About the EP Blog

Education Pioneers shares stories of impact, insights, ideas, and opinions to advance the conversation about what great leadership in education looks like.

Category 
Talent in Action

PACE Report Offers Recession-Proof Policy Recommendations

May 19, 2010

“Changing California’s education system will require more money, but the absence of resources does not preclude policy changes that can make a difference for kids. This is the way forward.” So begins David Plank, Executive Director of Policy Analysis for California Education ( PACE ), when asked to explain the impetus behind PACE’s most recent report. The report, released in April and titled “Reforming Education in California: A Guide for Candidates and Citizens,” makes clear policy recommendations in anticipation of California’s state-wide political races. “This report points the way for...
Category 
Talent in Action

Education: The Base of My Pyramid

May 19, 2010

Mironda Ross ('10 Houston) spent six years increasing productivity and decreasing costs as a business analyst for Protective Life Insurance Company and American Iron Pipe Company prior to entering business school. At first glance, she is not your typical candidate for a role in education. But within a resume chock full of accomplishments and academic accolades, you see a committed volunteer and community change agent. Beyond her work in the classroom and office, Ross tutored 8th graders in math and increased partnerships by 300% as President of the National Council of Negro Women for the...
Category 
Talent in Action

Systems, Culture, Talent: The Movement to Transform Education into a Data-Driven Sector

May 19, 2010

There is a movement underfoot to evolve the use of data in education. The transformation will enable practitioners, policy-makers and leaders to use data to drive decisions everywhere from the classroom, to the board room, to the halls of the legislature. The push, heavily motivated by federal funding initiatives such as the $4.35 billion Race to the Top program, and major education reform philanthropies, seeks to accelerate the rate of improvements in education and the number of United States students succeeding in school, career and life. Recently, the Annual Progress Report on State Data...
Category 
Talent in Action

A Means to Make a Difference

February 23, 2010

Jesse Hahnel has worked with foster youth since the beginning of his career. As a teacher in low-performing schools in Washington DC and New York City, Jesse saw first-hand the positive effects a vocal adult had on a child’s success in school. He also noticed the sparse number of adult education advocates for youth in the foster care system. After graduating from Stanford Law School in 2008, Jesse worked with foster children and foster youth in Oakland to learn what was happening on the ground and to identify their unmet needs. Not long into his work with Oakland-area foster children, Jesse...
Category 
EP Insights

Talent Matters: Teacher Effectiveness Ignites Exciting Shift in Education

February 23, 2010

Teachers have the most significant influence on student learning – especially for minority and low-income students. The evidence here is clear. And recently a paradigm shift in the way the education industry evaluates teachers has been taking place. This change aims to measure teachers by the success of their students, rather than predictors of quality such as credentials. Many believe –and hope– this change means teachers will soon be accepted as individual professionals rather than interchangeable pieces in the educational puzzle. According to a recent study, part of the problem is systemic...

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