Organizations including universities are operating in an increasingly volatile environment and they are in a state of constant change. To survive and thrive in this ever-changing environment, building the capacity to adapt is essential. The basic purpose of this research was to identify and propose basic dimensions that help to envisage the…

The goal of this study was to learn how school leaders in a complex adaptive system that is a suburban public high school influenced a process of adaptive change to the instructional core and how they were influenced by the process. For many years, U.S. public school leaders have faced challenges from the rapid pace of change in their internal and…

Many leaders, especially those new to leadership, may not have the experience or knowledge of systemic change leadership to ensure effective change processes. The Change Leadership Toolkit describes an ecosystem model of systemic change leadership that contains three main interacting components: leadership context, levers, and leader moves. The…

The System Transformation for Equitable Preschools (STEP Forward with Data) Framework was developed to help preschool systems leaders understand where in the preschool system there may be inequities in how children and families are accessing, being supported by, and experiencing the system. The Framework offers preschool systems leaders a pathway…

Despite long-standing efforts to address and eliminate disproportionality in special education, inequities remain and continue to negatively impact Black, Indigenous, and other students of color with Individualized Education Programs. This brief from the Western Educational Equity Assistance Center (WEEAC) supports state education agencies, local…

The NSF-funded Envisioning and Enacting an Inclusive and Diverse STEM Professoriate (EEIDSP; NSF# 2041007) Framing the Dialogue for Systemic Equity Reform in STEM Faculty Careers report advances three big ideas we believe are essential for a national dialogue on systemic reform for equity in STEM faculty careers: 1) Tracing, Addressing, and…

An emerging body of literature suggests that systemic efforts to change institutions are enhanced when change actors utilize multiple approaches or strategies to change that capitalize on their individual, team, or organizational assets. Given that little research in higher education has examined the ways leaders deploy multiple strategies in…

Based on working with the Boyer 2030 Commission and strategizing around its focus on the equity/excellence imperative, the author argues that the main impediments for change in U.S. research universities are phenomenological in nature; that is, having to do with the way systems of meaning are structured and experienced. The author argues that U.S.…

The purpose of this systematic literature review of empirical studies was to analyse the results of 20 years of research, related to education reform, to identify factors that support or hinder change efforts. An electronic search identified a total of 160 relevant primary studies published between 2000 and 2020 that were included in the review.…

In today's rapidly changing world, higher education is faced with challenges stemming from globalization versus localization, corporatization versus liberal arts values, and public versus private good. These challenges require creative approaches and innovations to develop new solutions. Additionally, tensions also exist within institutional…

Change is a constant presence within today's higher education institutions. Local faculty professional development opportunities may provide avenues for enacting these organizational changes through personal continuous improvement. While working to meet these organizational priorities, it is also essential that professional development must…

Multi-campus public higher education governance systems exist in 44 of the 50 U.S. states. They include all the largest and most influential public colleges and universities in the United States, educating fully 75 percent of the nation's public sector students. Their impact is enormous. And yet, they are largely neglected and as a tool for…

Today, the topic of education system transformation is front of mind for many leaders. Ministers of education around the world are seeking to build back better as they emerge from COVID-19-school closures to a new normal of living with a pandemic. In response, the authors have developed this shared vision of education system transformation. This…

Drawing on decades of research, policy, and practice, Jennifer A. O'Day and Marshall S. Smith show how strategies for pursuing educational quality and equal outcomes for all students can be linked, presenting an ambitious idea of the future of American education and a comprehensive theory of change for enacting that vision. The authors argue that…

The case for racial equity in higher education cannot be made in isolation from the communities in which our institutions reside. Building a racial equity ecosystem will lead to challenges, triumphs, and many lessons learned from community partnerships and community voices. The practice of racial equity requires a clear understanding of the local…