Supporting High Quality Professional Learning Through Improved Policy NCLB Reinvented

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Supporting High Quality Professional Learning
Through Improved PolicyNCLB Reinvented
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NSDC Goal

• All teachers in all schools will experience
  high-quality professional learning as part of
  their daily work by 2007.

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NSDC Strategic Plan 2002-07

• Strategic Priority 1 Leadership
• Strategic Priority 2 High-Performing Cultures
• Strategic Priority 3 High-Poverty Schools
• Strategic Priority 4 Advocacy

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Strategic Priority 4 Advocacy

• Goal
• To have local, state, provincial, and Federal
  policies that promote quality professional
  learning.

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Strategic Priority 4 Advocacy

• Assumptions
• Local and state policies affect professional
  learning
• Sustained informed advocacy regarding quality
  professional learning increases the probability
  of effective policies

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Investing In Advocacy Support

• November 2006 NSDC contracts with BD Consulting
  to design and implement sophisticated advocacy
  agenda.

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Investing In Advocacy Support

• BDC Scope of Work
• Understand NSDC Mission, Purpose, and Goals
• Structured Policy Development
• Development of NSDCs Political Capital
• Development and Implementation of Advocacy
  Strategy

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Evaluating Advocacy Investment

• Outcome Categories
• Shifts in social norms.
• Strengthened organizational capacity.
• Strengthened alliances.
• Strengthened base of support.
• Improved policies.
• Changes in impact.

Source Organizational Research Service. Guide
to Measuring Advocacy and Policy. 2007.
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BDC Advocacy Process

• Step 1 Understand NSDC Mission, Purpose, and
  Goals.
• Built NSDC Client Service Team
• M. René Islas, Client Manager
• Kelly Pollitt, Legislative Director
• Laura Bonavita, Research Assistant
• Henry Johnson, Senior Advisor
• William Goodling, Senior Advisor

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BDC Advocacy Process

• Step 1 Understand NSDC Mission, Purpose, and
  Goals.
• Team Education
• Read NSDC Publications
• Extensive Interviews With Key NSDC Leadership
• Participated in Annual Conference
• Participated in NSDC Staff Meeting
• Represented NSDC in National Forums

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BDC Advocacy Process

• Step 2 Policy Development
• Review of Policy Goals
• Solicited NSDC Dream Policy Goals
• Assessed goals fit to Federal policy political
  landscape
• Recommended revised list of policy priorities
• Improve the definition of high quality
  professional development in the ESEA
  reauthorization
• Focus federal teacher quality funds on improved
  professional development (school-based)
• Strengthen professional development evaluation
  requirements
• Increase and strengthen federal investments in
  induction, mentoring, and other teacher
  leadership opportunities

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BDC Advocacy Process

• Step 2 Policy Development
• Developed Legislative Proposals
• Amendments to ESEA Sec. 9101(34)
• Amendments to ESEA Sec. 2112
• Amendments to ESEA Sec. 2113
• Amendments to ESEA Sec. 2123
• Amendments to ESEA Sec. 1116(b)(3)
• Triple H Act High-Need Communities, High-Impact
  Professional Development, and High-Performing
  Schools Act

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ESEA Sec. 9101(34)Definition of Professional
Development

• Issues
• Laundry list
• Length
• Practicality of implementation
• Limited impact on field

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ESEA Sec. 9101(34)Definition of Professional
Development

• NSDC Amendments
• Highlights
• Focused
• Operationalized
• Consistent with NSDC standards and best practice

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ESEA Sec. 9101(34)NSDC Definition of
Professional Development

• primarily occurs several times per week among
  established teams of teachers, principals, and
  other instructional staff members
• is facilitated primarily by teachers with the
  structured support of school principals and
  school-based professional development coach,
  mentors, or master teachers
• is aligned with rigorous state student academic
  achievement standards as well as related local
  educational agency and school improvement goals
  and
• includes a continuous cycle of improvement

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BDC Advocacy Process

• Step 3 Development of Advocacy Skills
  Political Capital
• Advocacy Training
• Prepared and coached Hirsh and Mizell for
  individual meetings with key congressional staff
• Provided feedback on Hirsh and Mizell performance
  in Congressional meetings
• Provided ongoing briefings to Hirsh and Mizell on
  key Congressional member targets for NSDC policy
  proposals

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BDC Advocacy Process

• Step 3 Development Of Advocacy Skills
  Political Capital
• Development of Political Capital
• BDC Co-hosted fundraising event for Senator Jack
  Reed (RI)
• BDC Hosted Goodling Series event with Chairman
  Dale Kildee
• USED acknowledgement of NSDC recommendations
• Sen. Reed (RI) introduced legislation to improve
  the definition of professional development and
  build capacity in high need schools

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BDC Advocacy Process

• Step 4 Development Implementation of Advocacy
  Strategy
• Identified Initial Targets
• Senator Jack Reed (RI)
• Senator Barak Obama (IL)
• Senator Edward Kennedy (MA)
• Representative George Miller (CA)

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BDC Advocacy Process

• Step 4 Development Implementation of
  Advocacy Strategy
• Congressional Outreach
• Senator Jack Reed (RI)
• Senator Barak Obama (IL)
• Senator Edward Kennedy (MA)
• Senator Patty Murray (WA)
• Representative George Miller (CA)
• Representative Tim Bishop (NY)
• Majority Committee Staff (House Senate)
• Minority Committee Staff (House Senate)

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BDC Advocacy Process

• Step 4 Development Implementation of Advocacy
  Strategy
• Agency Outreach
• Kerry L. Briggs, Assistant Secretary Office of
  Elementary and Secondary Education
• Amanda Farris, Deputy Assistant Secretary Office
  of Elementary and Secondary Education
• Doug Mesecar, Acting Assistant Secretary Office
  of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development
• Carolyn Snowbarger, Director Teacher-to-Teacher
  Initiative

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BDC Advocacy Process

• Step 4 Development Implementation of Advocacy
  Strategy
• Agency Outreach
• Letter to Secretary Margaret Spellings
  recommending additions to 2007-2012 USED
  Strategic Plan
• USED acknowledgement of NSDC recommendations

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NSDC Advocacy Results

• Shifts In Social Norms.
• Dialogue with federal officials has evolved since
  November.
• Congressional staff have become more
  sophisticated in the understanding of high
  quality professional development.
• Results Staff in Senator Obama and Senator
  Reeds offices regularly cite the importance of
  job-embedded professional development.

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NSDC Advocacy Results

• Strengthened Organizational Capacity.
• NSDC board members and staff have a greater
  appreciation for federal policy as a lever for
  change.
• Senior staff are growing more comfortable
  interacting with federal officials regarding
  policy.
• Results Advocacy is prominently included in the
  NSDC 2007-12 strategic plan.

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NSDC Advocacy Results

• Strengthened Alliances.
• NSDC engaged groups within AFT and NEA to discuss
  and improve legislative proposals.
• NIET government relations experts contributed to
  the NSDC definition of professional development
  and have cited the definition as the type of pd
  that ought to be required in federal performance
  pay programs.
• Results NEA, AFT, NIET support NSDCs
  legislative proposals and are emerging as
  reliable allies.

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NSDC Advocacy Results

• Strengthened Base of Support.
• NSDC advocacy agenda has generated interest among
  members and affiliates.
• Members and affiliates regularly request
  information regarding NSDC legislative proposals.
• Results Individual members and affiliates have
  offered to leverage their personal political
  connections and relationships to advance NSDCs
  legislative proposals.

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NSDC Advocacy Results

• Improved Policies.
• NSDC has developed legislative proposals.
• Several congressional offices support NSDCs
  vision for improved professional learning.
• Results Senator Reed engaged NSDC for over six
  months of technical assistance resulting in
  legislation that includes much of NSDC language
  and concepts.

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NSDC Advocacy Results

• Changes In Impact.
• There is greater awareness of the impact of
  federal policy on local practice among NSDC
  members.
• There is significant interest in learning about
  NSDCs federal advocacy agenda at NSDC
  conferences.
• Results State officials in South Carolina used
  a modified version of NSDC vision as a model for
  low-performing schools.