Step 2
Assessing the District’s Readiness
Overview
In this step, the district transformation team, in collaboration with a select group of district leaders with a good overall understanding of the district and its high schools, will complete the District Readiness Self-Assessment. After completing this assessment, each member will individually reflect on the results, come together as a group to discuss findings, and complete a series of guided exercises to plan the path forward.
Assess district capacity, foster shared understanding, and strategize for the design journey
District transformation team
Superintendents, central office leaders
What the Assessment Is and Why It Matters
The District Readiness Self-Assessment is a group exercise that enables you and your colleagues to collectively create a snapshot of your district’s current capacity for the design journey ahead, along with guidance on areas to focus on.
The assessment comprises 9 key categories of skills and conditions—from vision setting to political environment—that have an overwhelming impact on the success of any transformation effort. It leverages key learnings and insights from our deep and ongoing collaborations with district leaders who have already embarked on the design journey.
This assessment is not meant to be prescriptive or conclusive about your future success, nor is it a pass-fail test. Rather, it ensures you and your leadership team have a well-rounded picture of the degree to which these skills and conditions are present in your district, and helps you align on how to best prepare for a successful design journey.
9 Skills and Conditions That Enable Transformation
A set of collective competencies needed to affect transformative changes across a district
Vision Setting
Unites the community around a shared purpose and provides clarity to make decisions and plan direction moving forward
Experimentation & Innovation
Enables districts to adapt to changing needs, pilot new approaches, and ensure equity for all students
Leadership Ability and Alignment
Enables district leaders to guide transformation, build strong teams, and communicate with the community
Political Environment
Can significantly impact the design journey from education policies to funding priorities
Financial & Community Resources
Support initiatives that improve student learning and provide students real-world experiences and career pathways
Broad District Leadership Capacity
Enables leaders to drive change, make effective decisions, and inspire others along the way
Staff Capacity
Portrays the team’s ability for cross-functional analysis to adapt to new approaches, acquire new skills, and embrace change
Policies & Regulations
The ability to shift policy and regulation to unlock innovation, test new curriculum models, and rethink the learning experience
Equity and Quality of Existing High Schools
Ensures that all students have access to an excellent education, regardless of their background or circumstances
Your Assessments
In this section, the district transformation team can create new assessments or review previous ones. Each assessment offers distinct snapshots of the district’s progress over time.
Select an option to get started.
Create a New Assessment
Give your assessment a name
Use a unique and memorable name that fits this moment for your district. After you create your assessment, you won’t be able to change the name and you will need to share it with other members of your team, so pick something that will make sense to everyone.
We recommend a name that includes your district, month, and year. For example, you might name your assessment “Central Falls Assessment — June 2023.” This will be helpful if you create additional assessments in the future.
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