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Dr. Terry Walker of Adelanto Elementary School District speaks on the collaborative, learner-centered evolution her district is undergoing with the help of Learner-Centered Collaborative.
#k12education #learner-centered
In this month`s Catalyst blog, Devin Vodicka shares why schools benefit from looking beyond surface-level data and gathering insights that reflect learner experiences, educator conditions, and the growth that aligns with their mission and values. When teams see progress in the areas that matter most, momentum follows.
Read the full blog to explore how thoughtful measurement can help your school or district evolve with purpose.
https://learnercentered.org/blog/measuring-what-matters-to-enable-meaningful-learner-centered-change-in-your-school-or-district/
We are excited to announce Dr. Genevieve Clark as our Catalyzer of the Month for November! Here`s more on Genevieve from Learner-Centered Collaborative`s Co-CEO, Devin Vodicka:
"Genevieve brings a rare blend of technical expertise and deep humanity to her role as Executive Director of PK–12 Educational Excellence & Innovation within @vistaunified.
She is leading important work to strengthen Vista’s ability to identify and support students proactively, drawing on multiple data sources and using inferential statistics to illuminate patterns that often remain unseen.
What makes her leadership so powerful is not just the rigor of her analysis, but the way she ensures every data point remains anchored in student stories. Her approach is intensely personalized and relational, grounded in the belief that every learner deserves to be known, supported, and encouraged to thrive.
Before stepping into her current system-level role, Genevieve helped shape the culture and success of Mission Vista High School as an assistant principal—a place where many of these ideas first took root.
On a personal note, it has been especially rewarding to see her apply the concepts she studied years ago when she was a doctoral student in my statistics course. Today, she is translating that learning into meaningful action for thousands of students.
Her thoughtful, learner-centered leadership continues to catalyze positive change across the district, and we are grateful to recognize her as this month’s Catalyzer."
Here`s what our team got up to last week!
⭐️ An engaged group of Guiding Coalition members came together in Templeton USD for a full day of productive struggle and meaning making. We began by elevating student voice, listening to learner videos to center students in our work. Building on that inspiration, we finalized our Portrait of a Learner after another round of feedback and revisions. To close the day, we designed the first draft of our Learning Model, a major step forward in defining what powerful teaching and learning looks like in Templeton.
⭐️ Adelanto Elementary School District educators spent their third Project Based Learning session refining projects they’ll soon launch in classrooms. Teachers left feeling inspired by the possibilities and hope that come from creating meaningful learning experiences for their students.
⭐️ In their Learning Centered Community of Practice, Mentor Teachers in Lindsay Unified focused on growing their own capacity to coach Residents to become both thriving professionals and skilled, standards-based educators ready to contribute to their current and future teams.
Meaningful School Redesign doesn’t happen overnight. It happens through intentional collaboration and iteration.
Our School Redesign Playbook outlines the key phases of successful School Redesign, from forming a design team to implementing and iterating on your plan. It provides tools, frameworks, and real-world examples from schools and districts across the country that are evolving to meet the needs of every learner.
Whether you`re just starting to consider School Redesign or you`re three years into the process, this guide has everything you need to ensure your learners know who they are, thrive in community, and actively engage in the world as their best selves.
Take a look: http://learnercentered.org/tools/school-redesign-playbook
Last month, California educators joined Learner-Centered Collaborative and Scaling Student Success for a tour of Encinitas Union School District`s schools and their Farm Lab to learn about their Portrait of a Graduate.
EUSD`s Farm Lab is a unique,10-acre property that houses multiple components and supports health, wellness, enviro-literacy, and elements of the EUSD Portrait of a Graduate for students and the community.
It was amazing to see the Encinitas team shine and feel pride in their work. They shared the highs and lows of their journey and helped the other participants really reflect on what it means to move from Portrait to practice.
While visiting the elementary schools in EUSD, we saw lots of happy kids, happy teachers, and authentic, meaningful learning. Kudos to Julie Burton, the Farm Lab`s site administrator, and the rest of the Encinitas team for a meaningful and inspirational learner-centered day!
Evolving education isn’t just about adopting new strategies or tools—it’s about creating the conditions for learning to flourish at every level of the system. That means building Professional Learning ecosystems where educators feel seen, supported, and empowered to grow.
Our newest blog by Katie Martin outlines the key shifts school leaders can implement to evolve the way their educators learn, and build a collaborative, growth-based culture.
💡Full blog available at the link in our bio.
🛠️ NEW TOOL FOR EDUCATION LEADERS: Forming a Strong School (Re)Design Team - find it at the link in our bio.
Every successful school redesign starts with the right team. This tool helps leaders intentionally build a group that represents the full school community, from leaders, educators, and learners, to families, and staff, who will guide the redesign process together.
We recommend using this tool as a supplementary resource with our School Redesign Playbook linked in bio.
Use this tool to:
➡️ Identify who will serve on your Design Team.
➡️ Develop messaging that clearly communicates the purpose of redesign to educators, students, and families.
➡️ Plan for collaboration, engagement, and shared ownership across the team.
Last week was a busy week for learner-centered work in action! Communities of Practice, spaces where educators, leaders, and other stakeholders come together to exchange ideas, solve problems, and build knowledge through shared experiences, took center stage. These communities create a safe, collaborative environment to tackle the challenges that arise when shifting towards learner-centered models, and we`ve found them to be supportive and effective elements of education evolutions.
1️⃣ The Mesa Linda Design Team began their Redesign journey by looking at data and feedback from their community. Taking inspiration from other schools and design elements in our new Redesign Playbook, the team of students, faculty, staff, and administrators began ideating on what the future can look like. Check out the Redesign Playbook referenced: https://learnercentered.org/publications/school-redesign-playbook/
2️⃣ Educators at The Innovative School of Temple Beth Sholom gathered for their first virtual Competency-Based Deep Dive Community of Practice. The team reflected on their learner-centered orientation, created stories of their collective "why" for their adopted assessment philosophy, and wrote individual intentions for how they want to grow their competencies.
3️⃣ CTE educators from across Arkansas virtually came together to celebrate ways they`re bringing Durable Skills to life with their learners with the help of AI as a learning experience co-designer through our Learning-Experience Accelerator app. "I used to think I gave my students enough guided practice, but now I think I need more--it would help me avoid re-answering questions," said one participant. You can use the app too: https://learnercentered.org/tools/durable-skills-lea-app/
4️⃣ During the second Scorecard Community of Practice offered in partnership with Scaling Student Success, teams collaborated across districts to identify outcomes and success metrics to track implementation of their graduate profiles and district strategic plans.
💻 Webinar Announcement! 📣
Join us for an engaging one-hour webinar as we explore how systems can embrace meaningful change grounded in agency and real-world learning. This session will:
👉 Introduce the concept of “Big Moves” and how they catalyze sustained, learner-centered change throughout an entire district.
👉 Feature real examples of Big Moves districts are making across the country and the measurable impact it is having on their learners.
👉 Examine the enabling conditions and change management frameworks that are critical for sustainable change
If you`re a superintendent, system leader, or change agent inside a district, this webinar will offer a blueprint for initiating or accelerating Big Moves in your context.
Register at the link in our bio.
💡 Jeremy Utley of @StanforddSchool inspires us to think about how creativity isn’t just what we produce — it’s what we feed our thinking with. When we nurture curiosity, collaboration, and diverse perspectives, innovation follows naturally.
How are you shaping the inputs in your learning community?
As a panelist on The Human Intelligence Movement`s webinar, Durable Skills for the Intelligence Age, LCC Co-CEO Devin Vodicka shared about our Learning Experience Accelerator app that we created with America Succeeds to help educators implement Durable Skills into their curriculum.
Access the webinar and the Learning Experience Accelerator App at the link in our bio.
Day 2 of our Learner-Centered Connections Cohort in Hunter, ND brought 26 educators from Texas, Oklahoma, Minnesota, and California together for an inspiring site visit with our industry partner, @BobcatCompany.
The day began with a powerful panel discussion at Bobcat, where educators explored how learner-centered approaches align with the evolving needs of today’s workforce. Teams then spent time reflecting and collaborating to turn insights into actionable next steps for their schools.
When educators come together with purpose, incredible things happen. Every conversation and connection moves us closer to creating ecosystems where all learners know who they are, thrive in community, and engage in the world as their best selves. 🌍
The LCC networks are thriving! We had a blast at the @FullScaleLearning Symposium in New Orleans last weekend.
👉 We started off with our pre-conference session where teams from Colorado, Wisconsin, Hawaii, Missouri, Montana, California, and more gathered to reimagine assessment through a learner-centered lens.
Participants embraced joy and engaged in reflection, collaboration, and creation, developing their own learner-centered assessment philosophies that honor the whole learner and promote agency, growth, and context.
👉 During the conference, we hosted a total of five sessions on various elements of learner-centered education. We were so excited to see such great energy and engagement at all of them!
We`re so grateful to everyone who joined us for your energy, curiosity, and commitment to reimagining what’s possible for learners.
Last week, district leaders and educators engaged in powerful site visits, exploring how learner-centered design is creating meaningful pathways, stronger communities, and deeper engagement for students.
⭐️A team from Salinas Union High School District engaged in a 2-day Inspiration Visit to four schools in Oakland USD: Latitude High School, Fremont High School, Life Academy, and MetWest. Student-led tours, classroom visits, and conversations with students and educators all revolved around the importance of small learning communities, collaboration, community partnerships, and real-world learning. The team left with actionable insights to continue bringing their Framework for the Future and Portrait of a Graduate to life this year and beyond.
⭐️ The North County Superintendent Network visited Vista High School for showcases of student leadership, career certifications, and high levels of engagement and connectedness for learners. It was inspiring to see a high school focused on learner-led pathways and real-world challenges!
We’ve visited hundreds of learner-centered schools and interviewed many of their leaders to create LCC’s School Redesign Playbook – and it just launched today! 🥳 Check it out at the link in our bio!
Wherever you are in the school redesign process, this comprehensive resource offers tangible examples, inspiration, and tools to build a school ecosystem where all learners know who they are, thrive in community, and actively engage in the world as their best selves.
We’d also like to give a HUGE shoutout and thank you to the many folks who contributed to the final product:
· Dr. Andy Johnsen, @SanMarcosUSD
· Benjie Walker, @VistaAcademyVUSD
· Dr. Bryanna Norton, @HiddenValley_EUSD
· Carmen Sanders, @AlexCityTitans
· Damon Patterson, @VIDAsharks
· Ellen Crews, @VIDAsharks
· Dr. Eric Chagala, @VistaUnified / VistaUnifiedSD
· Jeremy Walden, @MVHStimerwolves
· Kelly Eveleth, @Design39Collaborative
· Kristi Desuacido, @HalauKuManaPCS
· Dr. Laura Philyaw, National School District
· Michael Anderson, West Campus
· Krystle Miller, Conway Academy
· Tyler Thigpen, Forest School/Institute for Self-Directed Learning
