
  regions.
• Build Awareness and Foster Leadership
• Engage in Strategic Planning
• Use a Curriculum-led Reform Strategy to Bridge
  the Gap Between Standards and Practice
• Implement, Evaluate and Improve
• Go to Scale and Sustain

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• Washington State LASER - The Convener
• Of schools and school districts
• Strategic Planning Institute
• STEM Education Leadership Institute
• Of key science leaders across all ten LASER
  Alliances AND Regional Science Coordinators
  (ESDs)
• Science Partnership Academies

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• Always using the same formula again and again
• Hearing from Experts
• Reading the Research
• Conversing Collegially
• Building Action Plans

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• NGSS a new innovation!
• Turn to our trusted model
• Study the Framework together
• Study the NGSS
• Begin to build capacity
• Create Awareness of NGSS Presentations for
  Stakeholder Groups
• Create Action Plan for Regional Alliance
• Lots of boots on the ground using a trusted
  model of regional impact to expand leadership
  capacity!

Deep Dives
BC4NGSS
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Six Conditions for Building Leadership Capacity Six Conditions for Building Leadership Capacity
Six Conditions Washington State
Is mutually beneficial to all parties interests of each group are attended to Shared vision and goals Administrative and community support Longtime culture of sharing of time, treasure, and talent
Operates through shared governance decision-making   Regional ESDs and then LASER Alliances/HUBS Grassroots to critical stakeholders Shared vision and goals
Involves equitable sharing of financial and material resources project benefits   Using multiple investors from federal and state government, business and industry, foundations and the school districts themselves was critical. Leveraging the work of the Math/Science Partnership Grants Continuous development and sharing of professional development events, tools, and strategies.
Looks out for and works against power differentials that may be operating (e.g., between university and community / school participants)   Creating key partnerships that put a solid infrastructure in place allowed us to grow. Intentional focus on equity Celebrate all successes through the continuous communication efforts (First Monday email, LASER E-Newsletters, Regional Science Coordinator Meetings, virtual meetings/phone conversations)
Leverages diverse expertise of the team to create productive learning opportunities   Creating key partnerships that put a solid infrastructure in place allowed us to grow. Use of key stakeholders to develop PD materials and key messaging tools Collaborative development of learning events (Regional Science Coordinators/LASER Alliance Directors)
Fosters continuous communication to build capacity and trust Convening state events (Strategic Planning Institutes/STEM Education Leadership Institutes ) Monthly phone calls for Alliance Directors Monthly Leadership Team Calls Bi-annual Leadership Team Meetings (Steering Committee)
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• Ellen Ebert, PhD
• Science Director, Teaching Learning,
• Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction
• Washington State NGSS Lead
• email ellen.ebert_at_k12.wa.us
• Peggy Willcuts, EdD
• STEM Education Outreach, Office of STEM
  Education
• Pacific Northwest Natl Laboratory
• Co-Director of SE LASER Alliance
• email peggy.willcuts_at_pnnl.gov