Framework for Reinvention in a Texas District

• In Event: Accelerating Learning: Equity-Centered District Strategies to Support Students During COVID Recovery

Abstract

This study describes the design of a strategic approach for school reinvention in Bayside School District (BSD) in the metro-Dallas region of Texas. As the height of the COVID-19 pandemic wanes, district leaders describe meeting a fork in the road. One path leads back to the pre-pandemic status quo; the other leads to a new paradigm informed by what leaders have learned through the pandemic experience. Leaders in BSD recognize the moment is ripe for carving a new path for students and families. In addition to responding to the immediate COVID crisis, the district has introduced and implemented bold shifts to its approach to schooling. Serving nearly 9,000 students—75% African American, 20% Latino, and more than 70% identified as economically disadvantaged—this district is applying a racial equity lens to tailor its reinvention strategy to the assets and needs of its school community.

Based on a theoretical framework for district leaders advancing racial equity, participation in a professional learning community that supports transformative leadership, and practitioner experience leading through the pandemic, the BSD approach for reinvention consists of four strategic disruptions:

1. Evolving antiquated structures: During 2020-21 school year, BSD radically changed its school day to an 8am-8pm schedule to better accommodate the needs of students, families, and teachers. Learning from that practice, the district is redesigning the school day and year to meet the needs of students.
2. Learner-centered redesign: BSD is shifting to offer rigorous, culturally relevant, and social justice-oriented curricula across its classrooms. Students will demonstrate deep levels of learning through authentic learning tasks and projects.
3. Learner-centered support: The district’s shifts will require significant staff capacity. BSD is investing in expert teachers and coaches, as well as school leaders who can lead the cultural shifts that will be required. The district is partnering with community organizations that can provide social emotional, trauma, and mental health supports to students and families.
4. Tackling the talent gap: BSD is attracting teachers through improved compensation and professional development. All staff will learn to use the liberatory design process to engage in collaborative, equity-based problem-solving at the classroom level.

This paper will detail tactical implementation considerations. For example, the study will describe how the allocation of federal stimulus funds support the district’s strategic disruptions. It will also describe the threats to implementation, including new state legislation that regulates how teachers can facilitate conversations about current events.

This case study is a significant contribution to the nascent field of research focused on the role of district leaders in advancing racial equity through the COVID-19 crisis. Much of the research thus far has been conducted at the height of the pandemic when districts were focused on major health considerations and crisis management. Little is known about how districts will be able to mitigate the potentially long-lasting effects of the pandemic that continue to linger as health concerns become secondary. Importantly, it will detail how district leaders can motivate and implement transformative shifts post-pandemic.

Author

• D'Andre Weaver, Digital Promise Global