Using a “Making it Happen” Approach to SSIP Implementation: The Georgia Story Zelphine Smith-Dixon, State Director of Special Education Kachelle White, Program Manager Senior Kim Hartsell, SSIP Evaluator

Setting the Stage Student Success

Educational Demographics 205 districts (23 charter districts) 2,266 schools 1,764,346 students 209,094 students with disabilities

Focus of the SSIP Georgia’s SSIP is also known as Student Success: Imagine the Possibilities Focus of Student Success Leverage the state and regional resources and supports to build the capacity of district leadership to support school leadership in improving instruction and learning so that students will have better outcomes and graduate from high school with a general education diploma SiMR Increase the percentage of students with disabilities in districts identified to receive intensive supports graduating with a general education diploma to 65% by 2018

Annual Event Graduation Rates for SWD in 50 Districts

Identified Barriers During Phases I and II of the SSIP, the State identified three primary barriers to improving graduation rates Access to the general curriculum for all students Access to a positive school climate for all students Access to specially designed instruction

Improvement Strategies Improving state and regional infrastructures to better support districts to implement and scale up evidence-based practices that will improve graduation rates for all students-including SWD Alignment of initiatives and plans at all levels of the state system to reduce duplication, leverage resources, and maximize outcomes for students Development and implementation of cascading team management and implementation structures with associated communication protocols and feedback loops Provision of professional learning and technical assistance to state and regional technical assistance providers to increase their capacity to support districts and schools in implementing evidence-based practices Improving district infrastructure and implementation of evidence-based practices in fifty districts identified to receive intensive technical assistance to improve effective instruction, engaging school climate, and transition

Logic Model

Student Success Process A broad framework that guides local districts through a six-step problem solving process that leads to the selection of evidence-based practices based on district data and the development of a comprehensive improvement plan that supports implementation of the selected practices The steps are: Engage stakeholders Examine local capacity and infrastructure Review strengths and weaknesses of the General Supervision System Analyze salient data trends Use the data to identify local barriers Develop short-term and long-term actionable steps that will support local implementation of evidence-based practices

District Expectations Each district was expected to develop or re-purpose a district team to focus on the development and implementation of the Student Success Process Plan. Each district was expected to develop and implement a Student Success Process Plan in collaboration with stakeholders. District special education directors were expected to participate in monthly Collaborative Community Meetings to discuss implementation barriers and successes; to strategize solutions for identified barriers; and to share resources.

District Expectations In addition to the expectations for all districts, those districts identified to receive intensive supports were expected to: Designate a District Student Success Coach to guide implementation of the Student Success Process in the district and in targeted schools Use data to select target schools to implement the Student Success Process and identified evidence-based practices to address the school identified barriers to improving graduation rates

State and Regional Supports All districts Technical support in developing the district Student Success Process Plan Review and provide feedback on the district plan Monthly Collaborative Community Meetings

State and Regional Supports In addition to the supports provided to all districts, the 50 districts identified to receive intensive supports receive: Capacity building grants to support funding for a district coach Professional development at state and regional levels Coordinated technical assistance from a regional team Monthly (two times per month minimum) coaching supports from a regional coach

Overarching Themes of Student Success Alignment of key state, regional, and district initiatives and resources Engagement of stakeholders in all aspects of SSIP implementation Use of data to inform SSIP implementation Focus on improving graduation rates is the work!

Making it Happen

Using a “Making it Happen” Approach Implementation of Student Success is grounded in the Implementation Frameworks developed by the State Implementation and Scaling-up of Evidence-based Practices Center (SISEP). The use of the Implementation Frameworks is integral to Georgia’s “Making it Happen” vs. “Letting it Happen Approach”.

Usable Intervention A core list of required or recommended evidence-based practices could not effectively address the statewide barriers: Districts reported different root causes and causal factors that contributed to the state-identified barriers. Capacity of district and school personnel to implement practices varied greatly from one district to the next. As a result, it was not possible to identify a core set of evidence-based practices that would be “fit and feasible” for all districts.

Usable Intervention Georgia’s usable intervention is the Student Success Process, which guides districts in selecting and implementing evidence-based practices that are both “fit and feasible” based on their data and implementation capacity. An implementation fidelity rubric is used to assess the degree to which districts are implementing the process as designed.

Stages of Implementation Exploration Stage (2014-2015 School Year): Aligned state and regional initiatives and supports to support the implementation of Student Success Messaged the need for change through various means including sharing data about outcomes for students with disabilities Introduced the Student Success Process and provided resources and tools to build readiness and support districts in implementing the process Provided professional learning and technical assistance on data analysis, stakeholder engagement, problem- solving models, implementation science, and evidence-based practices designed to improve graduation rates of students with disabilities Supported districts in completing a comprehensive data analysis leading to the identification of “fit and feasible” evidence-based practices Installation Stage (2015-2016 School Year): Provided professional learning and technical assistance/coaching to districts to assist them in finalizing their Student Process Plans which included identifying and putting in place the resources needed to implement their plans with fidelity District teams District coaches Data collection processes

Stages of Implementation Initial Implementation Stage (2016-2017 School Year): Provided technical assistance/coaching to district teams and coaches in making infrastructure changes needed to implement the Student Success Process in schools Supported district teams in selecting targeted schools based on data and implementing the Student Success in these schools Provided professional learning to district teams on selection of evidence-based practices Supported district coaches in assisting school teams in identifying evidence-based practices and beginning implementation with targeted students Full Implementation Stage: (2017-2018 School Year) Support districts in implementing Student Success Process in the districts and in targeted schools

Implementation Teams Georgia established cascading teams with well-defined feedback loops to support the implementation of Student Success. Information about implementation barriers and successes travel “up” the “system (Practice Informs policy). Resources, changes in policies and processes, etc. travel “down” the system (Policy informs practice). ”i State Regional District School

Implementation Teams State Team: Regional Teams: Develops state and regional implementation capacity through professional learning, technical assistances, and resources Develops policies and processes to guide the implementation of Student Success Integrates Student Success in other state and regional initiatives Regional Teams: Coordinate and provide technical assistance/coaching for district teams and coaches

Implementation Teams District Teams: School Teams: Develop district implementation capacity Coordinate improvements to district infrastructure Monitor district and school implementation progress and outcomes School Teams: Guide the implementation of Student Success at the school level Coordinate improvements to school infrastructure Monitor school implementation progress and outcomes

Implementation Teams Feedback Loops: Multiple methods are used to communicate information through the feedback loops. The following examples illustrate how information is communicated. On-line surveys were created for implementation teams to record information (e.g. implementation barriers, successes, next steps, etc.). Information is collected from the on-line surveys and is provided to the State Implementation Team in a monthly report. Weekly calls are held with area coaches to discuss implementation progress and outcomes. Regional teams meet on a monthly basis to discuss implementation progress of districts within the region.

Implementation Drivers Competency Drivers: The State has invested heavily in high quality professional development for regional technical providers, district teams, and school teams. Area, regional, and district coaches provide virtual and on-site coaching to support the implementation of Student Success. Organization Drivers: Data collection and usage are an integral part of Student Success. The State has designed a comprehensive evaluation plan and associated data collection and analysis system to monitor implementation progress and outcomes. Coaches support district and school teams in designing decision support data systems to monitor implementation progress and outcomes.

Implementation Drivers Organization Drivers (Continued): The State has supported district and school leaders in implementing policies and procedures that support practitioners, remove barriers, and create environments that are “hospitable” for the evidence-based practices to be implemented with fidelity and success. (Facilitative Administration and Systems Intervention) Leadership Drivers: The State has provided professional development and follow-up coaching to assist district and school leaders in addressing adaptive and technical challenges that arise during the implementation of Student Success.

Implementation Cycles Plan-Do-Study-Act Cycles: Student Success expectations and processes have been revised, as needed, based on information that was obtained through the communication feedback loops. Example: Changes made to Student Success Process Planning Template and Fidelity Rubrics Feedback Loops Discussed on previous slides

Take-aways

Take-aways: State Perspective The SSIP was instrumental in aligning and integrating improvement efforts across offices and divisions at the DOE. Blending of resources Coordination of technical assistance to districts and schools Common focus on improving graduation rates for all students including students with disabilities

Take-aways: State Perspective Development of the Georgia Systems of Continuous Improvement Framework to guide the implementation of all GaDOE improvement initiatives Based on critical support structures for school improvement identified in research conducted at the University of Chicago and described in Organizing for School Improvement (Bryk, Sebring, Allensworth, Luppescu, & Easton, 2010)

Take-aways: State Perspective Development of the Comprehensive Needs Assessment (CNA) that is being implemented for the first time in FY18 (FFY 17) for federal programs Meets individual program statutory requirements for schools and districts; Enables districts to complete a single comprehensive needs assessment that includes all students, groups, programs Connects to the district’s flexibility contract

Take-aways: State Perspective The CNA will be incorporated in the Comprehensive LEA Improvement Plan (CLIP) beginning in FY 18. The CLIP must address all required components of federally-funded programs. With the implementation of the expanded CLIP, districts will not submit separate Student Success Plans, and all improvement strategies and activities outlined in the former Student Success Plans will be better aligned with other district and school improvement activities.

Take-aways: District and School Perspective Alignment is the key! Districts are building their capacity to support the implementation of evidence-based practices. Alignment of initiatives and resources Shared leadership for improving results for all students Improvements to district infrastructure including professional development and coaching

Take-aways: Challenges Collaboration between general and special education leadership in districts and schools Implementation at the school and student levels (e.g. getting the interventions in the hands of students) Equitable access is essential!

Contact Information Zelphine Smith- Dixon (zsmith@doe.k12.ga.us) Kachelle White (kawhite@doe.k12.ga.us) Kim Hartsell (kim@kimhartsell.com)